A local Muslim artist exhibited his culturally-inspired work to a gathering of more than 30 students and local residents last night as part of the Harvard Islamic Society's Islam Awareness Week.

Sprinkling his speech with Arabic and referring often to the Qur'an,

artist Abd Al Bhadia said that the purpose of Islamic art is to "call people away from the multiplicity of the world and to the reality of the hereafter" and to "glorify Allah."

Bhadia showed more than a dozen slides of his work. Most were abstract representations of mosques he said were inspired by his trips to the Middle East.

"I gravitated toward mosques and tried to feel the spirituality of the environment," Bhadia told the audience. "I try to visually represent that in my drawings."

Bhadia is one of five founders of the fledgling United Muslim Artists Alliance, a group of 15 artists who have held several exhibits across the region.

Bhadia embraced Islam when he was 18. More than thirty years later, after a trip to the Middle East, he said he realized his calling was to be a "Muslim artist."

He said he hopes to help establish an Islamic art school in the Boston area. Bhadia's work will be exhibited in the Adams House art space until next Thursday.

Islam Awareness Week is an annual event celebrated on campuses across the nation.

The special week is usually held in the fall at Harvard but was postponed because of logistical problems.

The event's organizers said the week's purpose was to introduce to the campus images of Islamic culture they don't ordinarily see.

"Islam is often associated with words such as terrorism and fundamentalism," said Saif M. Shah Mohammad '02, the week's co-coordinator.

"It's important to remove the negative understanding of Islam and to replace it with a truer understanding of Islam," he said.

Other Islam Awareness Week events include a speech by Loeb Professor of Classical Art and Archaeology David G. Mitten, tonight and a panel discussion tomorrow, entitled "Islam in the Modern World."

Islam has over 1.6 billion adherents worldwide and is the fastest growing religion in the U.S. and the world.