From Sharjah to Beirut, design curricula is a challenge in the age of digital revolution within the context of Globalization. It’s vital to analyze this practice and device means to integrate Arabic concepts, content, and compositions through design projects. Design students obtain the basics to become typography designers through practice. The Kufic Script is recognized for its dichotomy of shapes, simple to complex forms, motifs, and letters. Its playful grid structure is traditional, yet open to trendy explorations and experimentations. Adopting the Kufic Script bridges gaps retrospectively; looking at the past, applying it to the present, and reflecting into the future. The purpose of this presentation is to understand the origins of the script, utilize it as a contemporary regional motif, and further develop it for other possible applications.
Kufic Script: from Calligraphy to Typography
Nada Abdallah
Nada Abdallah is the founder of Bilarabic Design Festival and Director of Meta.motif masterclasses and is an Assistant Professor in Visual Communication at the College of Fine Arts and Design, University of Sharjah. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Visual Communication from the American University of Sharjah and an MFA from the Lebanese University. Abdallah began teaching in 2002 and taught design at the Higher Colleges of Technology, Lebanese University, and Lebanese International University. She is a Certified Arabic Calligrapher, which she obtained from the Master Calligrapher Mosaad Khodeir ElBorsaidi in Cairo, Egypt. Abdallah’s research and work focus on Arabic Calligraphy and mainly the Kufic Script. She has won several awards in design and held many exhibitions in Lebanon, United Arab Emirates, Greece, Korea, Jordan, Egypt, Bahrain, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the United States.