Tevfik and Emir Barın, Naïma Ben Ayed, Alara Villa, “When Hüsn-i Hat Learned to Spell in Latin”, panel discussion and workshop
23 November 2024, 16:00
BERLIN, CAUSERIE AND EFFECT, ARCHIVE
This panel discussion and workshop explore the intersections between Arabic and Latin scripts. The event delves into the work of calligrapher Emin Barın (1913-1987), who responded to Turkey’s Language Reform by merging Kufic calligraphy with Latin letters. Tevfik and Emir Barın, his son and grandson, will join curator Alara Villa to discuss his practice. They will highlight how calligraphy endured through modern Turkey’s transition from Arabic to Latin script, serving as a form of cultural resilience and self-expression.
In the workshop, led by type and graphic designer Naïma Ben Ayed, participants are invited to experiment with calligraphy and typographic guidelines to discover the connections and possibilities between these two writing systems. Using the historical context of a society adapting to a new alphabet, the workshop provides a space to explore how these lettering traditions can intersect and inform one another.
Curated by Alara Villa in the framework of the programme “Jeunes Commissaires” of the Bureau des arts plastiques of the Institut français. Supported by the French Ministry of Culture and the Franco-German Youth Office (OFAJ/FGYO).