Pakistan Calligraph-Artists' Guild

The Pakistan Calligraph-artists' Guild (PCG) was founded in the Golden Jubilee year of Pakistan, 1997. It is the only registered non-government welfare organization in Pakistan dedicated to the time-honoured heritage of penmanship, calligraphy and Calligraph-art in all forms and languages and traditional skills.

The PCG consists of calligraphers and Calligraph-artists whose services have been recognized at international and national levels with various awards.

2. Objectives

I. To preserve, promote and propagate traditional arts and crafts, including calligraphy and modern Calligraph-art in all languages and forms including sculpture, through international exchanges, exhibitions, workshops, seminars, competitions and publications.

II. To work for the revival and spread of traditional arts, calligraphy and Calligraph-art in schools and for introduction at college and university levels.

III. To establish an Institute of traditional skills.

IV. To establish a welfare fund for the senior, aging calligraphers and Calligraph-artists and traditional craftsmen.

3. Activities

Till date the PCG has:

n Held 4 International Exhibitions and Competitions 1998, 1999, 2000, 2004. The 2nd and 3rd Internationals were inaugurated by the President of Pakistan. In the 4th International 19 countries participated.

n Acknowledging the pioneering contribution of the PCG, a special postage stamp and First Day Cover was issued by the Government of Pakistan Post Service to commemorate the 4th International, 2004.

n Held 3 Two-Nation Calligraphy & Calligraph-art Exhibitions: Iran-Pakistan exhibition in collaboration with Iran Cultural Centre, Lahore, 2004; United Kingdom-Pakistan exhibition in collaboration with the British Council Pakistan, 2005; and Italy-Pakistan exhibition in collaboration with the Pakistan Embassy Rome in 2006.

n Held 4 National Calligraphy & Calligraph-art Exhibitions: Karachi 2000; Karachi 2003; Multan 2005; and Quetta 2006.

n Held numerous group shows, including those of graduating students, in calligraphy, Calligraph-art and Illumination.

n Executed all the calligraphy work totalling more than Rs.2.4 million at Daata Darbar Mosque-Complex, Lahore for the Government of the Punjab, free of cost.

n Executed all the calligraphy work on the tomb of Qadir Yar, a ninetheenth century Punjabi Sufi-poet, at Machhike, Eminabad for the Government of the Punjab, free of cost.

n Conducts regular classes of calligraphy, Calligraph-art and Illumination at the Cultural Complex, Lahore free of cost at the request of the Lahore Arts Council.

n Developed 5 bestselling Calligraphy Workbooks for the Punjab Textbook Board 2000-2001.

n Published the bilingual book, Bestower's Court/Daata Darbar, (2000) on the calligraphy and Calligraph-art work rendered at Daata Sahib Mosque Complex, Lahore. This work won the Best Book of the Year Prize, the Allama Iqbal Award, 2000.

n Co-published with UNESCO the book, Calligraphy & Calligraph-art (2002) on traditional calligraphy and the evolution of Calligraph-art as a contemporary art genre. This work won 2 prizes, the Best Book of the Year Prize & Best Publication Prize 2002.

n Publishes the bilingual, quarterly newsletter Calligraph-art/Khat-art through sponsorships. It is co-sponsored by the Punjab Government, and dispatched to local and foreign organizations, Missions, calligraphers and Calligraph-artists.

n Published wall calendar of 2002 and table calendars of 2005, 2006 and 2007 reflecting the work of Pakistani calligraphers & Calligraph-artists.

n. Published wall calendar of 2005 reflecting the work of international calligraphers & Calligraph-artists who participated in PCG’s 4^th International.

From time to time the PCG has cooperated and collaborated with several government and non-government organizations, such as the Lahore Arts Council, Lahore Museum, Punjab Textbook Board, Hamza Foundation for Special Children, Pottery Institute Shandara, Iran Cultural Centre Lahore, British Council Pakistan, Beacon House School Systems, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan to conduct calligraphy and art competitions, workshops and exhibitions.

Practitioners of calligraphy and Calligraph-art span the entire world particularly the Muslim countries. Calligraph-art has developed into a major movement. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on a State visit in 1997 presented a work of Calligraph-art to the people of Pakistan. It is a superb work by the British-Egyptian Calligraph-artist, Dr. Ahmed Moustafa. The world is beginning to acknowledge this new contemporary art genre.

PCG welcomes contact with interested international parties, professional bodies and educational and cultural institutions.