Hafifa Ahmed: Abstract Arabic Calligraphy Workshop

Join artist Hafifa Ahmed for a hands-on calligraphy workshop exploring the expressive possibilities of Arabic script.

Blending tradition with contemporary practice, Hafifa invites participants to engage with calligraphy as both a visual art form and a way of telling stories.

Hafifa Ahmed is an Arabic calligrapher, sculptor and installation artist whose work bridges traditional craftsmanship and contemporary art. She uses this ancient art form to explore themes of text, memory and narrative. Her calligraphic works often take abstract and experimental forms, transforming letters into visual meditations that speak to identity, language and cultural transmission.

Alongside Arabic calligraphy, she creates sculptural and installation-based works that give physical presence to intangible experiences such as memories carried in language and the echo of spoken words. Through workshops and participatory projects, she invites communities to engage with the poetic and political dimensions of language, particularly those shaped by migration and oral histories. Her work has been shown in galleries, festivals and public spaces and continues to evolve through dialogue, research and collaborative making.

In this workshop, Hafifa will introduce the foundations of Arabic calligraphy before guiding participants into more experimental approaches. You will explore abstraction, movement and personal expression, working with your name, meaningful words or purely visual forms. By the end of the session, you will leave with your own finished calligraphic piece.

Open to all levels, this workshop offers a space for creativity, reflection and connection.

All proceeds from the workshop will be donated to Fadi A. Thabet, to support his work with communities in Gaza.

This workshop is part of Lens on Gaza: The Sun and Moon Still Rise, presented in partnership with Fadi A. Thabet, East Street Arts, Bethlehem Cultural Festival, Leeds Palestinian Film Festival and cultural producer Shazia Bibi.