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An expression in ink

THE WORLD-recognised master calligrapher Haji Noor Deen Mi Guang Jiang will fuse the art form of two great traditions at the Islamic Chinese Calligraphy Exhibition at Cultural Foundation, Abu Dhabi, today.

In a country that almost reveres the art of the beautifully written word, it is not rare to find a calligrapher that possesses the talent and creativity inherent to the practice of Chinese calligraphy —an intuitive and freely flowing art form.

However, it is rare to find a calligrapher that marries the spontaneous, water-like quality of Chinese calligraphy to the measured cerebrality and refined moderation of Arabic calligraphy.

Haji Noor Deen Mi Guang Jiang is such a calligrapher; trained by the finest schools and teachers, he brings immense learning in traditional thought and art to a modern audience and juxtaposes them in a calligraphic style all his own, both Eastern and Western.

In China he is known as a new Renaissance man; versed in the classics, spanning cultures and times, outstanding in his field, and an embodiment of the pluralism the nation represents.

By fusing the flowing tails of the Arabic letters neatly within a square form, he gives a golden opening for those who want to examine Islam in China.

In an exclusive interview to City Times, Haji Noor Deen defines the Islamic Chinese Calligraphy. "When combined, the stunning simplicity of Chinese calligraphy softens the artistic deliberateness of Arabic calligraphy, while the Arabic informs the Chinese counterpart with its increased structuralism. In the end, the result is a blend of two greatest calligraphy traditions in an artistic piece that is a work of incredibly unique beauty, and a testimony to man's synthesizing genius. This is the Islamic Chinese Calligraphy," he says.

"The arrangement looks strange to the eye of someone familiar with Arabic decorative art in Central Asia or Iran, but appears perfectly natural to Chinese eyes accustomed to reading words boxed into a square," he adds.

Born in 1963 in eastern China's Shandong Province, he is blessed with an extraordinary mastery and genius in the art of Arabic calligraphy. His unique ability to spectacularly deliver his craft to an audience has brought him lecture and workshop invitations from some of the most renowned and prestigious institutions around the world.

The inside beauty and significance of Arabic calligraphy impressed him to an extent that resulted in 22 years continuous effort.

Though the Arabic and Chinese culture admires calligraphy as the highest form of art, Haji Noor Deen finds an open difference between them. With his unique style he ends the similitude here. "They are at once opposites and complements. You see, where Chinese calligraphy is spur-of-the-moment, Arabic calligraphy appears intellectual and considerably premeditated. While Chinese calligraphy can strike the eye with the liberating effect of a tempest, Arabic calligraphy exudes the cool elegance," he opines.

What is he trying to express? "By blending Islamic and the Chinese art in my artwork, I want my audience to know what is Islam, especially in China. I have a responsibility to develop the great art and to teach and spread it as Islamic art is my passion," he says.

"The first official delegation was sent to China by the Khalifa Uthman in approximately 651 A.D. Since then Islam found little resistance as it took root in China, because of the similarity between their rich tradition.

"Today, China's population represents 56 nationalities, ten of which have an Islamic background. There are approximately twenty million Muslims and thirty-five thousand mosques in the country," he notifies.