Abstract

Having developed a profound vision of the aesthetics of Arab art, the author's perspective quickly evolved into a philosophy worthy of discussion. He had raised this topic more than twenty years before writing this book, sparking discussions about artistic experimentation and its grounding in tradition within conferences, universities, and seminars, as well as attracting the attention of artists and critics in particular. Despite this, the subject still requires extensive academic study, because authenticity is not merely cultural reform, but rather a return to the self, a cultural revolution that rejects the foreign, the imported, and the imposed, in order to revive the authentic and the unique.
It is no longer strange to speak of Arab civilization and art, after Orientalist art historians preferred the terms "Islamic art" and "Islamic civilization" following the rise and spread of Islam. However, the term "Arab" has come to denote art whose traces remain in Arab lands since the advent of Islam. Despite the valuable studies presented by art historians such as the German Kuhnle, the French Marçais, the American Eitanhausen, and many others, which focus on Islamic art in Arab lands and Arab art in general, few have delved into the secrets of Arab-Islamic art or sought to define its philosophy. While the earlier attempts of art historians like Gayet and Davison provided important insights, many analyses were marred by misunderstandings.
These transformations in the structure of Western art no longer allow any critic or writer to hastily view Arab-Islamic art through the lens of traditional Western art concepts. Instead, it is now viewed through the lens of earlier artistic principles, revealing in it a creative expression that predates all other art forms. The value of this book stems from its being one of the most important books that sought to consolidate the identity of Islamic art and confirm its authenticity and uniqueness with its special and absolute character. The author succeeded in achieving his project, as he worked to deepen this research since the beginning of the sixties, and he believed that his research would continue to remain a guide for the movement to establish art in the Arab countries. Indeed, the subject of the aesthetics of Arab art was of interest to artists, calligraphers and critics, in addition to its study as an independent subject in the Colleges of Fine Arts.