The story of Prophet Mohammed’s life is one that is close to the hearts of millions of people around the world. That is why artist Tusif Ahmad has spent the past two years heavily researching and creating pieces of paper art that tell the Prophet’s story pictorially.
The five impossibly detailed, intricately carved creations will go on show as part of an exhibition titled Trip to Heaven, an Abu Dhabi Art Hub initiative, at the Rosewood Hotel in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. Ahmad, 45, a Pakistan-born Australian and father of three, says he loved art even as a young child, but only took up paper cutting eight years ago, when showing his young daughter how to create art out of the simplest material.
“I have always been creative, and I thought of making shapes and images by cutting paper,” says Ahmad. “I started researching the craft and realised that it was a popular art in China and some parts of the world. However, I couldn’t see anyone specialising in Islamic paper art, so I decided to try it.”
Earlier this year, Abu Dhabi Art Hub approached him and asked him to take part in their monthly residency programme. But, unable to attend, Ahmad suggested an exhibition of his work, which would include the newly completed Prophet Mohammed Series.
“I am very excited to be able to show my work to Muslims and perhaps even to Islamic scholars, who will be able to truly understand it. In each piece, I am trying to depict the beauty of Islam and how wonderful our religion is.”
The art of paper cutting dates back to the sixth century, when it was popular in China. There are many modern styles and techniques.
Ahmad specialises in silhouettes cut from coloured paper, a skill that involves first drawing the outline of the image in reverse on the back of the paper. This is difficult with Arabic calligraphy, which features prominently in Ahmad’s work, and is something that has taken him years to perfect.
“This is certainly a real challenge for me, I spent a lot of time getting it right,” he says, adding that paper cutting is well suited to the tradition of Islamic art. “Islamic art is composed of geometric patterns and detailed ornamentation, both of which require intricate precision.
“Paper-cutting art is exactly this discipline, which is almost like the art of miniature painting, and I believe it is the ideal way to show the beauty of Islamic designs.” Besides the Prophet Mohammed Series, Ahmad will also present several pieces that depict the doors of paradise in his exhibition.
They are made from several layers of coloured paper, which give each artwork a three-dimensional aspect and texture.
Another piece depicts Tuba, the tree in Paradise, which is all part of the positive message that he is trying to convey.
“I live in Western Australia, where most people don’t know Islam or Islamic stories. Because of this, they like my art work and appreciate it, but are reluctant to put in their houses, especially because of the way that Islam is presented at this moment. So with this exhibition in the UAE, where many people of different cultures live, I want to exhibit the positive side of Islam and do my bit to change what is happening at the moment.”
• Trip to Heaven by Tusif Ahmad is at Rosewood Abu Dhabi from August 16-21. It is presented by Abu Dhabi Art Hub; for more details go to www.adah.ae
aseaman@thenational.ae
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The biog
Hometown: Cairo
Age: 37
Favourite TV series: The Handmaid’s Tale, Black Mirror
Favourite anime series: Death Note, One Piece and Hellsing
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Royal Birkdale Golf Course
Location: Southport, Merseyside, England
Established: 1889
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Total holes: 18
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Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
Match info
Uefa Nations League A Group 4
England 2 (Lingard 78', Kane 85')
Croatia 1 (Kramaric 57')
Man of the match: Harry Kane (England)
Squad for first two ODIs
Kohli (c), Rohit, Dhawan, Rayudu, Pandey, Dhoni (wk), Pant, Jadeja, Chahal, Kuldeep, Khaleel, Shami, Thakur, Rahul.
What is graphene?
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.
It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.
But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties.
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