The Shape of the Word

The passion for letterforms, calligraphy and typography has been a personal interest and a legacy of our design house for over three decades. It took on various forms, from freehand calligraphy to logotypes to award-winning Arabic typefaces. A natural next step was to give this passion its fourth dimension by converting the flat, yet vibrant words into free-standing typographic sculptural works that punctuate the cityscapes as artistic landmarks.

Turning a word into a three-dimensional object is not difficult, but the challenge lies in imbibing this object an artistic quality.

As for art pieces, it is of essence that the word form is born in a moment of passion. A moment when the artist is ‘uttering’ the word with the right emotion, only this utterance is visual rather than vocal. The core of the effort is beyond a mere composition of the letterforms. It lies into shaping, combining and orchestrating these forms into a compelling whole that beholds the word’s meaning and significance. Evidently the letterforms do have a role to play, but more as tools or construction blocks towards the end result.

Voicing ‘Beirut’ as a hometown and a skyline, “Art” as a multiplicity of compositions that reflect the infinity of artistic expression; that is how they earn their legitimacy to be converted into typographic sculptures, be it large for public display, or even smaller statuettes or trophies for a more personal and individual experience.

The following pages are an invitation for you to explore the process and end result of our most prominent typographic sculptures, with the hope that it will be a doorway to many more.

—Kameel Hawa

Download Typographic Brochure PDF