Calligrapher Twasin Twaha: Creating music for the eyes

Calligraphy is an artform often misinterpreted. The curved letters become illegible, defeating the point of the artwork for the viewer. However, Bangladeshi calligrapher Twasin Twaha believes calligraphy is more than that — and it can be viewed and analysed just like any other piece of art. 

It was the Arabic letters, beautifully hand painted on the walls of the madrasa Twasin used to study in as a child, that drew him towards calligraphy. Ever since then, a calligrapher is all that Twasin had wanted to be. 

"I have been drawing since I was very young, because I would see my uncle draw, my family inspired me," he says, "In class 7 when I started exploring calligraphy. I was initially inspired by traditional calligraphy and I practiced it using online resources."

Today, Twasin works as an independent calligrapher, taking on multiple projects and working with a diverse clientele. Quite recently, Twasin has used his art as a means to protest against the atrocities in the ongoing war in Palestine. 

In an exhibition titled 'Cartoon for Palestine' last November, Twasin quoted renowned Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish in his artworks, which spanned across a wall in Arabic letters, "It was Palestine. It became Palestine."

In 2022, Twasin Twaha traveled to Bhasan Char, working alongside Brac and UNHCR to collaborate with refugee artists. He found himself deeply moved as he watched children dabbling in paint for the first time, their brushes skimming over a wall filled with Arabic letters. 

"This project at Bhasan Char holds a special place in my heart," Twasin said. "It was not just about the art we created but the people, especially the children encountering paint for their first time. Seeing their joy and everyone's efforts come together to make one beautiful piece was truly remarkable." Twasin himself had painted the words, "life and hope" in the beautiful strokes of Arabic letters upon the walls of a structure. 
Calli-graffiti
Twasin's artworks beautifully blend Bangla and Arabic, but it is Arabic that resonates deeply with him. His studies at a madrasa profoundly shaped his artistic approach, making Arabic a central element of his expression.
"Since I was learning and reading in Arabic, Arabic became a huge part of my art," he said.
Learning traditional calligraphy usually involves studying under a mentor, an 'ustaad,' which presented a challenge for Twasin, as most esteemed calligraphers were in Dhaka, far from his home in Chattogram.
Facing this barrier, he ventured into experimenting with modern and freestyle calligraphy. This exploration led him to discover 'eL Seed,' a French-Tunisian calligraphy artist and muralist, who inspired Twasin to delve into the vibrant world of graffiti art. That led to the creation of several memorable artworks.

At CRB Hill in Chattogram, Twasin collaborated with another artist, Arham Habib. Together, they worked on a graffiti mural where Arham sketched a figure and Twasin added the backdrop with Bangla words that read, "life or tree."
In a separate project in Kaptai, Chittagong, Twasin painted a translated quote from the famous writer Kahlil Gibran on a wall: "Trees are the poems that the earth writes upon the sky."
One of the hurdles, he notes, is the lifespan of graffiti work. While canvases can capture the beauty of a piece of art and hold it for years, it is not the same for graffiti. The beautifully crafted words on a wall today might wash away in the rain by tomorrow. 
"The main motive of graffiti artists is to reflect time, and after that time it vanishes. It makes sense for it to go away with time, it makes the art stronger," Twasin explains.  
"Another thing that I admire about graffiti art is that it is like performance art. People come and watch, and the people who witness it become part of the experience."

Calligraphy in Bangladesh 

Calligraphy art itself is a niche artform, especially in Bangladesh. Even though the art utilises language, it receives criticism from people for being illegible, ultimately defeating the purpose of readable art. 

Twasin responds to this, "A good explanation of this is as an art form when we look at art, we do not look at it literally. We try to interpret it. Similar to how we listen to a song in a foreign language. We might not know what the song means but you still understand the essence of it. Similarly, calligraphy is called music of the eyes."
 
While Twaha is making waves in this niche artform, there is still a lot of work to be done. While Bangla calligraphy is being practiced today, there is not nearly enough work being done on it, compared to the works of other languages' calligraphy such as China and Japan. Twasin wants to bring the spotlight to Bangla calligraphy, helping it gain more appreciation. 
"I want to bring Bangla calligraphy to a new level. A lot of people are not familiar with calligraphy, let alone Bangla calligraphy," he continues to explain his goals, "as a calligrapher, my goal is to reflect the time as much as possible."