Islamic calligraphy in its traditional form seems to have reached its pinnacle. Every possible variation appears to have been tried by master calligraphers over the centuries, leaving very little scope for innovation.

Sadequain (d. 1987), a renowned artist of Pakistan, tried to bring novelty to the genre by creating attractive backgrounds for the Quranic verses depicted in a stylized, yet traditional mode. The Arabic script was not tampered with!

A marked departure from the classical trend was brought about by Ismail Guljee (d. 2007), another icon of Pakistani art, who totally revolutionized the art of calligraphy. His style combined a rainbow of colors painted in a sweeping flow of a single brushstroke. The result was an enchanting, though impressionistic depiction of the sacred text.

Badar Moinuddin’s work also follows a non-conventional path, and focuses only on the multiple names of Allah. The divine attributes are painted in a freestyle mode, blending into the features of a graphically depicted mountainous landscape.

Calligraphy