An Identity Catharsis in Space and Time
Scripts and Calligraphy Review
Stemming from a nomad orality, Arabic script rooted the impetus for the proliferation of literacy and heterogenous thought, propelling an array of universal communications and technologies. Calligraphy, a symbiosis of its Arabic and Islamic nuclei has come to encompass a wider gestalt of contemporary expression, responding to questions of modernity in urbanism, AI, geopolitics and identity.
Set on the grounds of the arcane old hospital in Irqah, Riyadh, the exhibition’s location charms intrigue. The first edition of Scripts and Calligraphy, titled A Timeless Journey and examining the history of Arabic script and calligraphy, was aptly held in 2021 at The Saudi National Museum. This second edition, Paths to the Soul, investigates calligraphy’s spiritual aspects, proposes a conveyance of Irqah’s decades-long urban monolith.
