Mohamed Zakariya – A 21st century Master Calligrapher

Product Description Mohamed Zakariya – A 21st century Master Calligrapher is a study of the life and impact of Mohamed Zakariya, a contemporary American artist, who through his pursuit of a centuries old art form, Islamic calligraphy, has become known world-wide for his work. Along the way, he has had a major role in bringing this art form to the US and through his teaching, public appearances and work, creating a uniquely American version of the practice of Islamic calligraphy.  The account of Mohamed Zakariya’s life is told from a variety of perspectives, from his students, from colleagues and by scholars. This multivocal approach to the subject results in a nuanced, thoughtful presentation of a complex and brilliant artist.  Essays by leading scholars in the fields of Islamic art, calligraphy and Islamic religious studies unpack the complexities of Islamic calligraphy through history, and place Zakariya and his work in a historical context stretching back over many centuries, but also explain why he is a maverick at the forefront of a global resurgence of traditional Islamic calligraphy.  There are no book length English language studies of traditionally trained Islamic calligraphers working today or of the American community of such artists. This book fills a gaping hole in the literature on a key aspect of Islamic culture.    Most books that address traditional Islamic calligraphy assume that the art form stopped developing with the advent of westernization/modernization efforts in the Middle East in the mid-nineteenth century. That is not true. This project is the only book in English to delve into the modern history of a traditional art form, and to focus on a major figure, Mohamed Zakariya, working in that field.  Current literature that considers calligraphy in the Middle East generally does so from the point of view of artists who use some aspect of calligraphy to create large scale works in a range of media, and on buildings. While this is an important component of global contemporary art, it is only tangentially related to traditional Islamic calligraphy, a subject typically overlooked in studies of contemporary art from Islamicate societies.  The central figure in this book, Mohamed Zakariya, is intriguing in his own right. Mohamed Zakariya’s life story is the stuff of Hollywood: California child of the 50s travels to Morocco, then converts to Islam and decides to become a calligrapher in Arabic, a language he doesn’t yet speak.  An American calligrapher spurs a fledging Turkish cultural institute to found a calligraphy training program which has had worldwide impact, and receives diplomas from the two greatest living calligraphers in Turkey. Settling in a suburb of Washington DC, Zakariya establishes a studio which becomes a center of calligraphy training in the US and gains widespread popular recognition for designing a US Postal Service stamp for the Eid holidays which has sold millions. *** This work will be of interest to a series of overlapping international audiences: scholars and students of Islamic calligraphy and culture in art history, religious studies, and cultural studies; artists and craftspeople working in the book arts of calligraphy, illumination and paper marbling; Islamic calligraphy enthusiasts and collectors; calligraphers working in other languages; students of traditional forms of material culture and their transmission, and art students. Because the chapters each stand on their own, they could be used individually in a range of courses—studio courses in calligraphy, Ottoman history, Islamic art, history of the book and of calligraphy, and the place of calligraphy in Islamic religious thought.    Mohamed Zakariya Hasan Çelebi About Mohamed Zakariya Uğur Derman A Man with a Reed Pen Nabil F. Safwat Humane Letters Mohamed Zakariya Mohamed Zakariya: A Life in Pictures Nancy Micklewright The Last Hezarfen: Mohamed Zakariya and the Legacy of the Ottoman Polymath Artist Josh Berer Mohamed Zakariya, the Avant la Letter of Islamic Calligraphy in North America Nihad Dukhan The Inimatable Mohamed Zakariya Elinor Aishah Holland The Beautiful Pen: Mohamed Zakariya and Contemporary Islamic Art Emily Neumeier The Alif and the Ba: The Spirit and Letter of Islamic Calligraphy Omid Safi The Master-Student Relationship: Supplication and the Power of Prayer in Ottoman Calligraphy Bilal Badat Corporal Memory, Mental Memory, Written Source: Calligraphy, Some Dimensions of Today’s Transfer İrvin Cemil Schick Calligraphic circuits: present-day practices of a classical art Nuria Garcia Masip WATCH the beautiful symposium for the Living Line, Living Legacy exhibit (Sat, May 7th 2022, Washington D.C.). Many thanks to Reed Society for Sacred Arts and Qatar America Institute for Culture and all the speakers, artists, curators, collectors and community that made it so special.   The Islamic art curators from the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, along with a local Ottoman historian speaking with the calligraphers about their practice, how calligraphy is supported and collected today, and other topics. LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoIb5ksHNnQ   #art #arabiccalligraphy #exhibit   Reviews Only a work of both art and scholarship would be suitable for commemorating the extraordinary lifework of the American Muslim artist and scholar, the master calligrapher, Mohamed Zakariya. Consisting of essays by art historians, scholars of Islam, his calligraphy teachers and students, and himself, this invaluable volume shows Zakariya and his art as flowing directly from the pen of the tradition of Islamic calligraphy and especially its Ottoman zenith. Dr. Alan Godlas, Associate Professor, Department of Religion, University of Georgia Mohamed Zakariya, a symbol of perseverance and productivity, a unique personality full of self-motivation, creativity, and originality, has equipped himself with everything needed to practice the art of Calligraphy. His exceptional inner drive to discover, learn and produce pushed him to break all the barriers that emerged during this journey. Challenging and overcoming every obstacle on his way, he carried himself to the top, becoming a significant representative of Islamic Calligraphy in the West. Master Khattat Deniz Öktem-Bektaş & Master Khattat Davut Bektaş