Sedaghat Jabbari (Iranian, b. 1961)

In traditional calligraphy the use of space in relation to the placement of elements on the page is one that should reflect a divine order. A cruciform formation, for example, has a symbolic content, possessing particular spiritual and metaphysical qualities, and appeals to one of the most ancient human archetypes.

Jabbari combines traditional and modern tools and uses the reed pen, gold leaf and traditional paint together with the brush, oil paints and canvas. In his works, we are sometimes witness to indistinct images of trees in the miniature style, the simurgh and other elements of Iranian painting in which calligraphy is lost and is only detectable upon closer examination. There is a long history in Islamic calligraphy of examples of animals or birds which have been drawn using calligraphic strokes. However, the drawings of Jabbari are more abstracted