Deconstructing the American Mosque: Space, Gender, and Aesthetics

Akel Ismail Kahera

Published by University of Texas Press 2002

Deconstructing the American Mosque

Space, Gender, and Aesthetics

Akel Ismail Kahera

https://doi.org/10.7560/743441

Overview
Contents

About this book

From the avant-garde design of the Islamic Cultural Center in New York City to the simplicity of the Dar al-Islam Mosque in Abiquiu, New Mexico, the American mosque takes many forms of visual and architectural expression. The absence of a single, authoritative model and the plurality of design nuances reflect the heterogeneity of the American Muslim community itself, which embodies a whole spectrum of ethnic origins, traditions, and religious practices.

In this book, Akel Ismail Kahera explores the history and theory of Muslim religious aesthetics in the United States since 1950. Using a notion of deconstruction based on the concepts of "jamal" (beauty), "subject," and "object" found in the writings of Ibn Arabi (d. 1240), he interprets the forms and meanings of several American mosques from across the country. His analysis contributes to three debates within the formulation of a Muslim aesthetics in North America—first, over the meaning, purpose, and function of visual religious expression; second, over the spatial and visual affinities between American and non-American mosques, including the Prophet's mosque at Madinah, Arabia; and third, over the relevance of culture, place, and identity to the making of contemporary religious expression in North America.

Author / Editor information

Akel Ismail Kahera is Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Texas at Austin.

Reviews

This text will be the classic work in the field.... It will be extremely useful for general Islamic studies, for studies of religion in America, and for the study of Islam in America.

— Aminah Beverly McCloud

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
CONTENTS Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Publicly Available Download PDF	xi
INTRODUCTION. The Polemics of Deconstruction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
CHAPTER ONE. Aesthetic Origins and End Conditions Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	25
CHAPTER TWO. Interpretations of Image, Text, and Form Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	63
CHAPTER THREE. Space, Place, and Public Gathering Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	91
CONCLUSION. Reversible Space and Linear Time Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	145
NOTES Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	161
GLOSSARY Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	175
BIBLIOGRAPHY Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	179
INDEX Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	187

Language: English
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Audience: Professional and scholarly;
Pages
- Main content: 208

eBook

Published: January 1, 2010
ISBN: 9780292798366