Fine Islamic writing as an art form.
In the Islamic context, calligraphy refers to the artistic writing of the Arabic script, either in the Arabic
language or in other languages transcribed with the Arabic script. Originally, Islamic calligraphy was an expedient to ensure legibility. It soon became the primary visual art in the realms of Islamic religious influence and remained so at least until the nineteenth century.
Islamic calligraphy shares the characteristics of other fine arts: a long and well-documented history, an extensive roster of renowned practitioners, an elaborate educational protocol, a wide selection of acknowledged masterpieces, a variety of media that are peculiar to it, and a wide range of accepted techniques and styles. In addition, there are religious and cultural regulations that pertain to the teaching, production, and display of Islamic calligraphy. There are also ancillary professionals and amateurs who produce the tools and materials used in the production of the art works, such as inks, marble paper, and pens. Finally, a well-developed body of literature deals with the criticism and appreciation of Islamic calligraphy.
From the beginning of the Islamic period, and possibly substantially before it, two types of writing were used, according to occasion, in the Hijaz region of the Arabian peninsula. One was a simple, loose, and informal script for everyday use. The other - reserved for special purposes, especially religious uses that demanded a spectacular presentation - was the "dry" or stiff style of writing commonly, albeit incorrectly, called Kufic. In Islamic times, this became the favored style for Qurʾanic transcriptions, due to its gravity, legibility, grace, and sheer visual impact.
By the tenth century, new scripts had taken shape from the earlier, informal writing and had gained in popularity. Because the shapes and sizes of the letters were calculated geometrically, these scripts were called "the proportioned scripts." They include the Thuluth, Naskh, and Muhaqqaq scripts. These are commonly referred to as Naskhi (supposedly meaning cursive), a name that has no basis in history.
Four important calligraphers, working in Baghdad during the Abbasid caliphate, founded the modern trend in Islamic calligraphy. These were Muhammad ibn Muqla (d. 940); his brother Abu Abdullah ibn Muqla (d. 939); Ali ibn Hilal, called Ibn al-Baw wab (d. 1022); and Yaqut al-Musta'simi (d. 1298). Through the works and teachings of these
masters, the art of calligraphy radiated to other important Islamic cultural centers.
By the sixteenth century, the center of Islamic calligraphy was to be found in Constantinople (now Istanbul) of the Ottoman Empire. There the pivotal Şeyh Hamdullah (1429 - 1520), a lifelong calligrapher, completely revised the structure of the basic scripts, of Thuluth and Naskh in particular, giving them a more precise, lighter, and more dynamic look. Since the life and teaching of this great master, the Ottoman Turkish method has been paramount. This method is distinguished by its special teaching protocols, its attention to detail, and its insistence on the highest standards.
Another Ottoman master, Mehmet Asat Yesari (d. 1798), took the Persian style Nastaʿliq and, while maintaining its basic rules, transformed it into a powerful visual instrument, especially in its large (Celali) version.
Other trends in Islamic calligraphy of significant historical and artistic merit have existed continuously in the Maghrib-Andalusian orbit, in the Persian orbit, and in China. Although Islamic calligraphy reached its apogee in the late nineteenth century, it is experiencing a revival today, in particular due to the efforts of the Research Centre for Islamic History, Art, and Culture in Istanbul (IRCICA). The art continues to reign supreme in its ability to convey in the most emphatic way the written Islamic texts.
Bibliography
Bayani, Manijeh; Contadini, Anna; and Stanley, Tim. The Decorated Word: Qurʾans of the 17th to 19th Centuries. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Déroche, François. The Abbasid Tradition: Qurʾans of the 8th to10th Centuries. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.
Lings, Martin. The Qurʾanic Art of Calligraphy and Illumination. London: World of Islam Festival Trust, 1976.
Safadi, Yasin Hamid. Islamic Calligraphy. London: Thames and Hudson, 1978.
Safwat, Nabil F. The Art of the Pen: Calligraphy of the 14th to 20thCenturies. London and New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.
Zakariya, Muhammad. "Islamic Calligraphy: A Technical Overview." In Brocade of the Pen: The Art of Islamic Writing, edited by Carol Garrett Fisher. East Lansing: Kresge Art Museum, Michigan State University, 1991.
— MUHAMMAD ZAKARIYA
