Arabian Fairy

Patio de los Leones, Alhambra

Patio de los Arrayanes, Alhambra

Salón de Embajadores, Alhambra

Generalife

In the dark sparkling eye of an oracle paradise awaits. Founded by the charmed Moslem Sultan Muhammed I ibn al-Ahmar of the Tribe of Nasar, Muhammad I commenced the Alhambra in the mid-thirteenth century establishing his kingdom in Granada, Spain. Born under a highly auspicious horoscope, the first beloved monarch of the Nasrid Dynasty known for his valor and generosity laid the groundwork for the last magnificent Islamic Empire in western Europe. Mohammed I fortified his domaine with vigor, promoting the arts which give wealth and true power, granting premiums and privileges to the best artisans, rewarding even the bricklayer for a well constructed poem. Under this elegance of spirit, Granada flourished, valleys bloomed like gardens, the city brimmed with luxuries and commerce. Imbued with the grace of his predecessors, the Moslem Prince, Yusef I, ascended the throne of Granada in 1333 and would deliver the Alhambra to full hypnotic splendor. Attributed as one of the best poets of his time, he adorned the palace courts and halls with sonorous inscriptions. The light of Oriental knowledge had pierced the Gothic Middle Ages of Romantic Spain and left the Alhambra as its object of devotion.

 

Bird-like columns arched with lacy filagree form open air Arabian arcades. Interstitial halls hark to the infinity just beyond the geometries of space. Circulation floats like the iridescent air above crystalline pools, holographically transported and placed. Beside myself, bewitched by the harmonious web of intricacy. High as a kite, I’m flitted out to graze the great garden of Generalife. As not to lose the glitter of this fairy place in translation, a miracle of art cloaked in a silvery veil of protection can be your talisman too.

Silk vintage dress with vegetal and arabesque motifs, Gaviria ravioli earrings
the Alhambra, Granada
Photographs by Allan Langdale