I have been lost in a beautiful and dark forest, paving my own path with a dull hunting knife. I cut through tangled blackberry vines, and I have gotten pricked by their thorns. I remember slaying my way through dense thickets covered in poison ivy, and dealing damage from the rashes I would scratch. I... Continue Reading →
Illuminated Manuscript: “Sapari Tema” Remake
Original Author: Sa'adia ben Amram Title of Work: סַפְּרִי תַמָּה תְמִימָה (Sapari Tema Temimah - "Tell me, O innocent one") I decided this time around to create a piece reminiscent of Mediaeval illuminated manuscripts, and illustrated some of the key themes from the poem. This is in no way an accurate portrayal of illuminated manuscripts,... Continue Reading →
“The Art of Coffee”: Prelude to Semitic Vowels
Fenn al-Qahwah (translation: The Art of Coffee). But wait . . . Fun Café? Oh, what fun! Here is a "fenn" fact: The lack of vowels as independent characters within the abjad, is one of the many challenges of the Semitic languages, especially for new learners. Instead, Semitic languages use vowel markings. Bear with me,... Continue Reading →
Autumn 2019 Reads for the ALPH Geek
Here is another rare update from everyone's favourite Yemeni paint-splattered social recluse. As I contemplate which disciplines to study in graduate school that would be worthwhile (interesting, challenging, and practical), I may as well do some leisurely reading :) Most of the world values STEM more than ALPH — i.e., Arts, Literature & Linguistics, Philosophy,... Continue Reading →
Thorn and Eth: Þ and Ð
Today, we will venture faaaar beyond Babylonia and her Semitic languages, and we shall focus on the Anglo-Saxon language (Old English). In particular, we will focus on two distinct alphabetical characters that have been used in the Anglo-Saxon writing system, that are no longer used in Modern English writing. In order to understand this post,... Continue Reading →
NINEVEH: Vibes of Nineveh (Cityscapes Series)
Shato brikhto (Happy New Year of 2019)! I am excited to share a new design piece of mine — a visual expression of the Assyrian capital, Nineveh. I also detail some of my research, design process, and other musings in this post. Nineveh is part of a lettering & illustration series I am working on, which... Continue Reading →
Socotra
SOCOTRA, Yemen . . . a celestial island of Dragon Blood trees and dragonflies. Her fragile ecosystem is falling apart. It was a slow death at first; climate change is a familiar culprit. Her wounds took a turn for the worse amid the ongoing war against Yemen. The world must not turn away from this injustice.... Continue Reading →
Surat al Ikhlas
"Surat al Ikhlas" I would like to share a work of calligraphy I made in the winter of 2014. Here I have Surat al Ikhlas in what was intended to be Kufic Arabic script. Kufic, the oldest form of Arabic script that emerged from borrowing elements of the Nabatean and Syriac abjads, traditionally excludes the... Continue Reading →
Middle Eastern Christmas
I wish all my Coptic and Assyrian brothers and sisters a blessed and peaceful holiday. I wish for a peaceful and glorious era for the Middle East (and the world) in the near future. Salam and Shalom.
SANA’A — Vibes of Sana’a (Cityscapes Series)
Sana'a: The Capital City of Yemen. In this post, I introduce my first art piece of 2018, in which I combine lettering and illustration. The concept of the lettering was to have Sana'a written in four different scripts: Sabaean, Arabic, Hebrew, and Syriac. Those languages fall into the Semitic branch of languages, have similar origins,... Continue Reading →
Beyond Babylonia 