Solidarity Lines...Hymns of letters from Al-Aqsa Maghreb to Al-Aqsa Mosque

Part of the "Hymns of Letters" exhibition, which was held at the headquarters of the Bayt Mal Al-Quds Al-Sharif Agency in the capital, Rabat (Al-Jazeera)

Rabat -

The distance did not prevent the sheikh of Moroccan calligraphers, Ahmed Nawali Ben Dahman, from traveling from the city of Oujda in the east of the country to participate in the opening of the exhibition “Hymns of the Letters from Al-Aqsa to Al-Aqsa” at the headquarters of the Bayt Mal Al-Quds Al-Sharif Agency in the capital, Rabat.

The sheikh of the calligraphers, who is in his ninth decade, participated in this event with a painting in which he wrote in fine, jeweled Moroccan calligraphy on distressed paper a verse from Surat Yusuf, and chose the title for it, “God’s relief is near.”

Muhammad Salem Al-Sharqawi, the director in charge of managing the Bayt Mal Al-Quds Al-Sharif Agency (Al-Jazeera)

The Moroccan jeweled script is a precise script whose letters are distinguished by their smallness and closeness, and are similar in consistency to the jewel knots.

In addition to Ben Dahman, 20 calligraphers and decorators from different Moroccan generations and regions participate in this exhibition with paintings in the art of Moroccan calligraphy, the art of Moroccan calligraphy and decoration, with a common theme of Holy Jerusalem.

These various artistic works carried messages of solidarity, love and sympathy with the Palestinians, and highlighted Moroccans’ attachment to Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque.

For the first time, an art exhibition brings together this number of calligraphers and decorators who have received royal honors in recent years due to the excellence of their artistic works, at the initiative of the Rabat Forum for the Revival of Cultural and Artistic Heritage.

Paintings in Moroccan decorative art (Al Jazeera)

Letters of solidarity

The exhibition, which continues until the end of the month of Ramadan, is divided into two parts. The first part displays the participating paintings, and the second part displays the artistic tools that calligraphers and decorators use during their work, such as ink, paper, pens, etc., and is open to the general public and school children.

A painting by the sheikh of Moroccan calligraphers, Ahmed Nawali, in fine, jeweled Moroccan calligraphy, entitled “God’s relief is near” (Al Jazeera)

Muhammad Salem Al-Sharqawi, the director in charge of running the Bayt Mal Al-Quds Al-Sharif Agency, said that this exhibition is a gesture by an elite group of calligraphers, craftsmen and decorators in solidarity with the Palestinian brothers, noting in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net that this event comes weeks after the royal initiative to send humanitarian aid to Gaza. And Jerusalem by land, considering that these initiatives “reflect the principled and firm solidarity of Moroccans with their Palestinian brothers.”

The spokesman pointed out that the paintings displayed carry tones of solidarity through images and scenes in the minds of Moroccans about the Dome of the Rock, Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the Moroccan Quarter, and also carry strong feelings towards the Palestinians, who are exposed to very difficult circumstances at this stage.

Exhibition of hymns of letters from Al-Aqsa to Al-Aqsa (Al-Jazeera)

He added that this exhibition is open to the general public to instill this solidarity among the categories of adults and school children who visit it regularly.

At the end of Ramadan, these paintings will be sold in an auction, the proceeds of which will be allocated to fund cultural activities that are implemented by the Bayt Mal Al-Quds Agency in Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

Al-Sharqawi explained that the agency allows Moroccan elites, through such initiatives, to contribute to financing projects through the proceeds of their artistic works, including drawings, sculptures, and pictures, which, as he confirms, is a manifestation of support for the Palestinian cause in action and deed, not just in words.

Al-Sharqawi added, "This is a practical embodiment of the projects that the agency is implementing in Jerusalem through its daily presence among Jerusalemites. It does not live up to the size of our ambitions and expectations, but it is continuous and continuous and has a tangible impact that is beginning to appear on the Palestinian institutions in Jerusalem."

Paintings of Moroccan decorative art (Al Jazeera)

The virtues of Jerusalem

For Idris Drissi, head of the Rabat Forum for the Revival of Cultural and Artistic Heritage, this artistic event is a continuation of an event that began with the “Moroccan Quarter,” which is a copy of the Holy Qur’an handwritten by Sultan Ali Abu Al-Hassan Al-Marini and gifted it to Al-Aqsa Mosque in 745 AH, and it is still preserved in the Islamic Museum in the mosque. Even today.

He told Al Jazeera Net that the arts of Moroccan calligraphy, calligraphy and decoration are an authentic Moroccan heritage, and it has witnessed spread in recent years thanks to the launch of national awards and royal honors for creators in these artistic fields, which encouraged young people to take an interest in them, learn and teach them.

The Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs created the Mohammed VI Award for Moroccan Calligraphy in 2007 to reward the finest calligraphers who excelled in drawing Moroccan calligraphy and its arts in recognition of their efforts to preserve, introduce and disseminate it, and to encourage them to renew and develop it.

Paintings in the art of Arabic calligraphy (Al Jazeera)

In 2014, an annual national award was created under the name “Mohammed VI Award for the Art of Moroccan Decoration on Paper” to reward the finest Moroccan decorators in the art of decorating margins. In 2017, the Mohammed VI Award for the Art of Calligraphy was launched with the aim of honoring the creative pioneers practicing the art of Calligraphy, critics, authors, and researchers scientifically and academically in this field. And to motivate the outstanding and distinguished in this art and encourage talented practitioners.

The art of Hurufiyya is an artistic style that combines the forms of Arabic calligraphy and the plastic arts. As for the art of Moroccan decoration on paper, it is an art that relies on floral, calligraphic, and geometric elements based on rules such as repetition, symmetry, alternation, opposition, and reversal.

Paintings of Moroccan decorative art (Al Jazeera)

Drissi highlighted that the issue of Palestine has a place among the artistic elite, and this exhibition is an occasion to highlight Moroccans’ attachment and connection to Jerusalem and the closeness and kinship that unites them to Palestine. Therefore, creators in these artistic fields were keen to participate in this exhibition and attend its opening to present paintings about the virtues of Holy Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque. They also represent it in their minds and consciences.

He explained that their donation of their paintings to be put in an auction, the proceeds of which go to Jerusalem, represents moral support from the people of Al-Aqsa Morocco to Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Source: Al Jazeera