The Book of Abjad

Exceptionally, this is just a preview of a major book that will only be produced if I can crowdfund the production costs (the campaign will launch here on June 1st). Here’s a full unfolding of it:

What it’s about:

The Book of Abjad refers to the Arabic writing system, but is short for “abjad hawaz”, which needs a little explaining.

The abjad is originally an alpha-numerical system (حساب الجُمَّل), meaning the letters also stood for numbers; the positional Hindi numerals used today in Arabic were only adopted around the eighth century. The numerical use of letters carried on in specialised uses such as astrolabes as late as the nineteenth century, but most Arabic speakers today are unaware it ever existed. The original letter sequence, shared with other Semitic alphabets, has been replaced with the hijāʾī order, which partially groups letters together by similarity of shape: this is used in dictionaries today.

Abjad hawaz is a mnemonic sentence to remember the original letter sequence, and thereby their corresponding value: abjad hawwaz ḥuṭṭī kalamon saʿfaṣ qarashat thakhadh ḍaẓagh.

As a student of origins and practitioner of the early tradition, I have always looked to the coherence of that system, and in this artist book I am creating a visual expression of it.

Ṭā’ = 9, Yā’ = 10

Thā’ = 500, Khā’ = 600

Description:

The Book of Abjad displays without comment the letters and their numerical value through geometric visualisation. The 29th letter, Lam-alif, which holds a special position outside the system, is included but each book features a different version of it, so the 28 editions are not completely identical. The art is giclée-printed before I hand-paint final details, fold and bind it entirely by hand. The cover is waxed lokta paper with a brass stud closure. The final result is 28x28x2 cm and weighs close to 1 kg.

As the book is “mute”, it’s accompanied by a monograph that explains the different systems for organising the abjad and the symbolism derived from them, and tells the story of each individual letter along with showing a range of designs for each, all derived from my own research.

Coptic binding in progress

Ẓā’ = 900…

The plan:

As this is a major endeavour, I’m launching a Kickstarter campaign on June 1st to raise the production costs. Through the campaign you can pre-order an edition at the equivalent to studio price, and there will be other items for a wider public. If the campaign fails, I may still be able to make the book to order, but the costs will be higher, and I’ll have to abandon the monograph altogether – so I’m really keen on making this a success. So I invite you, if this is of interest, to back the campaign which will run from June 1 to 29, and maybe pass the word on to like-minded collectors or institutions.

If you don’t want to deal with Kickstarters, separate arrangements can be made; but as they don’t count towards the campaign treshold, I won’t take payment until the target amount has been reached and it’s clear the project is going ahead.

As for the original artworks for the 28 letters, they will be released separately, as a single, one-off boxed set. You’ll be the first to know when it’s ready.