The Art of Barzakh ------The Poses, Props and Performances of Masculinity in Pakistani Art
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The Art of Barzakh --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Poses, Props and Performances of Masculinity in Pakistani Art Abdullah, Syed Muhammad Iyhab UNSW Art & Design Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the Doctor of Philosophy UNSW 2015 DECLARATIONS Originality Statement ‘I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and to the best of my knowledge it contains no materials previously published or written by another person, or substantial proportions of material which have been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma at UNSW or any other educational institution, except where due acknowledgement is made in the thesis. Any contribution made to the research by others, with whom I have worked at UNSW or elsewhere, is explicitly acknowledged in the thesis. I also declare that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work, except to the extent that assistance from others in the project's design and conception or in style, presentation and linguistic expression is acknowledged.’ Copyright Statement ‘I hereby grant the University of New South Wales or its agents the right to archive and to make available my thesis or dissertation in whole or part in the University libraries in all forms of media, now or here after known, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. I retain all proprietary rights, such as patent rights. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis or dissertation. I also authorise University Microfilms to use the 350 word abstract of my thesis in Dissertation Abstract International (this is applicable to doctoral theses only). I have either used no substantial portions of copyright material in my thesis or I have obtained permission to use copyright material; where permission has not been granted I have applied/will apply for a partial restriction of the digital copy of my thesis or dissertation.' Authenticity Statement ‘I certify that the Library deposit digital copy is a direct equivalent of the final officially approved version of my thesis. No emendation of content has occurred and if there are any minor variations in formatting, they are the result of the conversion to digital format.’ Title: The Art of Barzakh: The Poses, Props and Performances of Masculinity in Pakistani Art. Abstract: Derived from vernacular and esoteric sources, the research has revealed a series of common visual tropes whose symbolism I unpack through my interdisciplinary art practice as poetic expressions of jalāl (majesty) and jamāl (beauty), to illustrate how Pakistani artists may construct and critically analyse representations of male bodies and the myths of Islamic masculinity, whether present or inferred. This expands the methods artists can use to construct culturally informed masculinities that engage with social, political and religious factors, providing alternative readings to the hegemonic Western notions of Islamic male identity that are often imposed in studies of the Islamic world. Responding to how Islamic masculinities and Pakistani Muslim men specifically are perceived around the world, Pakistani artists have addressed these problems, but for complex cultural reasons the potential for misinterpretation has stymied in depth exploration. This means that Islamic masculinity in the Visual Arts continues to rely on mainstream Western neo-Orientalist readings premised on a monolithic Islam emptied of history, diversity and dissent. Furthermore, Western gender models remain inadequate in identifying Islamic models beyond their legalist tradition, corporeality, and ‘essentialist’ social roles. Through studio-based research, the thesis addresses these issues to develop a more robust model for visualising a Pakistani masculinity that accepts the polymorphous realities of gender dynamics in Islamic visual culture. As a male Pakistani Muslim artist who has lived most of his adult life in the West, my point of departure is gender theory from within Islam itself: I argue the traditional Islamic gender concepts, jalāl (majesty) and jamāl (beauty), provide a model for a ‘balanced’ Islamic masculinity that is fluid and heterogeneous. Furthermore, upon analysis of this model and its application to conceptual and visual practices, I coined the descriptor, ‘Art of Barzakh’ (Barzakh’s literal translation, ‘a veil or partition between two things’), a liminal zone between Islamic tradition and contemporary innovation. I propose this may apply to the art practices of many Pakistani artists, locating the masculine object into a collective schema of jalāli and jamāli qualities, restoring Islamic masculine balance. i (Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim) In the Name of Allah, Most Beneficent, Most Merciful.1 Praise belongs to Allah the Great; His Majesty is part of the manifestation of His Beauty. In His proximity He is the Near, in His loftiness, the Observer. Power, splendour, grandeur, and magnificence are His whose essence is great beyond any resemblance to other essences. His essence is exalted above all motions and stillnesses, all bewilderment and mindfulness. It is too high to be overtaken by any explanation, express or implied, just as it is too great to be limited and described…2 (Ibn 'Arabi translated by Rabia Terri Harris) 1 Traditionally writing or calligraphy in Islam begins with the word Bismillah. Here is a popular Bismillah motif in decorative Arabic calligraphy design. 2 Muhyidduin Ibn ‘Arabi, The Kitāb Al-Jalāl Wa-l Jamāl, trans. Rabia Teri Harris “On Majesty and Beauty” (Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi Society, 1989): 1-2. PDF: http://www.ibnarabisociety.org/articlespdf/jalalwajamal.pdf Also see: Rabia Terri Harris, “On Majesty and Beauty,” Journal of the Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi Society Volume VIII (1989): 5-32. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Abstract……………………………………………………………………………… i 2. Bismillah…………………………………………………………………………..… ii 2. Table of Contents………………………………………………………………….… iii 3. List of Figures and Illustrations……………………………..……………..….…….. vi 4. List of Tables and Graphs…………………………………………………………… xiv 5. Abbreviations and Glossary………………………………………………………..... xv 6. BACKGROUND: A Personal Narrative.……………………………………….... p. 02 7. INTRODUCTION…………..…………………………………………….……….. p. 17 Research Questions………………………………………………………........… p. 27 Approaches to Research…………………………………………….…….……... p. 28 Chapter Synopsis……………………………………………………………..……... p. 32 Case Studies: Introduction………...…………………………...……………..……... p. 35 A. Case Study Responses: Part I…………………...………………………........... p. 41 8. CHAPTER ONE……………………….……………………………..……………. p. 45 PART 1: The Legalist Tradition…………………………………….……………… p. 46 1.1 Definition of Terms………………………...……..…………………...……..… p. 47 1.1.1 Islam, Muslim and Masculinity…………………...….…..…….....…….. p. 47 1.1.2 Islamic Art…….…………………………………………..………...…... p. 48 1.1.3 Pakistani Masculinity, Muslim Pakistani and Pakistani Art..………….. p. 49 1.2 Real Men in Islam: The Noble and The Chivalrous….………….…………....... p. 50 1.2.1 Mardangi and Muruwah: Positive and Negative Islamic Masculinity..... p. 50 1.2.2 Futuwwah: The Chivalry of the Companions…....................................... p. 51 1.2.3 The Code of Chivalry…………………………..…………………….…. p. 52 1.3 Prophet Muhammad (s.a.a.w.): The Model of Perfection…………..………...... p. 53 1.4 The Many Interpretations of Islamic Gender: Masculinity in Crisis…...……..... p. 56 1.5 The Unconventional Masculinity: Revisiting Gender Roles in Qur’an and Sunnah……………...……………….... p. 60 1.6 Islamic Masculinity and Sexuality: Dominant and Submissive…….….…...….. p. 62 1.7 Codified Image of Islamic Manhood in Pakistan…….………………….…....... p. 63 PART II: The Sapiential Tradition……………………………….……………....... p. 65 1.8 From Religious Expression to Symbolic Imagination: Islamic Gender Archetype as Poetic Expression…...….……………………….. p. 66 1.9 al-Asmā al-Husnā as Jalāl/Jamāl/Kamāl: The Archetypes of Islamic Gender..... p. 69 1.10. Variations, Critique and Implication of Jalāl/Jamāl Gender Archetypes…....... p. 73 B. Case Study Responses: Part II…………………...……………………...…...... p. 77 9. CHAPTER TWO……………………………………………………………..…..... p. 81 2.1 The Visual Illustration of Jalāl/Jamāl/Kamāl………………………………...... p. 82 2.2 The Poetic Expression of Jalāl/Jamāl…………………………………….…..... p. 87 2.2.1 The Form of Jalāl, Jamāl and Kamāl………..….…………………........ p. 89 2.2.2 The Form of Hawa……………………………………….…................... p. 89 2.2.3 The Form of Light………………………………………..…………....... p. 90 iii 2.2.4 The Content of Ma’ni…...........……………………………..………....... p. 91 2.3 The Ideal Form………………………………………………………………..... p. 93 2.3.1 Calligraphy……………………………………………………………... p. 94 2.3.2 Arabesque……………….……………………………..……………...... p. 95 2.3.3 Geometry………………………………………………………..…….... p. 96 2.3.4 Geometric Ideal Forms: Square, Cube, Circle, Sphere……….…….…. p. 96 2.4 The Cosmic Circle, The Magic Square and The Divine Names……………..... p. 102 2.5 Ideal Form and the Human Body…………………………………………...…. p. 106 2.6 Figural Representation in Islamic Art: The Veiling of the Male Body and the Artist as Musawwir……………………………………………...……. p. 108 2.7 Expression of Jalāl and Jamāl in Musawwari: Signs, Symbols and Performances of Divine Light…………………….…….... p. 111 2.8 The Art of Barzakh (Amāl-e-Barzakh or Amāl-e-Arāf): Between Traditional and Contemporary Pakistani Art……....….…………………………………..... p. 114 STUDIO PRACTICE: Art Demos I, II, III, IV………….………….…................ p. 126 2.9 Studio Practice……………………………………………………………......... p. 127 2.9.1 Studio as Karkhana…………………………………………………......