BIBLIOGRAPHY

The theoretical foundation of the practice—translating classical textual strictures into a durational, Al-Tarākumiyyah drawing protocol—draws from sustained study of Islamic jurisprudence, historical art theory, and Western critical discourse.

Islamic Creed, Jurisprudence & Legal Rulings

  • Al-Jāmī, Muḥammad ibn Amān ibn ‘Alī. The Islamic Creed and Its History: A Historical Insight into Sects and Divisions. Translated by DuSunnah Publications. DuSunnah Publications, 2014.

  • Al-Musnad, Muḥammad ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azīz, coll. "Pictures, the Media, Singing and Music." In Fatawa Islamiyyah: Islamic Verdicts, Vol. 8, 152–205. Verdicts by Sh. Abdul-Azīz Ibn Bāz, Sh. Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymīn, Sh. Abdullah ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Jibrīn, The Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta, and The Fiqh Council. Darussalam, 2002.

  • Bāz, Abdul-Azīz Ibn. "Ruling On Taswir (Idols, Painting, Drawing, Sculpture, Photography) Of Any Being With A Soul." AbdurRahman.Org. February 6, 2013. https://abdurrahman.org/2013/02/06/ruling-on-taswir-idolspainting-drawingsculpturephotography-of-any-being-with-a-soul-shaikh-ibn-baaz-rahimahullaah/

  • Shākir, Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd al-Raʾūf, coll. and trans. The Islamic Ruling Concerning Tasweer: Two and Three Dimensional Images, Drawings, Paintings, Photography and Sculptures. Zakee Muwwakkil Books & Articles/CWP Publishing & Distribution, 1998.

Islamic Aesthetic Theory

  • Al-Jawziyah, Ibn al-Qayyim. "The Status of the Pen" (excerpt from At-Tibyan fee Aqsamil Qur'ān). Translated by Abu Aaliyah Abdullah ibn Dwight Lamont Battle. Accessed April 2, 2015. https://www.abuaaliyah.com/the-status-of-the-pen-ibn-qayyim-al-jawziyyah/.

  • Al Faruqi, Lois Ibsen. "An Islamic Perspective on Symbolism in the Arts: New Thoughts on Figural Representation" In Art, Creativity, and the Sacred: An Anthology in Religion and Art, edited by Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, pp. 164–178. The Continuum Publishing Company, 1995.

  • Al Faruqi, Lois Ibsen. Islam and Art. National Hijrah Council, 1985.

  • Al Faruqi, Lois Lamya. God in Visual Aesthetic Expression: A Comparative Study in Transcendence Symbolization. Temple University, 1981.

  • Hanash, Idham Mohammed. The Theory of Islamic Art: Aesthetic Concepts and Epistemic Structure. The International Institute of Islamic Thought, 2017.

  • Majallat al-Ḍiyāʾ. "Al-Ghazw al-Thaqāfī fī Majāl al-Funūn" [Cultural Invasion in the Field of the Arts]. Al-Diya Magazine, no. 8 (1998). Accessed via Balagh Digital Archive. https://www.balagh.com/13976. (Parallel linguistic discovery noted post-formation of al-tarākumiyyah; concept originally inspired by the Speech of Allah in the Qur'ān [24:43] where Allah says يَجْعَلُهُۥ رُكَامًۭا [Yaj'aluhu rukāman] i.e. Piles them into dense, multi-layered heaps when He Speaks about the clouds that bring rain).

Islamic Lectures and Media

  • Al-Albānī, Muhammad Nasir al-Dīn. "The Ruling of Drawing and Displaying Pictures of Inanimate Objects" Hosted by Markaz Al-Sunnah, YouTube video, 1:16, June 8, 2023. https://youtu.be/gDq_HcTeLJM

  • Al-Albānī, Muhammad Nasir al-Dīn. The Ruling of Photography Pictures" Hosted by Abderrahmane Al-Zewwawi | عبد الرحمان الزواوي, YouTube video, 21:33, April 23, 2025. https://youtu.be/RzkUOeC5inA

  • Bāz, Abdul-Azīz Ibn. "The Ruling on Photography and Videos" Hosted by Masjid DaaruSunnah, YouTube video, 3:45, February 13, 2020. https://youtu.be/WH0wU65zSBU

Western Secular Critical Theory and Aesthetics

  • Barzun, Jacques. The Use and Abuse of Art. Princeton University Press, 1974.

  • Elkins, James. On The Strange Place of Religion in Contemporary Art, Chapters 1–2. Routledge, 2004.

  • Kandinsky, Wassily. "Part I: About General Aesthetic." In Concerning the Spiritual in Art, translated by Michael T. H. Sadler, Chapters 1–3. Dover Publications, 1977.

  • Shalem, Avinoam. "What do we mean when we say ‘Islamic art’? A plea for a critical rewriting of the history of the arts of Islam" In Journal of Art Historiography Number 6 (June 2012).

  • Wolfe, Tom. The Painted Word. Picador, 1975.

Lectures and Media

  • Anderson, Jonathan A., and James Elkins. "The Invisibility of Religion in Contemporary Art." Hosted by University of Notre Dame Press, YouTube video, 49:54, March 25, 2025. https://youtu.be/tRkdtgmVtEc

  • Elkins, James. Concepts and Problems in the Visual Arts (Complete Lecture Series). Hosted on YouTube. Playlist Link

  • Elkins, James. "An Imago Conversation - Religion & Contemporary Art." Hosted by John Franklin, YouTube video, 29:10, May 23, 2013. https://youtu.be/kpLWryFe7vE

  • Elkins, James. "Concepts and Problems in the Visual Arts, Lecture C25: Art and Religion." YouTube video, 21:12, January 28, 2022. https://youtu.be/Z-qvGgvFrcM

  • Elkins, James. "On the Strange Place of Religion in Contemporary Art." Hosted by Biola University, YouTube video, 55:56, March 15, 2008. https://youtu.be/U88POHX1Jo4

  • Elkins, James. "Shiv Nadar University | Dr. James Elkins on Artistic Research and Knowledge." Hosted by Shiv Nadar University, YouTube, 1:29:29, December 16, 2021. https://youtu.be/IbOub9UUFjI

  • Hickey, Dave. "Art in A Democratic Society." Hosted by the University of Memphis, YouTube video, 1:06:15, April 17, 2007. https://youtu.be/pa4SJ7GvDk8

Currently Reading

  • Gruber, Christiane. The Image Debate: Figural Representation in Islam and Around the World. Gingko, 2019.

  • Anderson, Johnathon A.. The Invisibility of Religion in Contemporary Art. University of Notre Dame Press, 2025.

  • Loia, Donato. "Toward a Field of Contemporary Art and Religion: Introduction to the Symposium on Jonathan Anderson’s ‘The Invisibility of Religion in Contemporary Art’" In Religious Studies Review Vol. 52, No. 1, (March 2026).

  • Lovatt, Anna. Drawing Degree Zero: The Line from Minimal to Conceptual Art (Refiguring Modernism). Penn State University Press, 2019.