Re: Harquus, gratitude, generosity, a windfall and a promise
Posted by Kenzi on January 12, 2000 at 22:58:36:
In Reply to: Harquus, gratitude, generosity, a windfall and a promise posted by Catherine Cartwright Jones on January 12, 2000 at 15:38:15:
: The major breakthrough here is to rethink henna not as an artform
and
: belief system by itself, but to view henna, harquus, tattoo, and
kohl
: (and perhaps textile patterns and even veiling) as parts of a
: whole .... and to see them as a network of beliefs and traditions
: beginning in Anatolia and Syria 9000 years ago, and spreading
: outwards.
I agree with you on this point. From my research of henna in Morocco
and also Moroccan textiles I see so many similarities not just in
design but in cultural significance and personal importance. The
designs of henna are not limited to henna but appear in tattoos, in
architecture, in textiles, in pottery designs, in embroidery. There
are no dividing lines between various media. The only divisions that
are noticeable are between city (Arab) and country (Berber). And I
never really thought of it until you mentioned it above, but the
veiling of the face ties in with tattoo and harquus designs,
sometimes mimicking it, sometimes complementing it.
I, for one, would welcome any information you wish to dump on us
here. I am eager to have your book in hand, but I'll settle for
whatever I can print out from this forum.