Talk - My journey from music to calligraphy May 28, 2009

Talk - My journey from music to calligraphy by Qamar Dagar.Calligraphy is the art of beautiful writing. All the great religious scriptures of the world are ready examples of the significance attached to beautiful writing. Both Urdu and Chinese calligraphy have also developed into a full-fledged art forms. In her talk this evening Qamar Dagar describes how in a house full of music she was attracted to drawing and painting Our familys spiritual guru Amir Abdullah Khan, Mastaan Baba as he was fondly called was my first guru. He wrote Tughras', the Quranic verses, at an amazing speed and with magnificent precision. Each letter was evenly sized, beautifully written and with complete devotion. This experience to see him at work was precious. I remember being completely spellbound by his tremendous skill. He would allow me to use his tools that I enjoyed thoroughly. This fascinating process was a fabulous learning experience. My style cannot be slotted into a particular category. My tools are the qalams (bamboo pens), card board and of course the conventional calligraphy pens. At least these three calligraphers encouraged me to create and find my own tools. I am keen to use both vegetable and water colours and Devanagri and Urdu are the two scripts that I use my tools on. Alphabets are designs in their own right. I feel we have the freedom to give them our own form and interpretation and in this culturally rich country it is normal that these two scripts should also co-exist in my work. I select words, poetry or expressions that are close to my heart and I believe in. I interpret them as I understand their meaning and spirit. I am fascinated and moved by the fact that a few strokes or sometimes one stroke can create a lifelike image. If the impression of flow and movement can be created then, that is music. And the same letters when designed or created with elaborate detailing can give the impression of decoration or embellishment. That is celebration of life to me. From one stroke to many, a natural process of evolution happens where the creator, the artist and the created expressions are evolving alike. This is my personal journey and experience and I am happy to share it.'

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