Papers by ahmadreza saberi
Woodcarving is a form of Malaysian traditional art. After the advent of Islam in the Malay Penins... more Woodcarving is a form of Malaysian traditional art. After the advent of Islam in the Malay Peninsula in the 13th century (Pasai) and 14th century (Malacca), Islamic motifs such as calligraphic woodcarvings are added to the local art forms, particularly to embellish Malaysian mosques. Although Malaysian mosques have been built using three architectural styles, namely the vernacular, colonial and modern, the designers did not distinguish between the styles when installing calligraphic woodcarving ornamentations in the prayer halls. Furthermore, although many studies have been conducted to investigate the characteristics of Malaysian woodcarvings, findings on the opinions of mosque users are lacking. Hence, this thesis aims to identify the various forms of calligraphic woodcarving ornamentations through the analysis of their writing styles and other characteristics of this ornamentation from the selected peninsular Malaysian mosques. The objectives are: i) to establish the judgments of...
Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2015
Geometry plays a dominant role in thermal situations within city structures. This study aims to s... more Geometry plays a dominant role in thermal situations within city structures. This study aims to seek how this role affects thermal comfort of the visitors in an urban square. Computer simulations were performed along with physical measurements in an urban square during peak hot conditions of summer in Isfahan, Iran. In addition to the influence of built environment inside the square, the results confirmed the role of geometry on thermal conditions. The amelioration effect for the aspect ratio was higher than that of the orientation. Findings are useful for urban design strategies dealing with thermal comfort.
Proceedings of the Colloquium on Administrative Science and Technology, 2014
International Journal of Multicultural and Multireligious Understanding, 2016
A large number of caravanserais were built during the Safavid era in Iran. However, due to the na... more A large number of caravanserais were built during the Safavid era in Iran. However, due to the natural effects and human neglecting actions they are going to be ruined. Adaptive reuse of Safavid Caravanserais can be considered as one of the possibilities to preserve them from being demolished. The present study intends to categorize caravanserais based on the diversity of Iranian geographical and climatic zones as well as their distances from urban centers to determine their potential for adapting reuses. Since several of caravanserais still possess a characteristic building plan to accommodate travelers and are capable of retaining their functional elements, adaptive reuse can be applied. Therefore, the decision to reuse some of the buildings as hotels or restaurants seems rational.
International Journal of Multicultural and Multireligious Understanding, 2015
Woodcarving ornamentation is considered as, a national heritage and can be found in many Malaysia... more Woodcarving ornamentation is considered as, a national heritage and can be found in many Malaysian mosques. Woodcarvings are mostly displayed in three different motifs, namely floral, geometry and calligraphy. The application of floral and geometry motifs is to convey an abstract meaning of Islamic teachings to the viewers. However, the calligraphic decorations directly express the messages of Allah almighty or the sayings of the prophets to the congregations. Muslims are the main users of mosques as these are places for prayers as well as other religious and community activities. Therefore, the assessment of users’ opinion about this type of decoration needs to be investigated. This paper aims to evaluate the perception of two groups of mosque users on the calligraphic woodcarving ornamentations from two regions, namely the East Coast and Southwest of Peninsula Malaysia. As Arabic is not the primary language in Malaysia, it would be interesting to find out how much of the calligrap...
Computers in Human Behavior, 2016
Ornamental calligraphy features sacred inscriptions in mosques as an integral part of its interio... more Ornamental calligraphy features sacred inscriptions in mosques as an integral part of its interior design. This study analyzes the legibility of these Arabic scripts for Malaysian users of mosques, implementing for the first time a quantitative tool for this effort, the ANFIS method. Our purpose is to identify the most influential parameters affecting the readability and understanding of various decorative Arabic scripts. Mosques have important roles in social life and in teaching the Islamic faith to Muslims. We conducted a questionnaire survey handed to the public attending the Sultan Alauddin mosque in Selangor, Malaysia. We subjected the data resulting from this survey to the ANFIS method (the adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system), to identify measurable parameters that play a role in the ability to read decorative Arabic scripts. The ANFIS process for variable selection was implemented in order to detect the predominant variables among the parameters identified. We analyzed how demographic aspects and cognitive skills relate to the ability to correctly interpret these scripts. The results indicated that of the parameters examined, the ability to read Arabic is the one that influences the most, the correct interpretation of ornamental inscriptions of mosques, and the best predictor of accuracy.
Wood carving ornamentation is a significant cultural heritage in the Malay architectural decorati... more Wood carving ornamentation is a significant cultural heritage in the Malay architectural decorative elements particularly in mosque buildings and its beauty is completely noticeable. Decorative elements are adopted as one of the inevitable parts of mosques components. Just a glimpse is needed to find out that wood carving decoration applied in South East Asia mosques have been influenced from several Malay styles. The woodcarving styles which were vastly used in timber mosques in Malaysia include floral, geometry and calligraphy. This study will focus on calligraphy wood carving decoration due to the fact that most of researchers in Malaysia had been concentrated in floral and geometry designs as the main ornamental motifs in timber mosques. The methodology which has been selected for this study will be measure drawing, photography, in-depth interview, questionnaire survey and statistical analysis. The expected results will indicate and improve public understanding about wood carving calligraphy motifs. Furthermore, an analysis of calligraphy design in terms of being combination with floral and geometry motifs will be discussed. However, this research proposal will examine the style of writing (Thuluth, Kufi, Naskh and Jawi) applied in wood carving.
Although several studies have been performed on floral and geometry woodcarving in Malaysia, far ... more Although several studies have been performed on floral and geometry woodcarving in Malaysia, far too little attention has been paid to calligraphy ornamentations. Further knowledge on calligraphy ornamentation in mosques is needed due to the variation of their writing styles (Jawi, Thuluth and Kūfi). This paper presents a discussion on calligraphy woodcarving decoration in terms of contents and writing styles. The Sultan Alauddin Mosque’s ornamentations in Jugra, Klang were analysed descriptively as the case study. The results showed that out of ten different sentences used in the interior decoration, three sentences indicated Prophet Muhammad’s statements (Hadith) and seven sentences showed Quranic verses.
Mosques, as the house of God, have a boundless value among Muslims. They spend their time in mosq... more Mosques, as the house of God, have a boundless value among Muslims. They spend their time in mosques to pray to their God or listen to the religious speeches at least once a week. Although the mosques did not have any ornamentation in the early days of emerging Islam, the necessity of beautification has been a complicated subject among scholars. Woodcarving is a common type of decoration in Muslim countries, particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia, due to the availability of timber from the tropical forests. Woodcarving is known as a cultural heritage, which exists even before the arrival of Islam in these countries. The ornamentation was used in palaces, mosques and houses in varied patterns such as floral, geometry, animals, cosmos and calligraphy. Although several studies have been carried out on floral and geometric wood carving in Malaysia, far too little attention has been paid to calligraphy woodcarving decoration. The current study is conducted to reveal the perception of mosques users on the calligraphic woodcarving in Malaysian mosques. The data was collected through a questionnaire survey. For data analysis, the chi-square and cross-tabulation tests were employed to determine the relationship between groups of genders (Male and female) and the evaluated items such as ability to read and understand Arabic calligraphy, level of aesthetic, function of calligraphy in mosque ornamentations, combination of calligraphy with other motifs and the traits of scripts in the mosque users' point of view. The data was analysed statistically to present the differences between male and female respondents. The chi-square test expresses that there is a significant relationship between male and female respondents on some variables such as skill of reading Arabic words, the opinion that this ornamentation is a requirement for mosques, the legibility and beauty of the calligraphic woodcarving and preferences of Nastaliq and Diwani scripts.
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Papers by ahmadreza saberi