Project Einheit Mihrab
Client Architecture Forum of Austria
Location Linz, Austria
Date 2012
The exhibition “Interior View SOUTHEAST” examines the form and identity of Islamic prayer and cultural spaces that are commonly hidden from public view. The show provides an overview of the history of the architecture of mosques and demonstrates current trends and conceptual formulations. Asking artists to confront the theme of the agglomeration and interaction of cultural symbols, “Interior View SOUTHEAST” questions the established forms of representations of Islamic identity in an urban context, stimulating a discussion about them that would go beyond the predominant debates that are marked by stereotypes.
A mihrab commonly takes the form of a semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque, indicating the Qibla, or the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca. The Einheit Mihrab is designed to encourage visitor participation in its construction, turning this traditionally sacred and indispensible component of the mosque into a communal and unifying piece.
Visitors to the exhibition find stacks of perforated bristol board along with instructions for folding. The resultant unit is evocative of the muqarnas, a type of corbel employed as a decorative device in traditional Islamic architecture. Visitors are then invited to hang their module on piano wire hooks. The mihrab emerges through the ceremonial act of participation.