ink

Ingredients

ink

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

Zakariya uses '17th century Ottoman recipes for ink' (p. 80). The practice is described as a 'product of precision and craft' where the 'ordering of ingredients' makes the process more akin to a science or 'religious knowledge' than merely art (p. 82). The preparation is tied to the calligrapher's state of mind, requiring the artist to be 'free of affliction' for the result to be 'good' (p. 82).

Evidence

"Zakariya’s He Was Not Tall: Hilye in Black and Yellow (2005, talik and celi talik scripts, ink on paper, 33.5 x 21.75 in) is an example of his practice of calligraphy as religious ritual"

Remarks

The ink strokes in Zakariya's work are described as 'precise and definitive' (p. 82). The text emphasizes that while Zakariya is a 'traditionalist' in his adherence to 'established methods of calligraphic preparation' (p. 84), he is a 'self-conscious calligrapher' who uses creative choice in project execution (p. 84).