Side quest turned main squeeze...
How my obsession with Islamic ceramics, flowers and vases turned into the Flowers and Vases Concertina.
There is a few ways to document the creation of this artist book and knowing where to start has been harder for me when it comes to writing then when it comes to making artwork. So in keeping with the development of the artist book I shall approach explaining its conception in the same way. Join me down the rabbit hole of allowing oneself to turn over all the rocks, reading all the books and searching pinterest for visual clues and tethers. In the case of the concertina sketchbook it was noticing how so many facades, internal ornamentation of domes, ceramic panels and actual vases depicted whimsy and abundance through overgrown Cypress trees, roses and irises. While parrots and peacocks roam from vignette to vignette all while region specific depictions of ceramic bottles, vases and dishes are hidden among the colourful chaos.
Wazir Khan Mosque in Lahore, Pakistan has been a long time favourite of mine. The colours (that green yellow and orange! Swoon!). The entire location offering an escape from the bustle of the old city surrounding it, cut mosaic tiles and colourful ceramic facades with flower and vase motifs all over the wallers, inside and outside the prayer area. This is where I began to connect the dots. I remember all of the Iznik, Qajar, Mughal, Safavid, Damascene examples, so I began to collect them in a file and put them to the side. But it was the minarets of Lahore’s Wazir Khan then birthed the ideas of the arched vignettes.
I began gathering more and more examples and then when I was up to ears in flowers, fountains, parrots and vases I began to edit. I was looking for colour, stylistic difference and visually the images I gravitated towards more. Throughout the entire accordion there are five areas, empire or time periods I was inspire by. I then interpreted them in my own style as one does when they are an artist. I drew inspiration from:
Wazir Khan Mosque- Lahore, Pakistan
Itimad ud Daula- Delhi, India
Vank Cathedral- Isfahan, Iran
Salahuddin’s Tomb- Damascus, Syria
Multan and Sindh tiles- Pakistan
Topkapi Palace- Istanbul, Turkey
*Note this list also follows their appearance from left to right in the sketchbook
Below is thew entire sketchbook, stretched out in all its glory, each vignette side by side. There was no reason to the vignette’s succession, it just represents which I thought of first. I can remember working in the German Bookshop Cafe on Istiklal caddesi and over the weeks of meeting up with different friends while I worked on the book through the drawing, painting and finishing phases the staff began to follow my progress and automatically brought me very predictable order, 1 cortado and a piece of dark chocolate ganache cake
Once I was finished the front of the concertina sketchbook, the backside of the book felt very naked and I relented (this makes me laugh a little, because I did protest it quite a lot). The backside of the concertina sketchbook is a collection of motifs painted in all kinds of blues from here, there and everywhere. This painted collage of motifs represent my as a person navigating the past 17 years as a muslim convert, who has become an Islamic Art specialist as well as an artist and dealing with some very traditionally minded communities when it comes to the pursuit of creativity and I finally just screw it! I don’t care anymore about the constant chatter and I painted my flowers, because I love flowers and I gave it a mint green background because that was a far from the traditional Islamic Arts community as I could get!
Have a look!
Below are some details of the watercolour and gouache posies that adorn the back of the Flowers and Vases concertina. Real and imagined, botanical and stylized, ornate and subdued all have their place on the back of the sketchbook. I used countless resources from personal photos of Iznik motifs, fabric patterns, botanical line drawing compilations, Mughal stone carvings and a little William Morris flair. I hope you like this project as much as I do. There is something satisfying and enjoyable about this artwork stretching out to its 3.32m length before your eyes while simultaneously being able to crinkle its accordion self back in the palm of your hand!
Note: This artwork has recently been acquired by the Harvard Fine Arts Library and is available for viewing. Please contact falibcir@fas.harvard.edu for more information.
It looks great! Congrats on its acquisition :)