NOOR (Light) (2011)

Name: NOOR (Light)
Director: Robert Rippberger
Genre: Animation
Released: 2011-01-01
Duration: 7 min

Animation

Director: Robert Rippberger

Runtime7 min

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A tribute to the Masters of Middle Eastern Patterns. NOOR is 4D animation of classical design motifs and calligraphy from Arabic, Persian, Moroccan, and others. Inspired in part by British scholar Keith Critchlow's 1976 scholarly book "Islamic Patterns" and by my pilgrimage to The Alhambra in Granada, Spain.

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NOOR (Light) from 2011, directed by Robert Rippberger, offers a visually stunning and mesmerizing tribute to the rich tradition of Middle Eastern patterns and calligraphy through its innovative 4D animation. This unique film will captivate fans of abstract, experimental, and culturally-inspired animation.

About

Nūr is a term in Islamic context referring to the "cold light of the night" or "heatless light" i.e. the light of the moon. This light is used as a symbol for "God's guidance" and "knowledge", a symbol of mercy in contrast to Nar, which refers to the diurnal solar "hot light" i.e. fire. In the Quran, God is stated to be "the light (Nūr) of the heavens and the earth". Many classical commentators on the Quran compare this to God illuminating the world with understanding, not taken literally. The first and foremost to representatively stand to the concept of nūr muḥammadī being the quintessence of everything was Sayyid Abdul Qadir Gilani, who described this idea in his book Sirr ul Asrar. This concept was then preached by his disciples. One of Sayyid Abdul Qadir Gilani's disciples was the Andalusian scholar Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi, who categorized nūr into different levels of understanding from the most profound to the most mundane. Shias believe nūr, in the sense of inner esoteric understanding, is inherited through the Imams, who in turn communicate it to the people.