I’ve been away from “television” since September, last year, and around a year had that been off before that. And I’m not surprised, but it really amazes me how the emptiness in it’s content is still present, unchanged.

In Journals   

There are two main categories of architects. To the first belong the few fortunate people endowed with a natural ability to understand and manipulate space; only a hundred or so are born in any century. To the second belong all the others, including myself, and it is to them that this book is devoted. I am convinced that the art of designing can be learned.

After Amnesia, Learning From The Islamic Mediterranean Urban Fabric

Attilio Petruccioli

In I Came Across..   

الغريب حقا، أن ذلك البيت، رغم صغر مساحته، يبدو واسعا إلى حد كبير، فليس هناك شكوى من ضيق. إلا أن الأمر كما بدا لي أن مساحة الدار تتناسب طرديا مع عمق العواطف بين الساكنين، وسلامة العواطف كانت بفضل صبر والدتي و حكمة والدي، فبحجم قلبيهما كان بيتنا كبيرا قياسا بعظم كثافة سكانه.

خواطر السنين

محمد مكية

In The Octave   

كانت ليلة بدرية يلوح قمرها مكتملا إذا مال غصن التوت الريان مع النسيم، أو يبدو أعينا من الضياء خلل شبكة من الأغصان و الأوراق إذا رجع الغصن إلى مستقره.

نجيب محفوظ، أولاد حارتنا

In The Octave   

For those who know about the book “B2: The 5th Illustration Design Showcase” that few of my works were featured in, the book is going to be available at Jarir Bookstore Abu Dhabi in February according to them. The previous B The Book was priced AED 299 (~US 80).

In The Atelier   

VIA SABBAH’S BLOG

In Relitics   

It has occurred to me, that there’s a tremendous attention towards this sort of emotion – the sadness associated with it, the curiosity towards the event, the reality of it.

I was reading BLDGBLOG a few days ago, and an entry intrigued me, titled ‘Nuclear Urbanism’ discussing the aftermath of a nuclear bomb in an urban setting of one’s choice using a Javascript on Google Maps by CarlosLabs, showing you a diagram of the bomb’s destructive stages. And to my interest in this topic I found out that the Soviets had experimented with a bomb named the ‘Tsar Bomba’ that I’ve never heard of before, and that this bomb if detonated over Tel Aviv, would wipe out half of Palestine. Which was an act of an absentminded rage.

I’m interested in the tragedy of the nuclear bomb; the entire story, the details of this inhuman apparatus, and on the other hand, it aches me every time I read about it how those innocent lives, be it men or women, elderly or children, were vaporized in a matter of seconds, if not an instant, and were vanished from existence.

This tragedy is what attracts me to it. I love the science behind it but I barely understand it, my understanding is at best primitive, but my emotional attachment to those innocent people is what makes me watch a 110 minute documentary on the topic in complete awe. I don’t think it’s because I’m inhumane towards those, but because I believe I owe them my recognition, the same way I owe the Palestinians in Gaza nowadays my most precious offering that is my sympathy. As valuable as it is to me as an outsider Palestinian living in a capitalist discreet system, I don’t believe it is of any value outside my head, and perhaps this space.

When you google the term ‘Tragedy’, the basic definition – according to Wikipedia for example, one gets is that it’s an art form. That is the contrary of what I was expecting, as if the world intentionally creates those tragedies around us in order to keep those away from them entertained. That is a very shallow conclusion, but I can’t but let it out to justify this unjustified silence we live in.

The world is not silent, protests are happening all around the world; politicians have been throwing conferences on this everyday, blame has been circulating endlessly, but silence is present in the actions of governments, in the actions of people, we’re being silenced. All this is an alibi to not take action, and I myself join those who use it to cover for their cowardice. But what I can’t justify is the ‘Neglectance’ I see in the eyes of many, I see it in their NYE parties, in their BBQs, in their careless clubbing, I hear it in their laughing, and cheering for those soccer teams. Those who partied, celebrated birthdays, went on shopping sprees, carried on with their precious lifestyles, those who laughed and still do. Those who silence the rage in us, those who pull us down and backwards, those with dead souls.

In Journals   

I got this piece forwarded to me On Gaza, written by Dr. Mishari Al-Naim, from Al-Binaa magazine. An excerpt:

لا أستطيع مشاهدة الأخبار ولا أتحمل المشاهد المأساوية في غزة فحتى كتابة هذا المقال (مطلع العام الميلادي الجديد والجيش الإسرائيلي يقوم بهجمة شرسة صباح أول يوم في العام الجديد) سقط 400شهيد وأصيب أكثر من 2000والحكومة الإسرائيلية المصغرة تجتمع وعلى وجه أولمرت وباراك ابتسامات عريضة. أي خسة هذه وأي سقوط عن الدرك الأسفل من الانسانية. سيدة العالم (أمريكا) تلوم حماس على إطلاقها الصواريخ على المدن اليهودية وهي صواريخ لاتقتل أحدا مع أن (أمريكا) لا تلوم من يقتل من أجل الدفاع عن النفس ولا تحاكمه، فأي معايير هذه التي تحكمنا. أهذه “نهاية التاريخ” التي بشر بها (فوكوياما) فعلا انها نهاية تاريخ الانسانية فالتاريخ لن يتوقف عند حضارة “خسيسة” لا تعرف معنى “الحق”. ربما يجب على سيدة العالم ان تتعلم من سيرة صلاح الدين الذي عفا وصفح عن أعدائه (ومن عفا وأصفح فأجره على الله)، حضارتنا وثقافتنا تحكمها الانسانية ويهيمن عليها الحق. لا أستطيع مشاهدة الأخبار فأنا لا أتحمل رؤية الاطفال ورؤوسهم متفجرة برصاص الوحوش ولا أتحمل مشاهدة النساء وهن يبكين رجالهن الابرياء. وهذه أنانية مني لكني لا أستطيع فعل شيء سوى الدعاء وكتمان القهر. مشاهدة الأخبار تزيدني اكتئابا وتجعلني لا أشعر بطعم الحياة التي أصبحت “فارغة” ودون طعم. لا أستطيع مشاهدة الأخبار التي تقول ان القمة العربية لن تعقد (رغم أنني لا اعتقد أن القمة العربية ضرورية لأنها ليست مهمة ولن يكون لها أي تأثير إلا تأثيرها المعنوي، فعلى الأقل يشعر الغزاويون أن هناك من يناصرهم). لا أستطيع أن أتحمل مشاهدة العالم الذي يصمت على الظلم لكني أشعر بأن هذا العالم بحاجة لنا، فعلا يحتاج إلى مبادئنا العادلة التي لم نستطع أن نطبقها حتى على أنفسنا ويحتاج إلى إنسانيتنا التي فقدناها.

I fail again to eject words on this; what good are they? The full piece here.

In Relitics   

May 30, 2008

Last Month, Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial 2008 opened its doors and humbly, I had a piece there that my teacher Mr. Adnan Al-Shareefi urged me to do, and I thank him for that.I met a lot of key figures on the opening day, such as Mohammed-Jalil Rasooli, the Iranian Master! There’s a solo exhibition for him in addition to Adnan Al-Sheikh Othman (whom I met as well), a Syrian Master Calligrapher in the Arabic Calligraphy Center in the Heritage Area, so I was roaming around and there was a guy that looked more of a figure that was there for the event, he had a companion, and 2 other men surrounding them and obviously leading an appreciation kind of a conversation. I figured instantly that one of them was obviously Rasooli so I instantly went to meet him.

Rasooli looked old, he is. He wore a pair of squarish glasses and had this frown on his face, I asked the guy on his side, is this Mr. Rasooli? He confirmed. I instantly turned to Mr. Rasooli to show my profound appreciation to his work and his person! Unfortunately I didn’t think he wouldn’t understand a word of Arabic nor English, so I had to tell his companion that it’s an honor to meet him and to see his work here. A few seconds of translations and he was replying back in a warm way: “Tashakkor Tashakkor!”. I recommend going to the biennial if not for the works there, only for his works!

Another key figure was Tajelsir Hassan! I was looking all over for him until I met with another sudanese calligrapher, so I couldn’t but ask: “Is Mr. Tajelsir Here?”, he confirmed too and I felt I’d go close to his work in hope that I’d find him in person. I went in the section that had all the modern “Huroofi” pieces (Abstract/Letterish/Modern Calligraphy) but never found him in there, so I went out to the courtyard and there was a Sudanese guy standing with another person, so I was observing his face features, and it was him! He notices me staring at him so he interrupts his conversation with the other guy, and there I popped in to say hello. He spent a few seconds to read my Participation tag, and when he read Philisteen (Palestine) on my country, he hugged me! I was speechless!

I remember I once wrote about Mr. Khaled Al-Saai. A well-known Syrian modern Calligrapher, Mr. Khaled was very friendly! I met him more than once before that, once in my teacher’s studio and Mr. Adnan was like: “Here’s Khaled Al-Saai, the guy you’ve been nagging my head with his work!” I almost went: “DUUUH!” but in respect I replied: “Yeah sure I know him!”. Anyway, he took me to his works and we had a little conversation about his look to modern calligraphy. His words were: “Modern Calligraphy is about Ideology”.

Dec 26, 2008

Six months after writing the above, and discovering that the draft didn’t go through, I realized I owe this space a lot.

This is the piece that had been exhibited in the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial 2008.

In The Atelier   

Lately I’ve been trying to put generous effort into modeling things that inspire me and on the same hand, challenge me to learn new techniques and find out how to digitalize them, plus I consider it an addition to my humble library.

In last week’s class I was somehow intrigued by Apple’s Mighty Mouse aesthetics, I always was; everyone picks it up and appreciates its minimalist design and whiteness. A week later and a few hours refining it, I believe it’s a fairly good addition.

Rendered with Maxwell Render, taking 10 hours. Click on the image for a larger version.

In The Atelier