VISUAL ART EDUCATION: AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE

BUREAU OF RESEARCH AND CONSULTANCY INSTITUT TEKNOLOGI MARA

40450 SHAH ALAM, SELANCOR MALAYSIA

PREPARED B Y :

KHATIJAH HJ. SANUSI

OCTOBER 1998

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VISUAL ART EDUCATION: AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE

PREPARED BY :

KHATIJAH HJ. SANUSI

OCTOBER 1998

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RESEACHER

KHATIJAH SANUSI

SIGNATURE

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CONTENTS

Acknowledgements iii Introduction 1

Chapter 1 The Onslaught of Secular Education 6 Misconceptions of Islamic Art 8 The Repercussion of Western Perspective on Islamic Art 11 Significance of the Study 13 References 22

Chapter 2 Malaysian Art in Perspective 25 The Coming of Islam to the Malay World and its Impact on Malay Culture 26 British Colonization and Its Impact on Traditional Art 30 The Birth of Modern Malaysian Art 33 Art Education in Higher Institution 35 Post-Independent and the Recovery of Islamic Identity 36 Impact of Linkage Problem: Traditional Art and Contemporary Art 38 References 40

Chapter 3 Islamic Art in Traditional Society 43 The Qur'anic Root of Traditional Malay Art 44 Structure of Creative Process in Islam 52 Techniques of Abstraction 63 The Construction of Basic Geometric Pattern 70 Arabesque: Its Malay Version—"Awan Larat" 76 Pictorial Art—Miniature Painting 82 References 95

Chapter 4 Education from an Islamic Perspective 97 Considerations for Islamization of Art 101 The Role of Art in Society 103 The Function of Art Education in Muslim Society 105

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Types of Art Education and Craft Formal Training of Traditional Art References

107 109 111

Chapter 5 The Growth ov VITA Department at POWIA 112 Aims of VITA Course .114 Course Structure and Curriculum 117 The Dar al-Muqri Crafts School: Main Aims and Art/Crafts Program 120 Proposals for Islamization Program at FSSR 123 Implication for Education 128 References 132

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A portion of this book was presented as a term paper while a student with Professor Emeritus S.H.Nasr at Temple University in 1989. His positive response, guidence and suggestions have encouraged me to pursue further research through the years. My deepest appreciation and gratitude therefore goes to Professor Nasr who was the first to encourage me to research deeper into what he called as a "pioneering effort" for a noble cause.

I would also like to express my thanks to the generous support and much help in the preparation of this book. They include: the Director of the Bureau of Research and Consultancy, of Institute Technology Mara, Associate Professor Dr. Norsaadah Ismail; Dr. Rahmah Mohd. Rashid of BRC; Professor Dr. Abdul Shukur Hashim, Dean of FSSR; the former Dean of FSSR, Professor Dr. Muhammad Tamyez Bajuri; Mrs. Sutinah Md. Kassim; Mrs Ramlah Deris, and Mr. Abd. Wahab Mohamad who has been very patient and helpful whenever I encountered technical problems with my personal computer.

Finally, my deepest appreciation and gratitude to my husband Dr. Sulaiman Esa, himself an Islamic art scholar, who has provided the strongest and closest support eversince this project took place. Of course, my deepest gratitute to my four wonderful children who

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have understood my commitment and profession especially when my field work took me as far as Morocco, London and Indonesia. Without their encouragement and understanding, this book may not be written.

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INTRODUCTION The adverse effects of western secularization in

all aspects of human endeavour especially in the field of education have been recognized by Muslim scholars throughout the Muslim world during the last two decades. Some even fear that the constant bombardment to secular worldview will gradually erode the identity of Muslim world and will suffer the same moral decadence as that found in the West. In order to prevent these adverse effects from spreading and as well as preserving Muslim identity, all Muslims must commit themselves to ensure that an education system which firmly based on Islamic precepts and concurrently influence all branches of knowledge that are useful for the Muslim ummah.

The First International Conference on Muslim education conference which was held in the holy city of Makkah in 1977, marked the beginning of the reappraisal and reevaluation of all systems and approaches to education in existing Islamic world today. Among the crucial proposals advanced by these Muslim scholars and thinkers, is the Islamization of knowledge (Husain and Ashraf, 1977).

In order to resolve the loss of identity, the cultural dichotomy, and to revive the spiritual and traditional values endangered by the process of secularization, the Conference proposed that Muslims

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should attempt to Islamize all realms of knowledge including the field of art and sciences in terms of Islamic epistemology, axiology and morfology. Western world view cannot be the yardstick to evaluate things Islamic simply because western humanistic and scientific perspectives conflict to Islamic worldview since the idea of metaphysics and transcendentality are unacceptable to them.

Malaysia, a country which is essentially Muslim with Islam its official religion, is among the most committed Muslim countries to achieving this objective. The critical need for instilling Islamic values was realized among Malaysian educators also more than two decades ago. Concomitantly, a number of higher institutions in Malaysia including the National University, the International Islamic University, Science University, University Malaya, have attempted in restructuring the teaching of a number of academic subjects like science, mathematics, philosophy, socilogy, economics from an Islamic perspective.(Sanusi, 1988)

Inspite of these admirable efforts, there is one area of study which is yet to be given greater emphasis, viz. art education which is relatively new area of study in a country like Malaysia. The first art school in Malaysia, popularly known as the School (now

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named as a Faculty) of Art and Design, its acronym FSSR, of Mara Institue of Technology, was established three decades ago. The absence of Islamic model in art education system, which would be most appropriate due to 99% of its students are Muslims, KSSR, since its inception adopted the western model of art education system both in philosophy and course content. Essentially, the philosophy and rationale underlying the teaching of art in the West is humanistic and secular in nature. It is geared to promoting the talent, artistic sensitivity, psychological needs and creative impulses of the individual. While this approach accords with western cultural aspirations, serious problems arise when it is transplanted into a foreign culture like Malaysia, whose cultural ethos is deeply rooted in religious and traditional valufes.

As a result of Malaysia's commitment to the process of Islamization especially in education, FSSR today finds itself caught in a cultural and educational dilemma. By adopting the secular Bauhaus system of education and neglecting the spiritual dimension, it has created serious adverse effects among its Muslim students. Consequently, after thirty years of existence, while impressive success has been achieved by FSSR in the socio-cultural and socio-economi fields, she has yet to pursue efficient measures to ensure her

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effort in creating spiritually developed young Muslim ummah to the best possible means.

Unless Islamic-oriented art programs are designed for these Muslim students, most educators believe that the hope of creating an intellectually, spiritually and morally viable generation of Muslims, who can overcome the onslaught of secular education, will never be realized. This research therefore, has one fundamental objective—that is, to propose an Islamic approach to art education system which would be most appropriate within the climate of Malaysian context. This noble effort may be the most difficult task to pursue since no one country in Muslim world has undertaken the complex and arduos task towards creating innovating an art education program which suits the Muslims epistemology, axiology and morphology. To achieve this objective, this research will be divided into five chapters. First, it describes the negative effects of secular art education system and miscpnception on Islamic art. The second chapter will describe the problem of linking between the traditional Malay Islamic art and contemporary art which would impact on the program development specifically at higher institution. Third, will discuss some of the basic considerations and components as prerequisites for Islamization process. The fourth chapter describes a

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comparative study with regards to art education programs at Muqri Craft School in Fes, Morocco and VITA (Visual Islamic and Traditional Art), London, as basis for reference in planning Malaysia's art program from Islamic perspective. Finally, it will present proposals for Islamic art education program— a perspective that would meet the contextual need and aspirations of Malaysia as a developing Muslim country.

Since a module on the approach to teach visual art form an Islamic perspective which is viable for art institutions has not been thoroughly researched by Muslim scholars anywhere, much in the suggestions that will be advanced herewith can only be tentative and viable for further study. It is hoped that this study may make a small contribution in guiding Muslims and non-Muslims alike in the understanding of Islamic art through the manifestation of Malay-Islamic theory of aesthetic principles in art education program at higher level.

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CHAPTER 1 The Onslaught of Secular Education

The majority of students admitted to FSSR are mainly from rural areas and thus least affected by the process of modernization. Social life in these rural areas is unharried and peaceful with religious and cultural traditions being very much part of the daily reality. Coming from such a background, it is therefore not unusual tthat these students suffer "cultural shock" once they are exposed to the more competitive and aggressive way prevailing at FSSR, an atmosphere which is engendered by the Western and secular mode of education.

Since there is a great stress on individuality, creativity and originality, with little emphasis on spiritual education, it is inevitable that a highly individualitic, original, aggressive and materialistic type of student begind to emerge as a consequence. The students are instilled with the idea that the artist is a revered being, a genius, superior than others.

The rational and philosophy adopted by western approach to art education (especially Fine Art) is virtually separated from design. Despite their common usage of the basic vocabulary of line, shape, form, color, space, etc. students do not share tha same aims, creative process or status as applied art. Fine Art

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become elitist in nature, and remains in the "ivory tower", divorced from the general public. On the other hand the current situation of applied art in this modern world, is often commerciallized in its orientation which involves problem-solving on a purely practical level. It is not expected to fulfill any spiritual need of the people, except on a very basic level * Although aesthetic values are often incorporated, their aim is mainly and rarely goes beyond worldly matters.

From the socio-moral point of view, due tho their materialistic and selfserving nature, the graduates may not be able to contribute meaningfully to the Malaysian society which is morally and spiritually motivated. Some become "petty bourgouise" and are obsessed with endless aquisition for material wealth and are only striving for their own well being. In a country like Malaysia which is steeped in its religious and traditional values, this materialistic ethos has created tensions and alienation. The situation has caused much decadence that, it has attracted great concern among Malaysian educators and intellectuals alike. What is the most rational steps that FSSR should take to prevent further loss of socio-cultural and moral ethical values among the young Muslims? Perhaps the most logical position for FSSR is to correct the

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misconception with regards to Islamic art before any further actions which will be discussed in the following text.

Misconception on Islamic Art From the intellectual, cultural, and artistic

perspectives while the Muslims feel much indebted to western scholars in expounding and propagating Islamic art to the Muslim and non-Muslim world alike. What these scholars had written to certain extent are valuable for Muslims. Cresswell, for instance had written two extra ordinary large volumes of his fieldwork in the Middle-eastern countries in Islamic art and architecture in much detailed and complex approach unmatched yet by any Muslim architecs or scholars.(Cresswell, 1912) Nonetheless, inspite of their noble effort and due to their western orientation of Islamic art, the feeling of dissatisfaction and disappointment also pervade among Muslim scholars because of inaccurate interpretations by Western scholars.

The Western approach to the study of Islamic art whether in terms of taxonomy, iconography, historical and the like, can be characterized as uncompromizing preoccupation which is limited only to the external and observable form. Factors such as esoteric meaning,

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perceived and experienced from within do not concern scholarship.(Faruqhi, 1982)

The following are some examples of unfavorable interpretations of Islamic art by Western scholars which to certain extent, has had direct influence on the Malaysian artists and art critics specifically their interpretations of Islamic art of Malaysia. i) Islamic art is merely decorative

To most Western scholarsn Islamic art is relegated to the status of being purely decorative art. To Herzfeld. the arabesque is just plain Muslim "bigotory.11 To Ettinghausen, the Muslims were responsible for the "jumping-jack appearance"—a condemnation attributed to the figurative composition in Persian miniature painting. Hence, from these exerpts Islamic art is therefore considered by Western scholars as something whimsical, frivolous, contentless and thus devoid of civilizing content. ii) Islamic art as socio-political exhortations:

The aims and motivations underlying its genesis and developments are often attributed to political, social or even psychological reasons and never religious or spiritual. The erection of the Umayyad "Al-Aqsa Mosque" in which lays the "Dome of the Rock" is attributed to the exegesis of Muslim emperial power, and owe nothing to the demand of religious faith. In

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short, the erection of the "architecture of power" was to glorify the Uraayyad military and political victory over their vanguished Byzantine enemies! ( Grabar, 1977)

Dimand on the other hand attributed the Muslims propensity for infinite pattern betray their psychologicallly-inflicted phobia for empty spaces—an aversion denoted by the term "horror vacui". Thomas Arnold holds that the Muslims failed to draw human figures due to their inability to express emotions and human anatomy (Al-Faruqhi, 1970) iii) The Qur'an as irrelevant to Islamic art:

Cresswell denied that there is such an entity as Islamic art. To him there is only the art that are produced by the Muslims. The underlying postulate in his claim is that the Qur'an as Islamic revelation is irrelevant in the creation of Islamic art. (Cresswell, 1969)

Ettinghausen went even a step further when he maintained that Qur'an is even hostile to art. Simply because the sacred text is adverse to luxury—an art that is certainlly an activity which he considers luxurious. Hence the birth of Islamic art is a default.(Al-Faruqhi, 1962)

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The Repercussion of Western Perspective on Islamic Art One direct consequent of this secular,

materialistic approach (due to empirical-phenomenological influence) in the interpretation of Islamic art by Western scholars has caused much confusions and misinterpretations concerning the origin, nature, role, hierachy and defination of Islamic art.

For example, Cresswell argues that there is no such thing as islamic art but only Muslim art. He thus denied the claim made by many Muslims for the religious and spiritual revelation and made the assumption that the Qur'an has no relevance in the discussion of the origin and development of Islamic art. Rather, its origin and development are shaped by socio-cultural and soci-political factors.

In " The origin of Islamic Art," Ettinghausen went a step further when he asserts that not only the Qur'an is unsupportive in the creation and development of Islamic art, it is downright inimical. (Ettinghausen, 1962) Further examples of Western orientalists' misinterpretations of Islamic art is provided by Dimand who declares that the prime motive behind the Muslims' propensity and involvement with the infinite patterns (arabesque) was their innate psychological phobia of empty space. In advancing the infamous thesis of

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"horror vacui", Dimand argues that the reason for the early Muslims' (Arab) fear for empty space is traceable to their over extended exposure to the vast and hostile ambience of the desert (Dimand, 1930).

Equally misleading is the arguements provided by Grabar in his explanation for the genesis of early Muslim architecture. For example, he argues that the erection of the mosque of the Dome of the Rock (al-Aqsa Mosque) was motivated by the Muslim emperial power and has no relation at all to Islamic faith.

It cannot be denied that these misinterpretations with regards to Islamic art also echo in the Malaysian art critics since majority of them (artists turned critics) were themselves trained in the West. When they try to evaluate Malaysia's Islamic art, they cannot but commited the same "crime" by accusing Islamic art as "tired old motifs derived from past traditions," "intellectually impoverich" and "mereld decorative art — at best as a form of craft." (Sanusi, 1996). Notwithstanding, despite these negative comments from some Malaysian art critics, contemporary Islamic art of Malaysia has developed consistently with a number of major art shows which had impacted the local art scene. Some art critics and writers even claim that contemporary Islamic art has now attained its mainstream position as one of the creative arts in the

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country. Nonetheless, indentifications of these adverse

interpretations of Islamic art by Malaysian art critics would provide certain 'guidelines' concerning issues that need to be clarified before current curriculum content can be designed.

Significance of the Study Any justification for art programs in schooling must be based in the discreteness of their content. It is proposed that art education find its source in art theory. It is proposed that consistent theoretical bases for art education have not been described (Kerschner, 1982) Kerschner calls for the identification and

examination of theoretical propositions for their plausibility and consistency before adoption as grounding for the content of art programs. Unlike the schools, whose art program accords to the art curriculum of Malaysian educational policy, art education in Malaysia's higher education institutions adopts a Western view art education. The absence of consistent theoretical bases in art programs is one of the major factors contributing to the lack of continuity and consistency in art education either within public schools or colleges or between them. The issue of identifying theoretical propositions as bases for consistency in art programs, as posited by Kerschner, is applicable in the Malaysian context.

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As shown by history, art education in Malaysia has adopted a Western art education perspective—the Bauhaus system of art education. Essentially, the fundamental philosophy and rationale tinder lying art education according to this system is rationalism, scientism and humanism. The main objective is to cater to the development of intellectual and creative artistic talent of the individual, nurturing the concept of art-for-art's-sake. The notion of spirituality, subjectivity and cultural representation (as in traditional Malay art), does not have relevance in Bauhaus art.

While the Bauhaus approach accords well with Western tradition and aspirations, serious problems arise when it is transplanted into a non-Western environment such as Malaysia, whose ethos is rooted in Malay traditional values. Malay art students who are instilled with traditional Malay values, find Bauhaus art education problematic. The secular approach to art education gives rise to conflicts. Such is the predicament facing the art school which is locally known as Fakulti Senilukis dan Senireka (FSSR). whose students are mostly Malays.

The Fine Arts department of FSSR is illustrative of the need for this study. It adopts the perspective of art education in the West, where subjects like

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painting, sculpture, drawing, printmaking, art history, etc. are offered. Since the stress is on the importance of individualism, creative expressions and naturalism, little emphasis is given to transmission or appreciation of traditional art. Instead, the students are instilled with the idea that the fine artist is a "revered" being, superior to others. Inevitably, highly individualistic and aggressive artists have begun to emerge. Their works, such as painting and sculpture, are supposedly "modern," and become reminiscent of those of De Kooning, Pollock, Matisse, Picasso, Diebenkorn, Hockney, and other Western artists.

The Malaysian public find these abstract renditions of Western art incomprehensible, both socially and artistically. Contextually, such art works are not only "alien" to their culture, but also irrelevant, and consequently receive poor public reception whenever there is a modern art exhibition.

In underscoring the current predicament that faces KSSR, Awang Had Salleh, an eminent Malaysian educator, believes that the blind adoption of Western art education values has caused artistic and spiritual alienation. He observes:

There is one aspect concerning the cultural development in Malaysia that deserves our attention; namely the existence of two dichotomous worlds. First there is the traditional world that is underdeveloped and gradually diminishing; second, there is the modern world that is Western

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and alien. There seems to be no compatibility between the two... In the after-effect of gaining Independence, we do not seem to have in actual sense the ability or sustenance to think of an educational philosophy that is truly ours.... (Salleh, 1980, p. 2)

Ismail Zain, the Director of Culture, lamenting the absence of a sound philosophical base for Malaysian art education, writes:

... art education in Malaysia lacks continuity between the formal education and its social milieu... most disturbingly the art program in higher education never questions the philosophy, the rationale that Western-oriented art programs adopted. (Deraman, 1978, p. 7) Arnheim, a world-known philosopher and art

educator, also shares in the idea of philosophy as the point of departure in art program development. He avers:

The history of art shows that successful art has never been devoid of significant content. Often this was supplied by the religion or the philosophy of the times... A principal mission of art education is to counteract this cultural drought, a task that depends largely on the spirit that guides the work in the art room itself. (Arnheim, 1989, p.51) Discerning the socially-alienating spirit of

modern Malaysian art, Zain could not but comment on Malaysian modern art as not in correspondence to the political, social or aesthetic needs at the national level. He maintains:

As a result, the dichotomous existence of Modernism in an environment which is not entirely in equanimity with its canons of the West has not only proven to be problematic, but, in extreme

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cases, also leads to cultural delusions... Thus the Malaysian experience shows that in the absence of a sound philosophic base entrenched within a system that operates on a national level and the consequential epistemology arising therefrom, the pervasive attitude is to value the more prosaic and explicit aspects of Modernism... (Zain, 1989, p. 23).

What would be the appropriate content for an art curriculum that would suit a country like Malaysia whose artistic, traditional and spiritual values are rooted in its population? Three factors could provide a point of reference in determining the direction, the philosophical basis and justification for content in art education. First is the two recommendations of the National Cultural Congress held in Kuala Lumpur in 1971: i) to restore the role and status of Malay indigenous and traditional art forms and elements as vital components in the formation of Malaysian culture; ii) to recognize Islam as a crucial element in Malaysian cultural development. Second, is the national educational policy which emphasizes implementations of a common curriculum which includes local content such as the history, art and culture of Malaysia with the aim of preserving and transmitting the cultural heritage of Malaysia's multi-ethnic society in an attempt to maintain national identity. (Wan Teh, 1983)

In consonance with the idea that art begins with

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