Based on universal motifs, ornamentation occurs in many artistic traditions, though it reaches its most expressive, tangible, and unique form in the art of the Islamic world. The Mediation of Ornament shares a veteran art historian’s love for the sheer sensuality of Islamic ornamentation, but also uses this art to show how ornament serves as a consistent intermediary between viewers and artistic works from all cultures and periods.

In this richly illustrated book, Oleg Grabar analyzes early and medieval Islamic objects, ranging from frontispieces in Yemen to tilework in the Alhambra, and compares them to Western examples, treating all pieces as testimony of the work, life, thought, and emotion experienced in one society. He defines ornaments as agents that are not logically necessary to the perception of a visual message but without which the process of understanding would be more difficult―they in fact often draw us into a work by strengthening the pleasure derived from looking at it.

A classic work by an acclaimed art historian, The Mediation of Ornament explores four particularly influential forces on the development of ornament: writing (calligraphy),geometry, architecture, and nature. It is essential reading for admirers of Islamic art and anyone interested in the ways of perceiving and understanding the arts more broadly.