Steps of the Mosque Vazirkham, Lahore 

Edwin Lord Weeks captured the Steps of the Mosque Vazirkham in Lahore with oil on canvas. Immediately, the arches draw us in, adorned with the arabesque—a motif stretching back to antiquity, gracing Roman mosaics and Byzantine decorations. Notice how these complex, flowing patterns echo the human desire to find order and beauty, a theme so ancient it resonates in the very architecture. The arch itself, a symbol of transition and passage, reappears across cultures. From Roman triumphal arches to Gothic cathedrals, it signifies movement, a journey, an opening to new experiences or spiritual understanding. The pointed arch visible here is a crucial element in Islamic architecture, embodying a striving towards the divine, an aspiration inherent in the human spirit. This motif, deeply ingrained in our collective memory, evokes feelings of hope and transcendence. These shapes and forms tap into our subconscious, and surface time and time again in different eras.