“Dance of the Pen (Raqs-e Qalam) along the Silk Roads” Virtual Festival of World Calligraphy

Despite the restrictions the Covid-19 pandemic is placing on artistic initiatives around the world, a virtual festival of world calligraphy entitled “Dance of the Pen (Raqs-e Qalam) along the Silk Roads” in Iran has brought together master calligraphers from over 30 countries along the historic Silk Roads and beyond showcasing their works.  

As part of this festival, a virtual International Conference on the Calligraphy along the Silk Roads was held on 22-23 January 2021. This conference was co-organized by the Iranian National Commission for UNESCO, the Municipality of Mashhad, as well as the Association of Calligraphers of Iran, and was hosted by the great museum of Mashhad. Here around 20 Calligraphers and experts on the history and styles of calligraphy discussed the contribution of calligraphy to the transmission of literature and knowledge, as well as the promotion of cultural exchanges along the Silk Roads.  

Moreover, within this festival, masterpieces of renowned calligraphers are presented through a virtual online exhibition. In total, the exhibition showcases more than 230 works from over 30 countries including Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, China, Egypt, India, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mongolia, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Republic of Korea, Spain, Syria, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Uzbekistan. 

The virtual exhibition “Dance of Pen along the Silk Roads” is open to the public and accessible from 22 January to 23 March 2021 through the following exhibition link.  

In addition, the works presented in this exhibition were projected via a light performance onto the Azadi Tower of Tehran, one of the most important monuments of Iran’s capital, from the 26 – 30 January 2021.