The Art of Calligraphy Exercises (Siy@H Mashq) in Iran
practice makes perfect: the art of calligraphy exercises 107 MARYAM EKHTIAR PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT: THE ART OF CALLIGRAPHY EXERCISES (SIY@H MASHQ) IN IRAN Calligraphy is concealed in the teaching method of the letters, so that it be clear, clean, and attractive. When master; its essence is in its frequent repetition, and it your writing has made progress, seat yourself in a corner exists to serve Islam.1 and do not idle about; find some small manuscript of good style and hold it before your eyes. In the same These words by {Ali b. Abi Talib, traditionally regarded format, ruling, and kind of writing, prepare yourself to as the first master calligrapher of Islam, lie at the heart copy it. After that, write several letters; do not indulge in siy¸h mashq Siy¸h of , or calligraphic exercise pages. egotism. Try not to be careless with regard to your copy, mashq pages have yielded some of the most visually not even a little bit. One must give full attention to the stunning examples of later Persian calligraphy. Their copy, completing one line [of it] after another.3 bold forms and harmonious compositions are truly captivating. Yet this art form and its historical develop- Practice allowed the calligrapher to determine the size ment have received little attention from scholars and of the script to be used, to try out the pen, to judge art historians. Thus, in this study, I focus exclusively on whether or not the ink was of the correct consistency, and to map out the overall visual impact of the com- the development of siy¸h mashq in Iran: its visual and position.
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