2020/2021 Winners & Shortlists

Background

Arabic calligraphy is a beautiful and timeless art form that has been handed down over countless generations of artisans. But young Arab speakers today - raised on a steady diet of anglicized western media and culture - are increasingly losing touch with their language and associated crafts. The Revive Project is an annual workshop hosted by The Black and White Report, an independent organization that recognizes, supports and nurtures creativity and talents emerging in MENA. Revive aims to rekindle interest in Arabic calligraphy as an art form amongst Arabic youth by highlighting its beauty, poetry and craft. By educating Arabic youth, it hopes to create a new generation of Arabic calligraphers and save a vital part of Arabic heritage.

Describe the creative idea (40% of vote)

To create curiosity and encourage young Arabs to attend its workshops, the Revive project routinely creates posters that merge Arabic calligraphy with more contemporary design aesthetics to create beautiful and relevant artwork that piques viewer's curiosity by showing them the possibilities of the craft.

Describe the execution (40% of vote)

Freehand calligraphy traditionally uses ink and an array of reed pens, special brushes specially manufactured paper. Each poster was drawn by hand using the same traditional techniques from yesteryear, taking many hours of painstaking craft to complete

List the results (20% of vote)

Year on year, interest in the Revive project has grown exponentially with the workshop size routinely doubling in every iteration. There has been a tangible shift amongst Arabic artists who have embraced this art form with renewed vigor, a fact which is evidenced by a resurgence of the craft on contemporary arts, fashion and designs. We've built up an established set of artisans who return to our workshops year on year to teach, learn and show off the fruits of their labours. The Revive project has also been invited to conduct workshops at an array of universities across the region, including the American Universities of Dubai and Sharjah and the university of Dubai.