A celebration of diversity through Islamic architecture

{"version":"0.3.0","atoms":[],"cards":[["images-card",{"images":[{"url":"http:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dpcbzfiye\/image\/upload\/v1679322536\/ipduu5r5v5kudnp3zm7l.jpg","id":"6605881"}],"caption":"Niujie Mosque, Beijing, China, built in 996 in the Liao Dynasty (Photo: CC License)"}],["images-card",{"images":[{"url":"http:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dpcbzfiye\/image\/upload\/v1679322584\/fsdwpmmbilrr6gb35cnt.jpg","id":"6605884"}],"caption":"Great Mosque of Djenn\u00e9, Mali, Originally built in 13th century \u0026 rebuilt in 1907, (photo: herr_hartmann, CC BY-NC 2.0)"}],["images-card",{"images":[{"url":"http:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dpcbzfiye\/image\/upload\/v1679323053\/tuwfhsir6mbbdk5bnaem.png","id":"6605892"}],"caption":"Architect Hassan Fathy, Dar al-Islam, Abiquiu, New Mexico. (Photo: waqonthewildside)"}],["images-card",{"images":[{"url":"http:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dpcbzfiye\/image\/upload\/v1679323109\/fa83rqerabtmsbbrrbiy.jpg","id":"6605894"}],"caption":"Marina Tabassum Architects, Bait ur Rouf Mosque, Dhaka City, Bangladesh, Built in 2012 (Photo: Marina Tabassum Architects)"}],["images-card",{"images":[{"url":"http:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dpcbzfiye\/image\/upload\/v1679323251\/xrqcxywl1fcykiod3vdw.jpg","id":"6605897"}],"caption":"L.E.F.T. Architects, Amir Shakib Arslan Mosque, Moukhtara, Lebanon, Built in 2016 (Photo: Iwan Baan)"}],["images-card",{"images":[{"url":"http:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dpcbzfiye\/image\/upload\/v1679325661\/bs6baiqwixbgxhw8rd3k.jpg","id":"6605952"}],"caption":" Candalepas Associates, Punchbowl Mosque, Punchbowl, Australia, Built in 2017 (Photo: Rory Gardiner)"}]],"markups":[["a",["href","https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2022\/04\/28\/1095117516\/not-even-water-and-other-things-not-to-say-to-your-muslim-friends-during-ramadan"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=RmGg1sd4708\u0026t=1s"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/www.shrm.org\/resourcesandtools\/hr-topics\/behavioral-competencies\/global-and-cultural-effectiveness\/pages\/supporting-muslim-employees-during-ramadan.aspx"]],["sup"],["i"]],"sections":[[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Architecture is a mirror - a reflection of the world around\nus that speaks to a range of social, ecological, and cultural norms, languages,\nand traditions. In honor of Ramadan, which kicks off on March 22, let\u2019s explore\nIslamic architecture \u2013 a category of design that is as vast and diverse as the\npeople who live in, engage with, and design these spaces. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"But first, what is Ramadan?"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Ramadan is a month-long opportunity for reflection,\nself-sacrifice, and charity, observed by approximately 1.9 billion Muslims from\naround the world."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"During this month (March 22 \u2013 April 21), Muslims who are able\nwill abstain from eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset. "],[0,[0],1,"Yes \u2013 not even water!"],[0,[],0," After sundown, families and friends gather for communal meals\nand enriching prayers. Ramadan culminates with a 3-day holiday called Eid\nEl-Fitr \u2013 filled with food, parties, and a lot of coffee. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"To learn more about how you can support your colleagues this Ramadan,\ncheck out this "],[0,[1],1,"video"],[0,[],0,"\nand "],[0,[2],1,"article"],[0,[],0,"\nfrom the Society for Human Resource Management. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Throughout the month and all year round, Muslims go to\ntheir local mosques for prayers and community gathering. Mosques are one example of Islamic architecture, loosely defined as spaces or buildings inspired by Islamic values, aesthetics, and traditions. \n\n"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Islamic\narchitecture can be sacred or secular and is designed by Muslims and\nnon-Muslims alike. A wide range of designs can be found in all parts of the\nworld, some dating back centuries and continuing to be designed today. Check\nout these six mosques \u2013 ranging from historic to modern and ornate to simple. "]]],[1,"h3",[[0,[],0,"Niujie Mosque, Beijing, China "]]],[10,0],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"The Niujie Mosque in Beijing, China, reflects a blending of Islamic\nand Han Chinese architectural influences. Built of timber in 996, the exterior\nreflects the traditional Chinese style, and the interior prayer hall is adorned\nwith Arabic calligraphy and can hold more than 1,000 worshippers. The\nneighborhood around the mosque is home to over 10,000 local Muslims, halal\ngrocery stores, and even signage in the Arabic language. Today, the mosque is\nactively used for prayers and Islamic programming as well as for visiting\ndelegations from around the Islamic world. "]]],[1,"h3",[[0,[],0,"Great Mosque of Djenn\u00e9, Mali"]]],[10,1],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Located in present-day Mali, the Great Mosque of Djenn\u00e9, is\none of the largest adobe structures in the world. The exact year of its\noriginal construction is unknown, but some estimate it was built around the\nyear 1200. The structure you see today was rebuilt in 1907 and reflects a Sudano-Sahelian\narchitectural style, vernacular construction common to the people of the Sahel\nand Sudanian grassland regions of West Africa. Each year, residents of the city\ncome together in a festival with music and re-plaster the fa\u00e7ade of the mosque\nwith a mud mixture made of butter and fine clay. The mosque is the embodiment\nof a gathering space authored and owned by a multi-generational community. "]]],[1,"h3",[[0,[],0,"Dar al-Islam, Abiquiu, New Mexico"]]],[10,2],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"In the early 1980s, award-winning architect Hassan Fathy (1900-89) designed an education center and mosque in the New Mexican desert.\nThe architect, Fathy, saw commonalities between adobe construction methods in\nNew Mexico with those of his home country, Egypt. Fathy went so far as to bring\nNubian masons to New Mexico to demonstrate the brickmaking and construction\ntechniques common to southern Egypt. Today, the facility is used for philanthropic\nactivities, community retreats, and education programs. This project aims to bridge\nseemingly different cultures across land and sea and is a celebration of our\ncommon humanity. "]]],[1,"h3",[[0,[],0,"Bait ur Rouf Mosque, Dhaka City, Bangladesh"]]],[10,3],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Winner of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture and Jameel\nPrize, Bait ur Rouf Mosque by Marina Tabassum Architects is a brick-constructed\nmasterpiece in Dhaka City, Bangladesh. The perforated brick allows for air and\nplayful light patterns to flow through the space and cultivates a spiritual\nconnection with nature. Located in a dense part of Bangladesh, the architect\nraised the building on a plinth to create a communal gathering area, doubling\nas protection from floods. The traditional brick construction harkens back to\nthe legacy of architecture from Bengal in the Sultanate period. Funded with\ncharitable donations and built by local craftsmen, the project grants visitors\nthe sweetness of a quiet, simple escape from their busy, daily routines. "]]],[1,"h3",[[0,[],0,"Amir Shakib Arslan Mosque, Moukhtara, Lebanon"]]],[10,4],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Only 100m"],[0,[3],1,"2"],[0,[],0," in size, the Amir Shakib Arslan Mosque\nlocated in Lebanon is a small, well-crafted contemporary masterpiece. Completed\nin 2016, L.E.F.T. Architects designed the renovation of an existing masonry cross-vaulted\nstructure and the addition of a new minaret. The project skillfully knits\ntogether the renovated mosque with a new civic plaza, against the backdrop of\nan 18"],[0,[3],1,"th"],[0,[],0," century old palace. The modern structure playfully\ndeconstructs the concept of a traditional minaret, following the linear form\ndown the side of the structure to the plaza, creating a portico and screening\ndevice. The architects intentionally included symbolism, like a fig and olive,\nthat speaks to a multitude of faiths and celebrates interfaith gathering. "]]],[1,"h3",[[0,[],0,"Punchbowl Mosque, Punchbowl, Australia"]]],[10,5],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Not far outside of Sydney, Australia, the Punchbowl Mosque,\ndesigned by Candalepas Associates, is a large complex of buildings designed\naround a quadrangle. It establishes a new home for local Muslims to facilitate\nreligious worship and learning. The designers utilized a concrete raking\nceiling form that references the ornamental vaulting of "],[0,[4],1,"muqarnas "],[0,[],0,"in\ntraditional Islamic Architecture. Each of the interpreted "],[0,[4],1,"muqarnas "],[0,[],0,"concrete\nvaults has a hole in the center and allows for shafts of light to enter the\nspace, permitting daylight to dance as the sun moves in the sky throughout the\nday. The expression of daylight through the building directly speaks to the\nspiritual connection between prayer and nature in the Islamic faith. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Through much of history, and across the world, mosques have\nexisted and will continue to be constructed. And while many of these mosques\nhave similar features, like their orientation towards Mecca, the reality is\nthat they are far more unique and different than they are the same. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"To quote\narchitect, Hassan Fathy: \u201cEvery people that has produced architecture has evolved its\nown favorite forms, as peculiar to that people as its language, its dress or\nfolklore. Until the collapse of cultural frontiers in the last century, there\nwere all over the world distinctive local shapes and details in architecture,\nand the buildings of any locality were the beautiful children of a happy\nmarriage between the imagination of the people and the demands of their\ncountryside.\u201d"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"The universality of Islamic Architecture connotes its\ninherent beauty. It invites every culture, every language, and every person to\nits table as a meeting place of diversity and inclusion. "]]]]}