Calligraffiti is an art form that combines calligraphy, typography, and graffiti. It can be classified as either abstract expressionism or abstract vandalism. It is defined as a visual art that integrates letters into compositions that attempt to communicate a broader message through writing that has been aesthetically altered to move beyond the literal meaning. Simply put, it is the conscious effort of making a word or group of words into a visual composition. As such it is meant to be both an aesthetic experience and provocative art—mixing tradition and precision with modern unbridled self-expression.
Definition and brief history
The origins of the term, "calligraffiti" are unclear. The Dutch artist Niels Shoe Meulman is often incorrectly credited with coining the term in 2007, when he used it as the title of his solo exhibition.See for instance, Sinno, N., War of Colors: Beirut Street Art and the Reclamation of Public Space, ASAP/Journal, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2017, pp. 71-104 as an example of an art historian who credits Meulman, with coining the term and locates it as a form of street art. Meulman describes calligraffiti as "traditional handwriting with a metropolitan attitude" and a "way of translating the art of the street to the interior of museums, galleries and apartments." In an interview he explains the technique itself as "directness in the whole, finesse in the details. An even balance between seeing and reading word and image. … letters, writing and language itself becomes an image or abstraction. On the other hand, basic shapes and splats become language."Meulman, N. S., Calligraffiti: The Graphic Art of Niels Shoe Meulman, 2012
Use of the term, however, predates the contributions of Niels Shoe Meulman by at least thirty years. The Canadian painter, Brion Gysin used the term in his final exhibition, Calligraffiti of Fire held at the Galerie Samy Kinge in Paris between 19 April and 19 May in 1986 and the term was also used as the title of the book which accompanied Gysin's exhibition.Hoptman, L.J. (ed.), Brion Gysin: Dream Machine, Merrell, 2010, p. 131; Ballantyne, E., Dvořák, M. and Irvine, D. (eds). Translocated Modernisms: Paris and Other Lost Generations, University of Ottawa Press, 2016 [e-book edition], n.p. The term was also used in a book about post-modernism, Spirits Hovering Over the Ashes: Legacies of Postmodern Theory by H.L. Hix in 1995.Hix, H.L., Spirits Hovering over the Ashes: Legacies of Postmodern Theory, State University of New York Press 1995, p. 48
Jordanian artist and art historian Wijdan Ali also used the term, "calligraffiti" in her book, Modern Islamic Art: Development and Continuity, (1997) to describe a style of art that had been flourishing across the Middle East and North Africa from the mid-20th century. She defined calligraffiti as the use of "script of ordinary writing where the work is composed of the artist's personalised handwriting within a modern composition."Ali, W., Modern Islamic Art: Development and Continuity, University of Florida Press, 1997, pp 166-67 and also cited in Shabout, N.M., Modern Arab Art: Formation of Arab Aesthetics, University of Florida Press, 2007, p.80 Ali wanted to use the term because she saw this type of art as being inspired by calligraphy yet, also close to the scribbling of graffiti artists. Pioneer artists in this style include: Hassan Massoudy, Hossein Zenderoudi and Parviz Tanavoli.Shabout, N.M., Modern Arab Art: Formation of Arab Aesthetics, University of Florida Press, 2007, p.80 Ali locates calligraffiti art as a distinct style within the School of Calligraphic Art (also known as the Hurufiyya movement).Ali, W., Modern Islamic Art: Development and Continuity, University of Florida Press, 1997, pp 165-172
Calligraffiti is distinguished from other styles of calligraphic art (such as Pure Calligraphy, Neoclassical, Modern Classical, Freeform, Abstract calligraphy, Calligraphic Combinations and Unconscious Calligraphy) in that it has no rules and artists require no formal training.Ali, W., Modern Islamic Art: Development and Continuity, University of Florida Press, 1997, p. 167 Whereas, traditional calligraphy in the Islamic world is bound by very strict rules, not the least a prohibition on using representations of the human form in manuscripts, calligraffiti artists break free from such rules and allow themselves to reshape and deconstruct letters as well as to combine them with other symbols and figures in creative ways. Calligraffiti artists are not confined to the use of actual letters. Instead, they go beyond a simple transformation of Arabic or English-language words into visual compositions, and invent new languages.Carrier, D., "Calligraphy, Meet Graffiti: Calligraffiti at Leila Heller Gallery," Artcritical, [Online art magazine], 16 December 2013 Online:
Ali also makes a distinction between calligraffiti and pseudo-calligraffiti. Straight calligraffiti refers to the use of calligraphy without the rules of proportion while pseudo-calligraffiti is a total abstraction in which the letters may or may not be legible.Ali, W., "The Status of Islamic Art in the Twentieth Century," Muqarnas, vol. 9, 1992, pp 186-188 Online:
The practice of calligraffiti appears to have begun in the Middle East and North Africa in around the 1950s, when local artists, searching for a visual language that expressed their national identity and heritage, began incorporating Arabic letters, as a graphic form, into their artworks.Issa, R., Cestar, J. and Porter, V., Signs of Our Times: From Calligraphy to Calligraffiti,New York, Merrill, 2016; Mavrakis, N., "The Hurufiyah Art Movement in Middle Eastern Art," McGill Journal of Middle Eastern Studies Blog, Online: https://mjmes.wordpress.com/2013/03/08/article-5/;Tuohy , A. and Masters, C., A-Z Great Modern Artists, Hachette UK, 2015, p. 56 Artists such as the Lebanese painter and poet, Etel Adnan (b. 1925); the Egyptian painter, Ramzi Moustafa (b. 1926) and the Iraqi painter-sculptor and philosopher, Shakir Hassan Al Said (b.1925) all searched for ways to use Arabic letters in abstract compositions.Ali, W., Modern Islamic Art: Development and Continuity, University of Florida Press, 1997, pp 167-169; not all art historians classify Shakir Hassan Al-Said in the list of calligraffiti artists. Nadia Shabout, for example, argues that he does not fit the definition of a calligraffiti artist because he aimed for a total deconstruction of the letter. Shabout, N.M., Modern Arab Art: Formation of Arab Aesthetics, University of Florida Press, 2007, p.80
The incidence of calligraffiti gathered momentum during the early 21st century when Middle Eastern street artists co-opted urban spaces for calligraffiti art designed to convey political or provocative statements. This street art practice was especially conspicuous during the wave of uprisings between 2010 and 2013, that became known as the Arab Spring thereby bringing the art form to the attention of international audiences.Naguib, S.A., "Engaged Ephemeral Art: Street Art and the Egyptian Arab Spring," Transcultural Studies, Vol. 2, 2016, pp 53-86 Certain calligraffiti artists have credited the Middle Eastern calligraphy artists as an important influence on their work. For instance, the Tunisian calligraffiti artist, el Seed points to the work of Iraqi painter, Hassan Massoudy as a major source of inspiration, noting that "The work of Hassan Massoudy was totally out of anything I’ve seen from the way he shapes the letters to the colors he uses. He completely revolutionized the art of calligraphy.”Saldaña, S., "Reviving Arabic Calligraphy: An Encounter with Iraqi-French artist Hassan Massoudy," Mosaic Stories, 10 March 2017, Online:
Characteristics Calligraffiti is a complex process. Its specificity is in its paradoxical nature, as it is characterised by and composed of many elements that appear contradictory: blending of tradition and modernity sharing of culture and political subversion beauty and provocation precision and spontaneity philosophical and reactionary literal and metaphorical It requires an overall vision from the artist- from the message he is trying to convey, to the shape of the letters, to the larger picture he is creating. Calligraffiti artist, Tubs, explains that the art form's graffiti component forces the artist to reflect upon and consciously create a piece that will arouse a specific feeling or reaction in the viewer. However, the use of the alphabet as an artistic medium demands practice, accuracy, and foresight.
Tools Part of what differentiates calligraffiti from calligraphy is its freedom from rules. Calligraphy is a meticulous and specific art that takes years to master. Most calligraffiti artists, like El Seed, do not consider themselves calligraphers because they do not know, nor do they follow the many rules of calligraphy. Calligraffiti on the other hand is characterized by its diversity of mediums, methods, and instruments. Each individual artist uses and sometimes designs his or her own tools.
Calligraffiti in the Middle East and North Africa
Arabic calligraphy as historical background Arabic calligraphy is incredibly rich; it is an art form that has been perfected for well over a millennium. Islamic tradition greatly encouraged the development of calligraphy as an art form in order to bear witness of the written word and to spread Islam. In the Quran, Arabic writing represents the word of God revealed to Muhammad, which gives Arabic letters a special meaning.Bloom J. and Blair, S., The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture, Oxford University Press, 2009, Vol. 2, p. 336
The spread and evolution of calligraphy can be traced very specifically throughout Islamic history as it is inherently tied to the spread of Islam itself. Calligraphy was how scribes transcribed and created copies of the Quran—allowing Muhammad's message to extend beyond the Arabian Peninsula. Calligraphy has always had a central role in Middle Eastern art, because of Islamic restrictions concerning the portrayal of living beings. As a result, calligraphy became not only a tool for the expansion of Islam, but its most characteristic form of religious art.
Calligraffiti: calligraphy of the 21st century Calligraffiti has emerged quite forcefully in the Middle East in recent years, particularly in the wake of the Arab uprisings. While graffiti has never been widespread in the region, it has spread with the rising dissidence against Middle Eastern dictatorships and authoritarian regimes. Calligraphy artist Hassan Massoudy called Arabic calligraphy and graffiti "two daughters of the same parents" because of their interrelationship. He notes that "Obviously [calligraphy and graffiti] both are about the use of letters and their alphabets, and their center of gravity is the beauty of writing. For both, a letter is more than just a letter and they fill them with emotions. The use of empty space and composition within this space is something else they have in common.Massoudy, H., "Two Daughters of the Same Parents," in: Don Stone Karl and Pascal Zoghbi, Arabic Calligraphy, From Here to Fame Publishing, 2011, pp 31-35 Calligraffiti is a logical evolution of the two art forms coexisting in the same space.