Favor
Quran (8:70) “He will give you something better than what was taken from you and will forgive you”
Ink and gold on Japanese treated paper. Ebru paper by Mohammed Zakariya. 42,6 x 40,6 cm 2020
Khalid Casado
I thought it was the perfect time to write this piece since I felt like one of the most important things we have, which is the freedom to go wherever we want at any time, was momentarily taken from us. Not only that freedom but also the fact of not being able to see your parents, kiss them or hug them. In that strange situation, this verse gives hope and forces you to trust in the idea that something better will come and, even if you can´t see light in this uncertain situation, everything happens for a reason, and it is always for the best.
This is the second version I have made of this composition. The first one had certain problems which Nuria, my teacher, suggested me to change. The Ebru paper on the borders, is a lovely piece from Mohammed Zakariya that he himself made back in the days and gave it to me a few years ago so I could use it in one of my pieces. It has been waiting ever since, rolled in my studio. Since we are sharing this project with him, I thought it was the perfect time to use it.
I feel like this time of isolation is hiding something. It may be some changes we probably need to do in our lives, new doors which we just have to find the keys to open. It might be the perfect time to apply all the knowledge we have been accumulating until this point. In fact, being in solitude gives you the time and space to do it. It seems to be the perfect time to change routines, to incorporate new personal tendencies like, for example, learning how to connect with others in different levels of consciousness.. your parents, your teachers, your loved ones, whoever but since we can’t visit nobody, I think we need to develop that aspect which I believe is in human nature but most of us havent got access to it yet. At least voluntarily. However, I keep working on develop my skills in the art of calligraphy trying to take it to a higher level and going through a deep spiritual path in the process. I try to experiment a change in myself that can help to change the way this world vibrates.
Khalid was born in 1982 in Madrid, Spain, where he has lived and developed both personally and academically. He worked for several years in his family business, a pharmacy, run first by his grandfather and then by his father. In 2009, he met Nuria García who later became his mentor and master. Guided by her, he traveled to Istanbul and became acquainted with her masters. This is how he began his first lessons with the master calligrapher Davut Bektas, and always under the supervision of master Hasan Çelebi.
Two years later, he started taking lessons from the master calligrapher Ferhat Kurlu who, along with Nuria, became one of his strongest influences. In 2014, and after having devoted himself completely to learning this art, he received his icazet or calligraphy diploma in sülüs and nesih scripts. In 2015, he traveled for the first time to the USA and met the master calligrapher Mohammed Zakariya, a person who has also inspired and influenced his work. Currently, he works as a calligrapher and, following the tradition, he keeps in touch with his masters in order to keep learning and being inspired by them. More of his work can be seen at his website, Sacred Lines.