This study focuses on the decorative oeuvre of Willem Adrianus Fabri (1853-1925). As one of the few decorative painters from the era 1870-1925, quite a bit of his work has been preserved in situ.... Show moreThis study focuses on the decorative oeuvre of Willem Adrianus Fabri (1853-1925). As one of the few decorative painters from the era 1870-1925, quite a bit of his work has been preserved in situ. Characteristic for his decorative paintings is the great variety of activities in terms of interior types. In his almost fifty-year career Fabri has decorated houses, theaters, churches, government buildings, palaces and passenger ships. From around 1877 Fabri worked for the Rotterdam furniture company C.H. Eckhart. This company belonged to the large furniture factories in the Netherlands. Around 1893 Fabri started his own painting studio. Fabri's oeuvre is pre-eminently representative of the profession of decorative painter in the period described. This area of the applied arts in the Netherlands has been neglected so far. Beside the decoration works of Willem Fabri this study examines his network, sources of inspiration, clients and competitors. Show less
This book is a study of Dutch mosque designs, objects of heated public debate. Until now, studies of diaspora mosque designs have largely consisted of normative architectural critiques that reject... Show moreThis book is a study of Dutch mosque designs, objects of heated public debate. Until now, studies of diaspora mosque designs have largely consisted of normative architectural critiques that reject the ubiquitous ‘domes and minarets’ as hampering further Islamic-architectural evolution. The Architectural Representation of Islam: Muslim-Commissioned Mosque Design in The Netherlands represents a clear break with the architectural critical narrative, and meticulously analyzes twelve design processes for Dutch mosques. It shows that patrons, by consciously selecting, steering and replacing their architects, have much more influence on their mosques than has been generally assumed. Through the careful transformation of specific building elements from Islamic architectural history to a new context, they literally aim to ‘construct’ the ultimate Islam. Their designs thus evolve not in opposition to Dutch society, but to those versions of Islam that they hold to be false. Show less
