Lecture series on architecture and design

Two more presentations in the three-part series to be held at Masrah Al Qanat on October 22 and 26

The School of Architecture and Design (SA&D) at the American University of Sharjah (AUS) is collaborating with the Qanat Al Qasba authority in Sharjah on the special Ramadan programme of the Excellence in Architecture and Design Lecture Series.

The three-part lecture is held at Masrah Al Qanat, with speakers discussing architecture, urbanism and the arts.

The first lecture was presented on October 12 by Dr Nadia Al Hasani, professor of Architecture and assistant vice-chancellor of Academic Affairs, titled The Building of Al Andalus: Delicate Strength, Bold Fragility.

The lecture focused on the architecture of Andalusia and the roles of the diverse people who made it possible.

Dr Nadia said that one of the main principles conveyed by the architecture of Al Andalus is the transfer of cultural identity through art, which can best be seen in the Great Mosque of Cordoba and the Alhambra.

In order to describe the cultural atmosphere in Al Andalus, Dr Nadia compared it to the current situation in Dubai.

"Dubai has a lot of expatriates, and there are a lot of different cultures represented one way or another. That means we have communication, which is exactly the same as in Al Andalus," she said.

The Arab conquest of Al Andalus in about AD750 brought three different cultures together - Syrian, Mediterranean and Roman. This made Al Andalus unique since no other part of the world at that time was able to integrate several diverse cultures.

The beginning of Al Andalus came with the fall of the Umayyad dynasty in AD756, when the young prince Abdul Rahman I, also known as Abdul Rahman Al Jaffer, fled to North Africa and continued on to Al Andalus.

Within a couple of years he decided that Cordoba, which was already an ancient city, would be the capital of the new Umayyad dynasty in Europe.

Dr Nadia said Andalusian architecture traces its roots to monuments in the present-day Middle East. The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem is one of the earliest examples of Muslim architecture, and has a number of unique aspects that influenced Al Andalus.

"It has Roman characteristics such as columns and arches to create the sensation that it was higher than it really was. This gives the impression that the building was lifted into heaven."

The two colours of the arches in white and green show that this is where Andalusian architecture originated, as it is commonly known for its distinguished white and green.

Dr Nadia presented interesting points that are relevant to our knowledge of the background of mosques.

"One reason why mosques have minarets is because they originated in Syria," she said.

The Great Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, most scholars agree, established the architectural style of present-day mosques since it was the first to have minarets.

"The building was originally a church, and later it was converted into a mosque. But the church's belfry was retained because it was useful."

In the densely populated city of Damascus you could see the belfry from a considerable distance. It was then decided that the minaret would be equal in height to the belfry and therefore, when Muslims entered the city, they could easily locate the mosque.

Andalusian architecture reflected its Syrian heritage by following the tradition of making square minarets, which continues to this day.

The Kufic style of Arabic script originated in the Iraqi city of Kufa. Featuring an angular style of 90 degrees, it is very simple and very geometric. Originally used to record the Quran, it later became incorporated into architecture, such as in the mosque of Cordoba.

Arab speakers who have visited the mosque would have difficulty reading the inscriptions on the walls.

Dr Nadia explained why. "When we read a book, we read it from right to left. But non-Arabic speakers read from left to right, so they look at the script in the wrong direction. So when the inscriptions were made on the mosque in Spain, they were carved from left to right because the people who made them could not read Arabic."

The second presentation will be held on October 22 by Dr Ahmad Mokhtar, Associate Professor of Architectural Engineering, who will present a film on Design Guidelines for Ablution Spaces in Mosques and Islamic Praying Facilities.

The film identifies various issues connected with the design of proper, efficient ablution space in mosque architecture to make ablution an easy and enjoyable experience.

The last presentation is scheduled for October 26 by Dr Samia Rab, associate professor of Architecture and Heritage Management and chair of the Architecture Department.

Her presentation is titled Rehabilitating Historic Cities in the Islamic World: Lahore, Cairo and Sharjah.

It will examine conservation efforts in these three cities within the context of international charters of architectural restoration and conservation.