REVIVALISM AND ISLAMIC INTERPRETATIONS

During the last decade, Malaysia’s goal to be recognized as a developed nation showcases its economic progress through its modern day mega-structures. Chief among these monuments is the Petronas Twin Towers, one of world’s tallest buildings with a surreal supremacy over the Kuala Lumpur skyline. Religious symbols are also part of the revival as new mosques in Putrajaya, a spectacular and flashy newly built city for administrative offices, and the Federal Territory, the seat of the federal government, instill an alien quality to the Malaysian landscape.

As one of Putrajaya’s prominent landmarks, the Putra Masjid can handle up to 15,000 worshippers inside and tens of thousands more in the outer courtyard. The soft, pink hue of the granite tiles covering the main dome is the color of sunlight at dusk. Modelled primarily on Persian architecture, the mosque also features elements of a number of other Muslim cultures.

Incorporating traditional designs and craftsmanship, chengal woodwork counteracts the imposing rose-tinted granite to enhance decorative features on doors and panels. This immense mosque parallels the enormity of the task to resettle an entire army of civil servants and government officials, as well as its supporting businesses, to nurture a vibrant, new community.

Do these monumental mosques reflect the evolution of design in Malaysia as inspired by the glorification of Islam or a departure from both the aesthetic and vernacular qualities of Malaysians as Muslims?

According to Malaysian architect Dr. Tajuddin Rasdi, “clients and architects vie with one another to revive monumental historical precedence at the cost of simple, common Islamic sense.” Rasdi feels that the problem of revivalism is a poor understanding of the historical context of mosques. In the past, mosques functioned as the main medium of communication, thus rulers understood the influential power gained by building grandiose structures to eclipse tribal mosques and control the masses. Therefore, the main purpose of a mosque to serve as a community development center was swept aside by the wave to build bigger mosques for more worshippers. Hence, postmodern architecture in Malaysia “opened a Pandora’s Box of Egyptian, Iranian and Turkish eclectic revivalism.”

Offering a prime Malaysian example to offset the plethora of foreign occupiers is Masjid Negara, the National Mosque. Built in 1965 when a proud nation was in full stride, the National Mosque features few Middle Eastern elements. A pleated, concrete parasol extends over its open courtyard to provide shelter from a sweltering tropical sun and heavy rains. Its blue hue blends with the sky, merging and remaining subdued under the visible horizon. Other responses to local climatic conditions include verandas, air wells and large pools for cooling. As Rasdi explains, its horizontal expression presents a humility characteristic of Islam, while the mosque presents a contemporary model that embodies the idea of Islamic architecture in the Malay world.