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For an artist, main goal is to decorate his work through creativity and improvisation and I have an aim to embellish my work by combining art and calligraphy, says Qatar-based calligrapher Mohammad Abdullah Tarar.
Tarar is among those self-taught and gifted artists whose creations are very positive, inspiring and uplifting. He was born and brought up in Qatar and received early education from Pakistan International School, formally known as Pakistan Education Centre. His family belongs to Tehsil Bhalwal of District Sargodha (City of eagles), in Pakistan. Later, he moved to Pakistan to pursue Shari’ah education from Jamia Islamia Imdadiah, Faisalabad. This institution works under the supervision of Pakistan’s renowned Shari’ah board Wifaq-ul-Madaris-ul-Arabia. He returned back to Doha in 2010. He was good at art and drawing from his childhood but he inclined towards art of calligraphy while his studies in Pakistan. Tarar’s calligraphy is simple, sublime and imbued with inspiring messages of positivity and optimism. In an interview with Qatar Tribune, Tarar spoke about his inspiring journey to become a calligrapher and offered some advice to calligraphy students. Excerpts.
How did you become interested in calligraphy?
During childhood, I developed interest in drawing because of my elder brother who had special skills and expertise in drawing and sketching. His capabilities drove me to become an artist too. Looking at our talent, our school teachers kept on giving us little art assignments. When I grew a little older, I also started working on sketches. During my stay in Pakistan for the sake of education, calligraphy became my core field of interest. When I first witnessed Arabic calligraphy, I was spellbound by its alluring beauty. Its structure and text magnificence were out of this world. Without any doubt, Arabic calligraphy has its own traditional touch and its magical attractiveness affects directly at the heart. Especially, the Qur’anic calligraphy provides a noticeable satisfaction to the soul.
During my studies, it was difficult for me to learn calligraphy regularly from any teacher due to lack of time. I kept on doing practice by myself but I stayed in contact with the specialists to get their opinion on my writing samples. The work I am doing today is not due to the practice of few days, it took me many years to reach this level and I am thankful to the Almighty Allah for giving me such patience and consistency.
Are your creations limited to Arabic calligraphy or you prepare work in some other languages as well?
Yes, Arabic
calligraphy is my real field and I am still trying to nurture my skills in this specific ground but I also did some work in English calligraphy. In reality, Arabic calligraphy is a huge ground to cover. It takes one’s whole life to master skills in Arabic calligraphy. In that case, it is difficult for me to consider myself doing work in any other language other than Arabic.
There are several traditional and modern styles in Arabic calligraphy like Naskh, Kufic, Nasta’liq, Diwani, Thuluth, Reqa, etc. What is your preferred calligraphy style?
Obviously, we all know that Arabic calligraphy is done in these styles that you have mentioned. There are also other styles like Sumbli, Ijaza, Maju’hri that are very popular. I have tried myself in all of these styles but my favorite ones are Diwani and Thuluth. Right now, I am mostly working on Thuluth. I not only use pen and ink to present my samples but also involve oil and water paint to beautify my creation. I use a layer of oil in the background of most of my work. For an artist, main goal is to decorate his work through creativity and improvisation. I have an aim to embellish my work by combining art and calligraphy.
How do you choose the texts for your calligraphy compositions?
Normally, I love to work on Qur’anic calligraphy. To write a Qur’anic verse, it takes a lot of thinking in choosing its style of presenting and which style would suit the most. For example, some verses need to be written in Diwani and some should be written in Thuluth or Nastali’q. That is why it totally depends on calligrapher’s imagination and experience that what style he chooses. Then, the crucial part is a selection of suitable pen and paper and selection of how writing should be done i.e. in a circular fashion or a linear way. It takes a lot of work on minor details to create a masterpiece.
Have you ever exhibited your work in Doha or abroad?
Not yet. I have not presented my work anywhere. The reason why I am reluctant to present my work is that I believe an artist should present its work when he is satisfied with his work and reaches the level of an expert in his respective field. I don’t believe that I have reached that level but my friends and family frequently purse me to showcase my work. Hopefully, in the near future, I will present my Qur’anic calligraphy in an exhibition.
Did you participate in any competitions?
Yes, I participated in many workshops and competitions during my education. But, from past few years, I am totally focusing on improving my calligraphy skills in a professional way.
Is calligraphy merely your passion or you also sell your work?
Initially, I never thought of becoming a professional calligrapher and only worked during my leisure time to fulfill my interest. With the passage of time, people started taking notice of my calligraphy and asked me to do their work. Some people started buying my creations and it increased my spirit of working as a professional. And above all, it is a healthy activity for me during my leisure time.
Do you have any plans to teach calligraphy to others?
During this journey of calligraphy, I taught many students and most of the serious students are still in contact with me. As I have told you earlier that I consider myself a student in this vast field and that’s why I avoid involving in regular teaching. But I try to transfer the knowledge I gained from my mentors. I am available on social media platforms and if someone need help, I would be happy to offer my services.
What would you say for beginners who want to learn Arabic calligraphy?
Now a days, if you want to learn something, it is easier compared to past times. On calligraphy, a lot of books have been written, videos are uploaded on different platforms and with the help of social media one can get in contact with the specialist calligraphers. So, I would like to send my message to the parents that they should encourage their children to learn calligraphy and to those who are already learning, I would like to ask them to keep on practicing. If they keep on writing, they would improve hand movement and grip on pen.
Tarar is among those self-taught and gifted artists whose creations are very positive, inspiring and uplifting. He was born and brought up in Qatar and received early education from Pakistan International School, formally known as Pakistan Education Centre. His family belongs to Tehsil Bhalwal of District Sargodha (City of eagles), in Pakistan. Later, he moved to Pakistan to pursue Shari’ah education from Jamia Islamia Imdadiah, Faisalabad. This institution works under the supervision of Pakistan’s renowned Shari’ah board Wifaq-ul-Madaris-ul-Arabia. He returned back to Doha in 2010. He was good at art and drawing from his childhood but he inclined towards art of calligraphy while his studies in Pakistan. Tarar’s calligraphy is simple, sublime and imbued with inspiring messages of positivity and optimism. In an interview with Qatar Tribune, Tarar spoke about his inspiring journey to become a calligrapher and offered some advice to calligraphy students. Excerpts.
How did you become interested in calligraphy?
During childhood, I developed interest in drawing because of my elder brother who had special skills and expertise in drawing and sketching. His capabilities drove me to become an artist too. Looking at our talent, our school teachers kept on giving us little art assignments. When I grew a little older, I also started working on sketches. During my stay in Pakistan for the sake of education, calligraphy became my core field of interest. When I first witnessed Arabic calligraphy, I was spellbound by its alluring beauty. Its structure and text magnificence were out of this world. Without any doubt, Arabic calligraphy has its own traditional touch and its magical attractiveness affects directly at the heart. Especially, the Qur’anic calligraphy provides a noticeable satisfaction to the soul.
During my studies, it was difficult for me to learn calligraphy regularly from any teacher due to lack of time. I kept on doing practice by myself but I stayed in contact with the specialists to get their opinion on my writing samples. The work I am doing today is not due to the practice of few days, it took me many years to reach this level and I am thankful to the Almighty Allah for giving me such patience and consistency.
Are your creations limited to Arabic calligraphy or you prepare work in some other languages as well?
Yes, Arabic
calligraphy is my real field and I am still trying to nurture my skills in this specific ground but I also did some work in English calligraphy. In reality, Arabic calligraphy is a huge ground to cover. It takes one’s whole life to master skills in Arabic calligraphy. In that case, it is difficult for me to consider myself doing work in any other language other than Arabic.
There are several traditional and modern styles in Arabic calligraphy like Naskh, Kufic, Nasta’liq, Diwani, Thuluth, Reqa, etc. What is your preferred calligraphy style?
Obviously, we all know that Arabic calligraphy is done in these styles that you have mentioned. There are also other styles like Sumbli, Ijaza, Maju’hri that are very popular. I have tried myself in all of these styles but my favorite ones are Diwani and Thuluth. Right now, I am mostly working on Thuluth. I not only use pen and ink to present my samples but also involve oil and water paint to beautify my creation. I use a layer of oil in the background of most of my work. For an artist, main goal is to decorate his work through creativity and improvisation. I have an aim to embellish my work by combining art and calligraphy.
How do you choose the texts for your calligraphy compositions?
Normally, I love to work on Qur’anic calligraphy. To write a Qur’anic verse, it takes a lot of thinking in choosing its style of presenting and which style would suit the most. For example, some verses need to be written in Diwani and some should be written in Thuluth or Nastali’q. That is why it totally depends on calligrapher’s imagination and experience that what style he chooses. Then, the crucial part is a selection of suitable pen and paper and selection of how writing should be done i.e. in a circular fashion or a linear way. It takes a lot of work on minor details to create a masterpiece.
Have you ever exhibited your work in Doha or abroad?
Not yet. I have not presented my work anywhere. The reason why I am reluctant to present my work is that I believe an artist should present its work when he is satisfied with his work and reaches the level of an expert in his respective field. I don’t believe that I have reached that level but my friends and family frequently purse me to showcase my work. Hopefully, in the near future, I will present my Qur’anic calligraphy in an exhibition.
Did you participate in any competitions?
Yes, I participated in many workshops and competitions during my education. But, from past few years, I am totally focusing on improving my calligraphy skills in a professional way.
Is calligraphy merely your passion or you also sell your work?
Initially, I never thought of becoming a professional calligrapher and only worked during my leisure time to fulfill my interest. With the passage of time, people started taking notice of my calligraphy and asked me to do their work. Some people started buying my creations and it increased my spirit of working as a professional. And above all, it is a healthy activity for me during my leisure time.
Do you have any plans to teach calligraphy to others?
During this journey of calligraphy, I taught many students and most of the serious students are still in contact with me. As I have told you earlier that I consider myself a student in this vast field and that’s why I avoid involving in regular teaching. But I try to transfer the knowledge I gained from my mentors. I am available on social media platforms and if someone need help, I would be happy to offer my services.
What would you say for beginners who want to learn Arabic calligraphy?
Now a days, if you want to learn something, it is easier compared to past times. On calligraphy, a lot of books have been written, videos are uploaded on different platforms and with the help of social media one can get in contact with the specialist calligraphers. So, I would like to send my message to the parents that they should encourage their children to learn calligraphy and to those who are already learning, I would like to ask them to keep on practicing. If they keep on writing, they would improve hand movement and grip on pen.
