My research focused on the intersection of calligraphy and type in a digital type environment, balancing the possibilities of both sides. My fascination with Arabic calligraphy has always been my primary motivation for designing type, and since modern type design (not only for the Arabic script) has taken on a whole new level of complexity, I wanted to explore the relationship between these two areas. Recent technological developments have removed many of these limitations, and several new possibilities are emerging thanks to growing interest in Arabic type (as separate from Arabic calligraphy) and to resources available to skilled designers. In the case of Linotype’s simplified Arabic, the limitations of the typesetting technology necessitated modifications to the core of the script itself. Consequently, Arabic type made several disjointed jumps into the digital age, all marked by severe limitations: in the case of hot metal type, faithful reproduction of the calligraphic styles necessitated the creation of an extremely large character set (a minimum of 900 characters, Bulaq Press, Cairo, Early 1800s). Religious and cultural attachments to the art played a role in this, as well as the complexity of styles, which far exceeded the capabilities of Latin-oriented typesetting systems. The powerful influence of calligraphy long inhibited the progress of Arabic type design development. Arabic writing is an ethereal art set apart by its diversity of styles, the skill and passion required, and the message it was meant to carry. Arabic calligraphy is undoubtedly one of the highest achievements of Islamic art, and over the centuries an enormous number of calligraphic styles have emerged from different regions of the Islamic and Arab world.
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