Acquired directly from the artist by the present owner

Jeddah, Al Furusiya Atrium, Jeddah Art Week, 2014

J. Hudson, The British Museum Press, Artists and artisans, perspect, London 1998, n.p.

This work is in good condition. There are some light undulations throughout the thumb, and a fine 8cm hairline line restoration running across the second Henna square on the thumb. There is a minute loss on the lower left part of the hand, adjacent to the heart. There are areas of discoloration to the Hannah throughout, all of which are inherent to the artist’s choice of medium. The colours in catalogue illustration are fairly accurate, with the overall tonality tending more towards a softer terracotta tone.
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Nja Mahdaoui is Tunisia’s most renowned contemporary calligrapher, taking inspiration from the ancient angular styles of Kufic script, Arabic letter forms and arts and crafts. Mahdaoui has established himself as an explorer of signs and has been acknowledged as a ‘choreographer of letters.' His abstract interpretation of letter forms has inspired many of his contemporaries, inciting interest in his work from both the East and the West. Mahdaoui stresses the visual impact of his compositions, which he refers to as calligrams (beautiful writing). His artwork focuses on the curvature and formation of each stroke as opposed to the actual text description, emphasising the organic shapes and contours of each Arabic symbol. This disregard of the literal employment of letters enables his works to create a new rhythmic composition, which can be described as a visual melody; various tempos and harmonies are created through the density and pigments applied to rows of minute inscriptions.

The present work consists of a group of calligraphed suspended drums which he first created in the late 1990s. Mahdaoui was first inspired from the musical elements of celebratory 𒊎religious festivals, ceremonies and public events in Tunisia which are often accentuated by vocal and percussional perꦉformances. Mahdaoui, an enthusiast of contemporary African music and dance, frequently performs with poets, musicians and dancers during such events in his native country. Drums are a key symbol in Tunisia; such drums used in the present work are played with two wooden beaters, which are suspended from the shoulders by a leather belt. This large drum is similar to those played on Jerba and the Kerkenna Islands.

This remarkable and energetic conversation between auditory and visual representations is characte♋ristic of Mahdaoui’s innovative approach to creating his works. His method has garnered international recognition, and has𓄧 led to his works being featured in the most eminent museums, galleries and collections.