Examining the Application of Decorations in the Public Arena of Historical Settlements (Case Study:

The study of the townscape of Islamic settlements and the application of motifs and decorative elements in the public spaces explains religious beliefs and socio-economic structure of Islam as a unified universal tradition. Nevertheless, the topic has been generally disregarded in historical research. In the same manner, in the study of the decorations in the interior environments, the argument that the “the outward appearance of building is dominantly disregarded”, leads to a general avoidance of the topic. The unawareness of the intricate doctrine and historic roots of these elements, not only obstructs the approaches that address the visual disorder in the contemporary residential architecture, but also incites an economic exclusion and social disintegration. This study aims to identify and introduce decorations used in the “Laft” port as an example of settlements with the historic urban fabric, through which the methods and levels of decorations has been systematically analyzed. The study relies on literature review and field observations. Basic studies and analyses, which were conducted in the "Laft" port demonstrate similarities in the form of decorations used on structural elements that have distinctive impact on the urban landscape.. In order to understand the effect of the similarity in terms of social and physical aspects, the decorations have been analyzed in two scales; ‘urban scale’ and ‘building scale’.
In ‘urban scale’,, surface decorations have been studied in three levels. The first and lowest level involves decorative motifs and elements in the height of 1 to 3 meters above the ground, which includes doors and portals in entrance spaces. The second level consists of the application of decorations on the frameworks of entrance spaces, walls of public buildings and hearths, which have certain physical effects in public places. The application of decorations on relatively higher elevations of 2 to 4 meters, promotes the visibility and appreciation of the motifs. These decorations appear as formal stucco. Finally, the application of the same motifs on the wind-catchers hull and minarets of mosques illustrates the third level of using decorations in the urban fabric of the Loft ancient port. The height of 4 to 10 meters of elements in the third level would dictate larger motifs in order to maintain a visual impact
Subsequently, decorations in the scale of ‘building’ have been analyzed in two parts including entrance space and wind-catcher.
The spiritual aspects of these decorations were explored because of inseparable unity of appearance and meaning in the art used in Islamic buildings. Final findings of this research demonstrate that using decorations in the historical fabric of Laft has different levels of application based on the scope of human vision, and provides a particular manifestation in a hierarchical process. This study also shows that the concept of social unity, emphasized in Islam religion is one of the most fundamental factors in the visual organization of Laft port.