Istanbul hosts largest meeting of calligraphers
http://www.worldbulletin.net/todays-news/144974/istanbul-hosts-largest-meeting-of-calligraphers
Istanbul has remained the center of calligraphy, a traditional Islamic art, since the well-known calligrapher Sheikh Hamdullah contributed so much to promote this traditional art to its peak. A recent event reaffirmed Istanbul’s position for calligraphy.
The ‘International meeting of Calligraphy’, a three-day event organized by IRCICA has the motto “The Holy Quran was received in Mecca, read in Egypt and written in Istanbul.”
The calligraphers have the chance of presenting their works, as “The Unity of Calligraphers in the Muslim World” project is also launched.
The purpose of the meeting is to highlight the importance of calligraphy for the Islamic world and its role in cementing intercultural cooperation. Needless to say, to preserve the tradition and improve cooperation between calligraphers are also among the goals.
Calligraphers from Iran, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Britain, Iraq, Syria, Jordan and the US present their works in the exhibition of the event.
Commenting on the importance of calligraphy, Halit Eren, the head of IRCICA noted “From the very first day, IRCICA has been working on preserving and spreading the art of calligraphy. From the 1980s on, we have organized calligraphy competitions every three years, which has become known worldwide. A new generation of calligraphers have emerged. Now, we present all the awarded works here. We are on the edge of establishing The Unity of Calligraphers.”
He continued as saying “We have two goals. One of them is to bring together all the calligraphers. For the first time, this kind of large meeting is taking place. They meet each other. Secondly, we intend to promote Istanbul, this beautiful city where masters of calligraphy such as Sheikh Hamdullah, Farahi Sari, Sami Efendi and Hamdi Aytac produced their best artworks.”
Nuria Garcia Masip, a Spanish calligrapher who was the winner of last IRCICA competition three years ago, like her masters decades ago, also received calligraphy education in Istanbul.
“I came to Istanbul in 2004 and stayed here for two years. Then I conducted monthly visits. I have been upgraded to be a master in 2007. But I am still studying since education in calligraphy continues forever.”
Hasan Celebi was among the masters also attended the opening of the exhibition. Pointing out the motto of the event, Celebi said Istanbul has a central place in calligraphy.
“People desire to see Istanbul and the libraries in it. This event is a wonderful opportunity for calligraphers. I believe the calligraphers here will leave Istanbul full of inspiration.”