Arwa Abouon’s design for Sanctuary invokes the aesthetic simplicity displayed in her recurring graphic illustrations. The rug, titled The Pentagon-Shamsiya, presents a traditional Islamic geometric pattern formed with the repeated image of the iconic US Defense Department headquarters, known as the Pentagon. “The integration of the architectural plan of the American Department of Defense into the wider overall aesthetic of Islamic pattern proposes an interesting critical rereading of both,” Abouon says. “Revealing similarities between cultures and/or a possible space for Islam within American society is intended to evoke the Koranic verse from the Surah al-Hujurat (49:13), putting forth that nations and tribes were created to come to know and learn from each other.”
