Mahmoud Taha ( ar, محمود طه) (born 1942) is a

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

ian artist,

potter A potter is someone who makes pottery. Potter may also refer to: Places United States *Potter, originally a section on the Alaska Railroad, currently a neighborhood of Anchorage, Alaska, US * Potter, Arkansas *Potter, Nebraska * Potters, New Je ...

and

ceramicist Ceramic art is art made from ceramic materials, including clay. It may take forms including artistic pottery, including tableware, tiles, figurines and other sculpture. As one of the plastic arts, ceramic art is one of the visual arts. Whi ...

noted for integrating calligraphy into his ceramics and is regarded as the leading ceramicist in the Arab world.

Life and career

Mahmoud Taha was born in Jaffa in 1942. He studied at Baghdad Academy of Fine Arts where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1968. He then went on to study calligraphy with the renowned calligrapher Mohammad Al-Hafez. He later continued his training in ceramics at Cardiff College of Arts in Wales, graduating in 1976. On his return to Jordan, he established a studio specialising in ceramics, ceramic sculpture and calligraphy. In 1966, his arts professor, Kadhim Haydar, advised the young artist to use Arabic calligraphic elements in some of his works, since the professor had noticed Taha's talent for calligraphy. According to Taha, "this piece of advice opened the door to a new stage in my work, in which I experimented with the Kufic script of different historical periods... nd subsequentlyThuluth script and elements of Islamic ornamentation." He is also credited with improving the writing and

calligraphy Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

skills of many students in Jordanian schools. He has been described as the "leading ceramicist in the Arab world." Taha became one of the first contemporary artists to use calligraphy as a graphic element in his work, and thus pioneered the Hurufiyah art movement which combines traditional art forms in innovative ways. His work has been described in the following terms; "Taha molds the clay of his native soil into full, smooth vessels that not only maintain an ancient tradition but also explores an innovative combination of textures, glazes and forms. In Taha's work, the viewer may trace the natural hues of his ancient heritage."

Work

Taha produces small ceramic discs or plates as well as very large murals. His ceramic work is featured in the permanent collection of the

Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts The Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts is a major contemporary art museum located in Amman, Jordan. The Official inauguration of the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts (JNGFA) was held under the patronage of the late King Hussein and Queen Noor ...

in Amman and in the Majida Mouasher Collection, a collection devoted to contemporary artworks. Selected exhibitions * ''The Right to Write,'' Jordan National Gallery, 1996 * ''Contemporary Arab Artists,'' Darat Al Funun, 1997 * ''Pioneers of Jordan,'' Darat Al Funun, 1999 * ''Between Legend and Reality: Modern Art from the Arab World,'' Jordan National Art Gallery, 2002 * ''Memory,'' Gallery of Cairo Amman Bank, 2008 * ''The Tenth Maqama: Paper, Clay & Memory IV,'' Nabad Art Gallery, 2012 (solo exhibition) * ''Mahmoud Taha: Ceramicist,'' Cairo Amman Bank, 2013 (solo exhibition) * ''A Salute to Valantions,'' Orfali Gallery, Amman, 2013 Selected artworks * ''Nostalgia for Jerusalem,'' glazed ceramic, 60 X 84 cm, 1987 Ali, W., ''Modern Islamic Art: Development and Continuity,'' University of Florida Press, 1997, p. 100 * ''The Matyr,'' ceramic plate, date unknown * ''The Dome of the Rock,'' date unknown * ''Untitled Mural,'' 1999

References

External links

"Memory" exhibition in Jordan alert to the risks of Judaizing Jerusalem - aljazeera in arabic

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taha, Mahmoud 1942 births Palestinian artists Living people Muslim artists Jordanian artists Jordanian people of Palestinian descent

Life and career

Work

See also

References

Further reading

External links