In May, UTD visual and performing arts doctorate student Farzana Razzaque was invited to a ceremony in Istanbul to receive ijazat — formal authorizations to teach and transmit a subject — in the Riqa, Diwani and Diwani Jali styles of Islamic calligraphy. Her ijazat makes her the latest in a centuries-old line of calligraphers authorized to pass on the artistic tradition, authorization granted to her by the master calligrapher she studied under.
“[Obtaining ijazat is] very different from the Western tradition of studying, in that it’s … a discipleship,” Razzaque said. “The student who’s interested in studying finds a master calligrapher or illumination artist … [and] once you find that the master, and the master agrees to teach you, you start the learning process.”
Razzaque had been learning the Riqa, Diwani and Diwani Jali scripts under calligraphy master Shahryanshah Sirajuddin since 2021. She said that obtaining ijazat was a rigorous process that involved years of intense study and practice.
“So the master will give you a line of homework, and you are instructed to copy that homework exactly and … [when] the master decides that the line has been written exactly as he or she wishes, then you move on to the next piece of homework, [which] can go on for years,” Razzaque said. “Once you have achieved all these sort of stages of mastery, then the teacher or the master will decide if you can attain ijazah, and that includes another test where you must write another piece of work … and the master eventually approves this work, and then it’s also seen by other master calligraphers to corroborate that the student actually achieved mastery.”
Razzaque now holds five ijazat. She had previously obtained mastery in the Thuluth and Naskh styles of Islamic calligraphy under calligraphy master Haji Noor Deen. Razzaque said her interest in Islamic calligraphy began in her childhood, she had always been fascinated by the calligraphy and illumination adorning Islamic books like the Quran. After attending a class on calligraphy that made her fall in love with the medium, Razzaque decided to start mastering calligraphy nine years ago.
“We had a master calligrapher that actually came to Dallas, [a] Chinese calligrapher by the name of Haji Noor Deen,” Razzaque said. “I went to his class and the aspects of calligraphy he talked about, the spiritual aspects, discipline needed to learn … this art form just blew me away, and that was just a one hour class, and I said I have to know more. This is my lifelong calling.”
As her interest in calligraphy bloomed, Razzaque became increasingly fascinated by the history of the art form. She began looking into the origins of the diverse calligraphic traditions of the Islamic world and how it connected to her heritage as a Bangladeshi American. Her search for knowledge led her to look into programs that would allow her to both grow as a calligrapher and explore the art’s rich past.
“”[I wanted to know] how it developed, what it developed from, why we have all these different scripts in these different parts of the world because the Islamic calligraphy is as diverse as the many cultures that we have in the world,” Razzaque said. “And so that kind of triggered this kind of need to find out more, and that’s [when] I came to Dr. Alibhai.”
Ali Asgar Alibhai, BAHT assistant professor and Razzaque’s Ph.D. advisor, convinced her to pursue a doctorate in visual and performing arts at UTD in May 2024. Razzaque and Alibhai now both collaborate at the Middle Eastern and North African Research of Art and History lab, also known as MENARAH, to research the evolution of calligraphy in South Asian Qurans. Alibhai said that Razzaque’s artistic experience in Islamic calligraphy gives her a unique perspective that helps recontextualize centuries-old artwork.
“When we study history, we approach it from different directions, and sometimes we’re so interested in who were the patrons or what were the … reasons that certain forms of material culture or art were produced,” Alibhai said. “And as a researcher [of] art history, we often research the technique, but we don’t really understand the process of the technique ourselves if we’re not practicing artists. … [Razzaque has] the ability to step inside the mind of [an] artist because [she is a] practicing artist herself.”
In addition to her study of art history, Razzaque’s Ph.D. program includes a creative component that encourages her to produce novel takes on the tradition. Her works often integrate new modes of presentation and technologies to accentuate themes and emotions that would have been impossible to convey through traditional means. A recent piece by Razzaque blended calligraphy and performance art to explore the lasting impact of colonialism in the Indian subcontinent.
“I did a piece … where I looked at the the effects of British colonialism on South Asia, and it was a performative piece where I had painted layers of pattern, white paint on a cloth, and then I wrote over it and over it, and the question for the audience was, ‘How am I able to write properly on these layers of paint?’,” Razzaque said. “And it was a way to engage [the audience] in understanding that when there is all this trauma or this history that’s happened, can a nation [rebuild] from that? And is it easy to do?”
Going forward, Razzaque plans to continue learning to letter more scripts and to hone her calligraphy skills. She has already begun learning the Maghrebi script under a new master calligrapher. With a long road ahead of her when it comes to learning new scripts and their history, Razzaque says that the goal of practicing Islamic calligraphy isn’t to gain ijazat.
“[Islamic calligraphy] is an enjoyable tradition,” Razzaque said. “It’s a tradition that requires, again, discipline. … It really builds character. The goal is not [obtaining an] ijazah, the goal is the journey. Because that refines you as a person, through the act of calligraphy.”
