Silsal’s Kufic collection pays tribute to one of the oldest and most beloved of Arabic scripts: Kufic. Developed in 7th century Kufa, an Iraqi city 170 kilometres south of Baghdad, calligraphers spent decades developing and perfecting the popular script.
However, by the 13th century, the use of everyday Kufic became virtually extinct, due to its time-consuming, complex format. Instead, it was reserved for architectural inscriptions, thanks to its interesting angular lines and geometric shapes.
We at Silsal were truly inspired by this beautiful from a bygone era and our collection was our way of giving it a contemporary, fresh revival. We hoped to bring an art form that was only seen on grand monuments into the everyday home, so it could be appreciated, loved and cherished.
We set our Kufic script against contrasting block colours like orange, lilac and blue so that each letter could stand out. The long characters extend elegantly upwards, balancing the curved, squat letters by their side. We followed the traditional cursive format and linked letters with exaggerated horizontal lines to create a contemporary grid-like pattern.
Much of the collection is decorated with the words ‘Al-Sa’adah, Al, Barakah, Al-Noor, Al Yumn, Al-Irtika’a and Al’Suroor’, a sweet wish of ‘Happiness, blessings, light, faith, prosperity and joy’. We thought this was a fitting tribute to an art form that has brought wonder and delight for centuries, and hopefully, through our collection continue to do so!
