Description
Register here.
Join us on the outdoor plaza of the Freer Gallery of Art for a festive afternoon of music, food, and art to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday marking the end of Ramadan. Watch master calligraphers at work, make your own calligraphy-inspired art, enjoy henna designs and music by Syrian Music Preservation Initiative and the Zaynab Ensemble, and view art in the galleries, including the exhibitions Engaging the Senses and Fashioning an Empire: Safavid Textiles from the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha. Food from local favorite Fava Pot will be available for purchase. This event is offered in collaboration with the Qatar America Institute for Culture and the Reed Society for the Sacred Arts. In case of rain, this event will take place inside the museum.
About the participating calligraphers:
Davut Bektas is one of the world's leading calligraphers today. Having received his icacet, or teaching license, from established masters, Davut Bektes continues a six-hundred-year lineage. His calligraphy can be seen in many iconic buildings in Istanbul, including Taksim Mosque and Borsa Istanbul Mosque, as well as abroad in buildings such as the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
Deniz Oktem Bektas discovered her love for Arabic calligraphy in Washington, DC, as a student of master calligrapher Mohamed Zakariya. She returned to Istanbul, where she was raised, and continued her path in this art form. She is now a master calligrapher and teaches and exhibits all over the world.
Mariam Lodin is an independent artist and calligrapher based in the DC metro area. She is a student of traditional Arabic scripts.
Image courtesy of Deniz Bektas
