A QURANIC CALLIGRAPHY, LAPIS LAZULI AND EMERALD INK ON AHAR PAPER, RAZWAN BAIG, SHAZAIN BAIG

A QURANIC CALLIGRAPHY, LAPIS LAZULI AND EMERALD INK ON AHAR PAPER, RAZWAN BAIG, SHAZAIN BAIG

Central Panel

وَلا َ تَقُولُوا لم ِ َنْ يُقْتَل ُ فِي س َ بِيلِ اللهَِّ أَمْوَات ٌ ۚ بَل ْ أَح ْ يَاءٌ وَلَٰكِنْ لا َ تَش ْ عُرُونَ

“And do not say of those who are killed in the way of God, ‘They are dead.’ Rather, they

are alive, but you do not perceive.”

Surah al Baqarah 2:154

Circular Panel

الْح ُ ب ُّ فِي اللهِّ وَالْبُغْض ُ فِي اللهِّ

Love for the sake of God and dislike for the sake of God.

Thuluth and Nastaliq Script, Lapis Lazuli Blue and Emerald Green Ink, Handmade Ahar Paper

The concept of this piece is that the death that God mentions in this verse is not just physical death but also a death of the Self. When one becomes annihilated in the Love of God, they remain alive eternally and never die. Everything they do is for God and their

every action is for Him.

The Ahar Paper is handmade in a process using Alum, egg white and wheat starch and the paper is aged for several years. The inks are made from crushing Lapis Lazuli to make the blue ink and Emeralds to produce the green ink.

50 x 31cm 

Razwan Baig

Razwan Baig is an Islamic artist, calligrapher, collector, preserver, art critic and philanthropist. His passion and devotion to the art was ignited at the age of 12 when he started writing his first Qur’an. With a mathematical background, he realised the accuracy and geometrical forms of each letter was phenomenal and sought to reach the zenith of this science. He is also one of the largest collectors of Islamic Manuscripts in Europe and his collection contains a plethora of Islamic Antiquities and Artefacts dating from the 8th Century. He is classically trained in several styles of Islamic Calligraphy from world-renowned masters from

Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Pakistan and India. Having studied under the tutelage of the greatest exponents of the Islamic Calligraphic tradition, he has attained the level of mastery in the field. He has gained recognition for the art of Calligraphy by running workshops and presentations in different cities in Europe and across the world since 1994. His works are collected throughout the world and his pieces span collections in Europe, America and Asia. He has exhibited internationally in major galleries and institutions such as The British Museum, The Bucks County Museum and The Victoria and Albert Museum. He will also be holding a solo exhibition in the United Nations Headquarters in Geneva and New York.

Shazain Baig

Shazain Baig is an Islamic artist, calligrapher, researcher and historian. His interest in Islamic Calligraphy stemmed from being immersed in surroundings consisting of the Islamic Artistic tradition. He was then taken under the wing of great masters of the Islamic World such as Efdaluddin Kilic of Turkey, Taha al Hiti of Iraq, Morteza Salehi of Iran and Haytham Selmo of Syria. He is practicing in the styles of Thuluth, Nastaliq, Naskh, Muhaqqaq and Kufic.

He has a great passion in the pedagogy and history of the Islamic Artistic tradition and has studied extensively in the field. He is currently using the centuries old technique of Siyah Mashgh and incorporating it into a modern amalgamation of tradition and innovation. He has an extensive portfolio of pieces spanning several different mediums and are present in several private collections globally.