"As I understand it, “islamic” art doesn’t contain images of people or animals." For the most part you're right; muzzies to tend to be iconoclasts. There are a few exceptions, the most notable probably being the Safavid Empire in Iran from about 1500 into the 1600s. Some of their manuscripts, both representational and abstract, rival pretty much anything done in the west, at least in a technical capacity.
There are a few exceptions, the most notable probably being the Safavid Empire in Iran from about 1500 into the 1600s.That's right. The Safavid who also brutally imposed Shia Islam on Iranians and made it the official state religion, in that respect were influenced by pre-Islamic Iranian (Persian) architecture & culture - posts 22 & 24.