Wajih Nahle
1932–2017 · Beirut
Wajih Nahle was a Lebanese painter, calligrapher and sculptor who built his modern painting on Arabic letters. He was a painter working with letters (hurufiyya) rather than a calligrapher of the classical schools. Born in Beirut in 1932, he studied painting in the studio of Moustafa Farroukh and first painted in an impressionist manner. He then turned to Islamic decorative relief and to the letter itself, with an emphasis on flowing movement rather than hard lines. He showed his work in more than sixty exhibitions in Europe and the Arab world, among them a 1977 retrospective titled 'Lettres rebelles' at the Wally Findlay Galleries in Paris. Lebanon made him an Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters in 1980, and France gave him the same rank in 1994. He also received an honorary doctorate from the Lebanese American University. He died in 2017.
Achievements
- Studied painting in the studio of Moustafa Farroukh.
- Held the retrospective 'Lettres rebelles' (1952-1977) at the Wally Findlay Galleries, Paris, in 1977.
- Showed his work in more than sixty exhibitions in Europe and the Arab world.
- Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters in Lebanon (1980) and in France (1994).
- Received an honorary doctorate from the Lebanese American University.
Taught by: Moustafa Farroukh
His work
Died in 2017: the works are still protected by copyright, so we show them only with the permission of those who hold the rights.
Write in the tradition this hand shaped.
Open Mashq Studio →Living calligraphers you can buy from — signed originals on paper, from AED 550: Anwar Alhulwani (Thuluth) · Ahmed Alhawary (Jali Thuluth, Naskh) · Rasha Kasim (Kufi).
Sources
- en.wikipedia: born 1 Feb 1932 Beirut, died 21 Feb 2017; studied with Moustafa Farroukh; 60+ exhibitions; LAU honorary doctorate; 1977 'Lettres rebelles' retrospective at Wally Findlay, Paris en.wikipedia.org
- ar.wikipedia: Arabic name; 1932 Beirut - 21 Feb 2017; list of prizes (Lebanese Order of Merit for arts and letters, Ministry of Education prize 1965, Alexandria and Kuwait biennials, Institut du monde arabe) ar.wikipedia.org
- MACAM (Modern and Contemporary Art Museum, Lebanon): 1932-2017 Beirut; Farroukh; impressionist start then Islamic bas-relief; Officer of Arts and Letters Lebanon 1980 and France 1994; stone sculpture on loan at MACAM macamlebanon.org
- Wikidata: born 14 Feb 1932, died 21 Feb 2017 wikidata.org
Written by the MASHQ studio · last updated 2026-10-05. Further reading, the standard references in English: Sheila S. Blair, Islamic Calligraphy (Edinburgh University Press, 2006) · Annemarie Schimmel, Calligraphy and Islamic Culture (New York University Press, 1984) · Yasin Hamid Safadi, Islamic Calligraphy (Thames and Hudson, 1978).