Paris/ Miami: Cover Lines
Fatima Alsharshani’s distinctive “calligraffiti” has adorned everything from French football jerseys to American cityscapes – and a cover of this issue of Q+A
Qatari artist Fatima Alsharshani first began blending the flowing form of Arabic calligraphy with the energy of modern street art – an approach she dubbed “calligraffiti” – more than a decade ago. She has since gone on to paint murals in Qatar and the United States, and to collaborate with partners including Qatar Museums, Adidas, Paris Saint-Germain football club and Clown Skateboards. Now she has provided the striking cover for this issue of Q+A magazine. “My work is about bridging cultures,” she says. “Even if people don’t understand the Arabic language, they can discover the beauty of the letters through my work.”
Alsharshani began her journey in 2011, when she took workshops in some of the many distinctively different styles of Arabic calligraphy. As she began to explore ways to blend classic and modern forms, she developed a style of her own. In 2020, she won a competition held by Qatari arts organisation Jedariart to paint a mural in Doha’s Post Office Park. The following year she was invited to Portland, Oregon, as part of the Qatar-USA Year of Culture. The artwork she created there, The Never Ending You, is a continuous circle of Arabic letters that represents the endless flow of life. It took two weeks to do, with the assistance of Portland artist Sarah Farahat. “After I painted that mural there was an explosion of interest in my work,” she says. “I had so many amazing opportunities.”
In 2022, Alsharshani completed a 1,000m-long mural in an underpass in Qatar, and Adidas approached her to develop an Arabic-language identity for a clothing line to celebrate the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. The following year she collaborated with Paris Saint-Germain and Clown Skateboards on a collection of boards and clothing. She also took part in the 2024 exhibition Ektashif: Morocco at the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha, as part of the Qatar-Morocco Year of Culture. This year, she again partnered with Paris Saint-Germain to create Arabic lettering on their shirts for the French footballing supercup, the Champions Trophy.
Creating artwork for a magazine cover, however, was a new challenge. “I wanted it to feel alive,” she says. She took inspiration from Egyptian poet Ahmed Shawqi, who wrote: “Everything beautiful that fills the soul with its charm is art.” The script flows across the cover, appearing as an abstract expression.
“Even if people don’t understand the Arabic language, they can discover the beauty of the letters through my work”
Alongside her artwork, Alsharshani has founded Qaif Calligraphy. A recent collaboration with Qatari gift and homeware brand Dalu, for example, sees her work adorn everything from notebooks and ceramics to textiles.
What has remained constant throughout Alsharshani’s impressively diverse output is her conviction that art is a universal language that has the power to transcend borders and forge new connections between people. From the walls of Doha to the stadiums of Paris, her calligraffiti is a powerful reminder that beauty is legible to all. “I not only represent my country, but my language, culture and heritage through my calligraphy,” she says.
