Love for the script: Iraqi calligrapher's personal quest

Shafaq News/ In Iraq’s Al-Anbar province, where artistic activity has diminished, calligrapher Abdulhamid Nazem al-Dhibban is working to preserve the Arabic script through personal dedication and formal instruction.

Born on September 26, 1992, al-Dhibban left formal education after middle school but pursued calligraphy alongside his studies, driven by natural talent and self-directed learning.

Serious training began under calligrapher Mundhir al-Dulaimi, whose technique and mentorship, al-Dhibban recalled, had a lasting impact. "The first time I saw my teacher handling the pen, it astonished me.”

"Calligraphy is a unique world," al-Dhibban told Shafaq News. "What first attracted me was its spirituality and the atmosphere it creates. The moment you pick up the pen, you feel as if you have entered another world."

Conflict forced al-Dhibban to relocate to Al-Sulaymaniyah, where he studied the Naskh script with a couple of Kurdish calligraphers. "The biggest challenge was continuity, because the tools necessary for calligraphy were scarce.”

Al-Dhibban described Arabic calligraphy as the “identity and heritage of a nation, expressing Islamic and Arab civilization, but it suffers from neglect.”

Each piece he creates, he explained, reflects a personal story. He expressed hopes of establishing a dedicated calligraphy center in Al-Anbar. "The first lesson I would teach is love," he said. "Whoever loves it will not abandon it and will become an ambassador for it."