Collection: Islamic Art & Sufi Poetry

Muslims believe in one God, whose word was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad in the Qur'an. For this reason the written word sits at the centre of Islamic art. The centre of the Islamic artistic tradition lies in calligraphy, in which the word as the medium of divine revelation plays such an important role. Sufis, who seek an inward closeness to God, developed a poetry of longing. The spiritual seeker is called the lover of God, and God is the Beloved. Poets such as Rumi and Hafez are read as speaking of both earthly and divine love.

About 2 billion people identified as Muslim around 2025. The largest national Muslim populations are in Indonesia, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Nigeria. Sufi poetry is cherished in Persian, Turkish, Arabic and South Asian languages. It is sung in qawwali and enacted by the Mevlevi Order, whose spinning dance, the Sema, represents the soul's journey toward union with God. Muslims differ in how they regard Sufi practice, and Sufi orders differ in method and emphasis.

Islamic tradition does not depict God. The prohibition on representing living beings comes from the prophetic tradition, not the Qur'an. Muslims have interpreted these prohibitions in different ways at different times and places. Religious art therefore favours calligraphy, geometric pattern and arabesque, often on mosque walls and domes. Geometric ornament offers the possibility of infinite growth. Many see in it an image of divine order. Figural painting nonetheless flourished in many courts. The main festivals are Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan, and Eid al-Adha. Many Muslims also keep Mawlid, the Prophet's birthday, though not all do.

Sources: Britannica: Islamic arts · Britannica: Islam – Religion and the arts · The Met: Geometric Patterns in Islamic Art · Fountain Magazine: Love in Sufi Poetry · Pew Research Center: Islam