Arab News launches special project for the Year of Arabic Calligraphy
The online Deep Dive looks at the ancient craft and modern art of Arabic calligraphy. The multimedia project also marks UN Arabic Language Day on Dec. 18
To round out the Year of Arabic Calligraphy, as declared by the Saudi Ministry of Culture, and to mark UN Arabic Language Day on Dec. 18, Arab News is launching a special online project.
Its latest Deep Dive takes an in-depth multimedia look at the history and development of Arabic calligraphy, with animations and videos of well-known calligraphers, including the Dubai-based French-Tunisian street artist eL Seed.
“This year, we profiled several individual calligraphers in the Arab world,” said arts and lifestyle editor Saffiya Ansari. “But this Deep Dive allowed us to go way back in time and look at its development, showing readers its various styles and how it has evolved as a modern art form.”
Arab News, the Middle East’s leading English-language daily, launched its Deep Dive documentary series last year as a new way to showcase its most in-depth storytelling on key topics, enlivened by audio, video and animated graphics.
One of its Deep Dives, “Juhayman: 40 years on,” recently won a European Newspaper Award for multimedia storytelling, and another, “The rebirth of AlUla,” was shortlisted by Shorthand for best editorial story in 2019. They can be accessed here:
The Deep Dive “Arabic calligraphy: ancient craft, modern art” will be available online on Dec. 18, the UN Arabic Language Day, on Arab News’ platforms in three languages:
Links for more information
Ray Hanania is an award winning political and humor columnist who analyzes American and Middle East politics, and life in general. He is an author of several books.
Hanania covered Chicago Politics and Chicago City Hall from 1976 through 1992 at the Daily Southtown and the Chicago Sun-Times. He began writing in 1975 publishing The Middle Eastern Voice newspaper in Chicago (1975-1977). He later published “The National Arab American Times” newspaper (2004-2007).
Hanania writes weekly columns on Middle East and American Arab issues as Special US Correspondent for the Arab News ArabNews.com, at TheArabDailyNews.com, and at SuburbanChicagoland.com. He has published weekly columns in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, YNetNews.com, Newsday, the Orlando Sentinel, Houston Chronical, and Arlington Heights Daily Herald.
Hanania is the recipient of four (4) Chicago Headline Club “Peter Lisagor Awards” for Column writing. In November 2006, he was named “Best Ethnic American Columnist” by the New American Media. In 2009, Hanania received the prestigious Sigma Delta Chi Award for Writing from the Society of Professional Journalists. He is the recipient of the MT Mehdi Courage in Journalism Award. He was honored for his writing skills with two (2) Chicago Stick-o-Type awards from the Chicago Newspaper Guild. In 1990, Hanania was nominated by the Chicago Sun-Times editors for a Pulitzer Prize for his four-part series on the Palestinian Intifada.
His writings have also been honored by two national Awards from ADC for his writing, and from the National Arab American Journalists Association.
Hanania is the US Special Correspondent for the Arab News Newspaper, covering Middle East and Arab American issues. He writes for the Southwest News newspaper group writing on mainstream American issues.
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