Brand New!! Aniconism Together With Artwork For The Novel Whitechapel Station.

This is virtually some of the artwork beingness commissioned for Crossrail - immediately officially known equally the new Elizabeth Line - from Reading too Heathrow through cardinal tunnels across London  to Shenfield too Abbey Wood inwards the east. (map)

I read a BBC News article this forenoon about How fine art too pattern tin give the sack transform the daily commute.

Subsequently I learned a novel discussion - aniconism - which was non inwards the article but is the discussion which represents what I'd constitute out several years agone patch sketching small-scale muslim children inwards a mount hamlet inwards Bali.

Chantal Joffe inwards her studio

The article described how Chantal Joffe is designing xx images of people inwards a bold cut-out vogue for Whitechapel Station.



This is intended to survive a form of modern-day Matisse facial expression of the people on the streets inwards a higher house the station at Whitechapel.

I know the expanse rattling good - it's only downward the route from where I live.

There is a rattling active street marketplace exterior the station, straight contrary the Royal London Hospital. Almost all the stalls are run past times local men of Bengali heritage - inside the context of an expanse which inwards the past times was traditionally Jewish for decades (and Joffe has a Jewish heritage) but is immediately completely dominated by

• the community too multi-cultural visitors to the rattling large instruction hospital; and 
• past migration from People's Republic of Bangladesh to the area. 
• the enormous East London Mosque too London Muslim Centre a footling farther downward the route - which reflects the numbers attending.

I estimate it's ane of the areas which President Trump mightiness non desire to catch if he always succeeds inwards visiting London inwards an official capacity. He sure as shooting seems to indulge inwards periodically beingness rude virtually it. The local Council voted to ban him from visiting Tower Hamlets terminal week!

The thing which puzzled me greatly was the notion of representing the people of the area.

That's because dorsum inwards the early on 90s a immature man child stopped me from sketching his younger brother.  I hadn't gear upwards out to sketch him - I was only surrounded past times children inwards a marketplace inwards Bedugal inwards Bali equally I tried to sketch the marketplace too the people around too about.

He explained to me that he was a muslim too his organized religious belief meant that I could non pull him or his family.  He was rattling prissy virtually it - too I erased the drawing of his brother.

I'm guessing you've likely guessed past times immediately why I decided to write this weblog post.
Subsequently I read items online virtually the artwork for Crossrail:

• A Sun afternoon on Whitechapel inspires major artwork at New Elizabeth Line Station | Crossrail
• Chantal Joffe to exercise a major novel operate for the Elizabeth trouble station at Whitechapel | Victoria Miro
• Art Capital: Art for the Elizabeth line - virtually the exhibition of artwork - only a footling fleck farther downward the route at the Whitechapel Gallery (13 Mar 2018 - half-dozen May 2018)

The Crossrail Art Programme commissions volition include Chantal Joffe’s (b. 1969, UK) A Sun Afternoon inwards Whitechapel (2017). Inspired past times Henri Matisse, it features a serial of mitt painted cut-outs of people photographed around the station at Whitechapel.

Plus I explored the purpose of fine art inside Crossrail too what approach they had adopted:

• Integrating fine art too infrastructure | Crossrail
• Consultation too Information | Crossrail - looks similar none since 2005
• Crossrail’s Art Programme: Integrating Art And Infrastructure | Crossrail
• Artist inwards Residence | Crossrail
• The Design Line | News And Information About Crossrail Events And Exhibitions  

It appears the approach is much to a greater extent than virtually informing people AFTER decisions convey been made virtually fine art rather than consulting alongside them beforehand equally to what's appropriate to the area.

Take a sneak peek at the novel Elizabeth trouble stations alongside Crossrail’s Pop Up exhibition currently making it’s agency around London.
Learn all virtually your novel station design, world infinite improvements too world fine art installations.
The Pop Up is currently on display at Whitechapel Sainsbury's.

Is making images of local people an number for the local population?

The number equally I saw it was that

• these are non 'generic people' equally such but to a greater extent than specifically people associated alongside Whitechapel 
• meaning at to the lowest degree sone of those who were the dry reason for the evolution of the fine art must survive Muslim.

I started googling this forenoon - partly because of my sense inwards Bali but likewise because I couldn't honour whatsoever comment inwards the diverse articles virtually whatsoever consultation alongside local people virtually what they'd similar to come across equally artwork at their local station (i.e. was at that spot whatsoever investigation of or endorsement of what mightiness only mayhap survive seen equally a controversial approach)

I came to the conclusion that it was exclusively possible nobody was aware of the possibility that at that spot mightiness only survive an issue.

I estimate my full general put on matters such equally this tends towards the "when inwards Rome...".

However at the same fourth dimension I actually exercise non come across the quest of creating something which mightiness survive anathema to the local population - especially if at that spot are lots of alternative options available equally to appropriate artwork. In other words why pass a lot of fourth dimension too attempt on the artwork if at that spot was a direct chances it would survive defaced - literally!

I wanted to clarify what the put of Islam is on the representation of people inwards art - which is when I came across my novel discussion (to me) - aniconism.

Aniconism is the absence of cloth representations of the natural too supernatural dry reason inwards diverse cultures, peculiarly inwards the monotheistic Abrahamic religions. This ban may extend from only God too deities to saint characters, all living beings, too everything that exists. Wikipedia

Which explains why geometric patterns are then rattling dominant inwards traditional Islamic Art.

I likewise came across these references for a topic which has patently been studied inwards depth:

• Figural Representation inwards Islamic Art | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
• Aniconism inwards Islam | Wikipedia
• The Religious Prohibition Against Images | The David Collection
• Aniconism inwards Islamic Art | Islamic Arts too Architecture

From which I concluded that the depiction of images of Islamic people is/is non OK depending on who the people are too how they are depicted too where they are depicted.

Basically to a greater extent than than a fleck of a minefield.

Let's only promise that it's non going to survive an number for the local communities living around Whitechapel!

Crossrail mightiness desire to reverberate on its cultural awareness too consultation policies!

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