Bespoke Commissions
Some pieces cannot be bought from a shelf. A verse that carried you through a hard year, a marriage, a graduation, the name of a school you built from nothing. Bring us the words, and we will write them by hand.
Work we have made
Every piece below was written by hand. Tap any one to see it full size.
A verse, a hadith, a line of poetry
Bring us the words. We will talk with you about the script that suits them, Thuluth for weight and majesty, Naskh for clarity, something more flowing where the words call for it, and about size, paper and colour.
The piece here is written in Thuluth and carries the calligrapher’s own supplication, Rabbi yassir wa la tu’assir, my Lord make it easy and do not make it difficult. It is traditionally the first thing a calligrapher writes before beginning any work, and it is where we begin too.
Arabic and English, in one hand
Not everyone who stands in front of your piece will read Arabic. We often set both languages together, and both are lettered by hand. Nothing here is typeset.
This one carries the words of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him: take advantage of five before five. The Arabic is written in Thuluth and Tauqi, and the English beneath it in San Vito Capitals, a hand chosen to sit with the Arabic rather than compete with it.
Nikkahnama and marriage certificates
A nikkahnama is a record, but it deserves to be more than paperwork. We write the names, the date in both calendars, the witnesses and the agreed mahr, set beneath a verse chosen for the couple.
This one is crowned with the Basmala and carries wa ja’ala baynakum mawaddatan wa rahmah, and He placed between you affection and mercy. The floral panels running down each side are painted by hand in gold and shell white, and the whole is finished with a border of green and gold.
Made to be framed, kept, and handed on.
Wedding invitations
The invitation is the first thing your guests hold, and usually the first thing they throw away. It does not have to be.
This one was lettered entirely by hand on handmade paper, with the couple’s names set as a flourished monogram, the details written beneath in a fine italic hand, and a small Arabic invocation at the foot. Tied with a ribbon, delivered as an object rather than a card.
Certificates for schools and institutions
These were written for the Arabica Institute, one for every graduating student. Each student’s name is given in Thuluth across the head of the certificate, with the wording of the award beneath it in a finer hand, and the director’s signature in red.
Each one is mounted on ebru, traditional marbled paper, in deep blue and copper, and set within a gold rule. No two sheets of ebru are ever the same, so no two certificates are either.
A certificate written by hand tells a student something a printed one never will. We take these on in sets, for a graduating year, an ijaza, or a course completed.
Calligraphic logos and identity
A name drawn as calligraphy rather than set in a typeface. This one was made for a Quran memorisation institute, the name composed into a roundel in gold on deep green, with the words li-tahfiz al-Quran written beneath it.
Composing a name into a circle is its own discipline. The letters have to be stretched, stacked and turned so the whole reads cleanly and still sits in balance. We work to something that holds up at the size of a business card and keeps its presence on a wall or above a door.
We have produced logos for a variety of clients. The aim each time is the same, to root an identity in the tradition itself, so that a name is not decorated with calligraphy but genuinely written in it, and carries the weight of the hand it came from.
The hands behind the work
Every piece on this page was written by Rizwan Khan, Yasin Art’s own calligrapher.
Every letter is cut with a reed qalam and laid over pencil guidelines drawn by hand first. The proportions are set before a drop of ink is spent, which is why the finished line looks inevitable.
For larger or more elaborate work we draw on a network of traditional artists and artisans, illuminators, marblers and bookbinders, so that what arrives at your door carries the same standards as everything else we sell.
How to begin
Tell us what you have in mind. It does not need to be fully formed. Most commissions start with a few sentences and a rough idea of where the piece will hang.
We will come back to you about script, size, materials and price. Nothing begins until you are happy with what has been agreed.
Larger projects
We also take on work beyond a single frame. Beautification for a masjid or a prayer room, a set of pieces for a home, gifts commissioned in number for a graduation or an Eid.
Where a project needs illumination, marbling or binding, we bring in the artisans who specialise in it.
Start a commission
Write to us at yasinartcom@gmail.com, or use the form, and tell us what you have in mind.
