ISLAMABAD: An exhibition titled Hurouf 21, displaying calligraphy works began at Satrang Gallery on Tuesday.

Calligraphy or the art of letters is an ancient genre of fine art, to which the exhibition aims to pay homage, Director of the gallery Asma Rashid Khan said.

Works by Abdul Rahim, Bin Qulander, Faizan Reidinger, Ferhat Kurlu, Mussarat Arif, Qasim Bugti and Rafiqullah have been put on display. Visitors were told that calligraphy [the art of beautiful handwriting] was a part of most cultures and languages. It emerged as an art form in order to promote writing, reading and seeking knowledge, originally used to write verses of the Quran, prayers and the names of God.

The art form eventually evolved with contemporary styles added to it.

The Ottoman, Persian and Mughal dynasties celebrated and explored the practice of calligraphy, and held it in high esteem and despite the changing methods and scripts, calligraphers continued to adhere to strict guidelines, including geometric proportion to the Arabic letter,Alif.

Abdul Rahim’s soulful works, portray his belief that devotion to creation must be adopted as a rule in order to sustain the ecosystem. Bin Qulander, originally trained as a miniaturist, worked in the Diwani style using intricate visual patterns and dramatic colours. Arif Khan, in his work, portrayed music visually, using thick and energetic strokes of paint.

Mussarat Arif, through her work reminded her audience about the history of successful and talented women calligraphists. She painted in the Kufic style and utilised vivid colours to offset thick black lines in her writings. Ferhat Kurlu from Turkey, recipient of several prestigious international accolades also displayed his work.

Qasim Bugti’s work portrayed the nastaliq style. Rafiqullah used a vibrant and contemporary style of calligraphy, called calligrafitti and finally Faizan Redinger’s work depicted movement and rhythm inspired by nature, organic structures and fluidity within scripts.

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2021