Persian Calligraphy of Persian Culture

The Persian language uses the Arabic alphabet, so Persian calligraphy belongs to the category of Arabic calligraphy (Islamic calligraphy), and there are many similarities and differences between Persian ancient calligraphy and Chinese calligraphy. While Chinese script is hieroglyphic, Persian script is phonetic. Hieroglyphic characters point to the thing itself, while pinyin characters directly constitute the symbols that are dancing. But the distinction between calligraphy and painting is equally clear in both China and Iran. Calligraphy is written and text is sequential, from right to left, and this was exactly the same in ancient China and Persia. Here are two pieces of Persian calligraphy by the famous modern Iranian calligrapher Mr. S. Mohammed Ehsaey, one of the three contemporary masters rated by the Iranian Ministry of Culture, who has a high status in Iran and an international reputation, and whose works are in the collections of many museums in the West.

Islamic calligraphy was introduced to Persia in 642 A.D. along with the "conquest of Islam," and since then, it has gradually become the centerpiece of Persian art and culture, as well as a training course for princes and nobles. The attention of Persian artists to calligraphy has given rise to two major indigenous styles of script, Nastaliq and Shekastee, which are the contribution of Persian artists to Islamic culture and the pride of Persians. Nastaliq, in particular, has become almost a symbol of the Persian lineage of Islamic calligraphy and has been called the "Persian bride" of Islamic calligraphy.

In addition to the Nastaliq and Shekastee styles, there are many other distinctive styles of Persian calligraphy, such as Muhaqqaq, Rihani, and Thuluth. Calligraphy has become a true art in its own right because of its pursuit of quality and style of writing that goes beyond the recording of original texts. The pens of Persian calligraphers were made of reed poles according to strict rules and were called "cypress branches in the garden of knowledge".

Like in China, calligraphy in Iran is considered to be an expression of the spirit of the writer as well as a manifestation of the Muslim heart, and, as the Islamic philosopher Ali put it, "a natural and pure process of writing, nurtured in the purity of the heart". Therefore, every great Islamic calligrapher must undergo a long period of training and refinement of the soul, and have a pure and firm heart like the sages.

Mr. Ehsaey's works are divided into two styles, traditional and modern, and in his own words, his works "straddle tradition and modernity", which is the same pursuit of many non-Western artists, and is worth reflecting on. This part of his work is directly related to abstract art, and at the beginning of the 20th century, Roger Fry and Lawrence Bean, the promoters of modern art in Europe, had a new understanding of words such as "linear" and "abstract" after taking a look at oriental calligraphy, which greatly influenced modern artists through their writing. Calligraphy, through their writing, has greatly influenced the work of modern artists. It is interesting to note that some years later, both in Iran and China, the concept of "abstraction" in Western modern art has in turn become the theoretical basis for calligraphy's interpretation and legitimization in an increasingly integrated world. Indeed, the semantic context of contemporary calligraphy has changed, and with it the conditions that constitute its meaning. And behind this change is the story of a thousand modernities: what is presented and articulated on the cross-cultural platform of modern art is at the same time obscured and undermined in a mechanism of othered presentation.

In the contemporary cross-cultural context, calligraphy, more than any art form, demands the propriety of the viewer. As a unique reflection of the written word - an ideogram - calligraphy needs to be recognized and read. Although it is also an "image," it is an object of appreciation and admiration. In cross-cultural readings, calligraphy is often treated as an image, and words seem to be treated as something to be observed and depicted. However, the relationship between writing and words is subtly different from the relationship between painting and objects. Just as in the most primitive singing, tone and diction are ****born as one. Singing is not about expression, it is only about singing, and in singing, tone and meaning are mutually renewed. Tone is never a technique or a simple medium; it is closer to the root of singing than the meaning of words.

Both in China and Iran, calligraphy maintains this primordial sameness, this mutual glowing between words and writing. In the process of writing, the experience of words extends beyond the meaning of words, and the power of words is born.

Persian calligraphy has a great capacity for image-making. In fact, every Iranian calligrapher is also a graphic designer. While Chinese calligraphy also focuses on both the use of the writing brush and the overall organization of strokes and character shapes, Iranian calligraphers simply organize words into graphics and even emblems. This practice is particularly suited to the creation of textual icons, which is closely related to the worship of the written word in Islam. The taboo on images in Islamic culture has led artists to dedicate themselves to the exploration of motifs, and the worship of the word of Allah, the Prophet, in its teachings directly contributes to this image-making function. Words that become icons have totemic spiritual power. Any sentence has a speaker, the words of mortals, the words of the speaker can be questioned, only the word of God is absolute, unquestionable, it seems to be "natural - of course" is. Words are idolized in the light of calligraphy, as if they were natural, as if they were something that exists. When Khomeini's words, "The Islamic revolution is a blast of light," are written - designed as a flaming totem - the speaker, even as great as Khomeini, is immediately overshadowed by the miraculous idolatry of the written word. Islamic culture forbids idolatry, but Persian calligraphy produces literal idols that make a mockery of this prohibition.