The Visual Representation of Human in Islamic Art A Critique on the Book “The Human Figure in Islamic Art”

From ancient times to the present, the concept of Representation is one of the intrinsic components of Art, and it is considered as an essential element in human definition and perception of Art. Generally, Representation is embodied as the idea of Similarity of artwork, with the real world, which ultimately becomes a transcript of nature. According to Eva Baer, author of the book The Human Figure in Islamic Art, the concept of Representation in different Islamic periods was not the same as what would be meant today. In this book, the author sets different criteria in the Visual Representation of human, and considers their sources in the cultural and indigenous characteristics of original societies. While she has benefited from ethnic-national classification and the diachronic approach, in order to present the process of Visual Representation of Human in Islamic Art. As in this article, after the formal and methodological review of the book, it will be tried to analyze the concept of Visual Representation of Human in Islamic Art based on the chapters of the present book. Also, according to the appropriate cases, the author’s point of view in this context will be criticized and reviewed by referring to the examples and stories of other Islamic literary and artistic treatise.