“Maybe i am a Vandal or Anarchist But i am glad to introduce my self as one.At least i stand for my right.”  -A1one

From Tehran, A1one creates street art that is thought provoking and meaningful. His images are colorful yet strong in message. A choas of beautiful images and graphics and the arabic letterforms, creating a voice to be heard. Learn more here.

Just browsing through and I fell upon Malik Anas – an Arabic calligrapher and typography artist from Baghdad. His work is stunning – draws you in and captures the beauty of the arabic letterforms breaking the normal traditions of arabic type and calligraphy. See for yourself!

Kandahar Treasures not only stands for beautiful home decor but an even more amazing mission. The organization started by Rangina Hamidi has founded itself on the social responsibility of  being “fully committed to supporting the improvement of women’s social and economic life in Afghanistan”.

KT employees 400 artisans from the area, empowering women by bringing literacy programs to their homes and educating them on medical awareness. A really great program with beautiful end product. Learn more at their site here.

Some finished products include beautiful shawls, pillows and throws.

Found this while doing some Etsy browsing – how cute are these letters!
Check out the etsy shop here.

“Waafia (waa-fee-uh) is a U.S. based company that specializes in Islamically oriented and sunnah-conscious clothing and accessories.” Waafia creates Muslim-in-mind gifts and accessories that are cute (see personalized custom pillows) and practical (see fridge magnets)! 

Waafia has an array of products that are diverse from baby to youth and to adults. My favorite has to be the “Arabic Alphabet Poster” available in a variety of colors and designs. They’re a great gift for anyone, especially those with an affinity for arabic design! 

A great company to support, visit the full site here – where you can order your very own personalized pillow!

I discovered Muslamb through a friend (thanks Aaisha!) – the designs are cute as ever and very trendy and best of all pressed by hand! I could see a lot of young Muslims really enjoying the products. Visit Muslamb’s etsy shop here. 

I thought this doorknob hanger was hilarious!

Sudanese calligrapher, Al-awad Mustafa, was trained in Khartoum and has been teaching calligraphy since the 70s. Some of his work that I think is pretty fantastic! 

Lovely customizable eid greeting cards and photo greeting cards by Tiny*Prints. 

Educated at Pratt but inspired by the local artisans of Asia, John Robshaw (full site here) creates textiles from his penchant for South Asian art and techniques. Currently working in workshops in India, he travels extensively throughtout Asia to Rajasthan and Gujrat to find his next inspiration. Fascinated by the dyeing and printing processes that are common among the local artisans in India, he learned and created his own mix that defines his textiles. His bedding is hand printed in India — using various prints and patterns, colors and textures to bring together a vibrant mix. (In order: Jessamine, Kochi, Damascus, and Precious Metals)

My favorite — inspired by the winding souks and the patterns of the Ummayad mosque.

And last but not least, he even does baby bedding!

Another find from ISNA09 – Syed Art Glass had a creative gallery space in the bazaar that was hard to miss.

Inspired by the waters around Malaysia Syed creates beautiful art using glass as a medium. He explains on his site “This is by no coincidence because glass shares similar light bending properties with water. In much of my work I explore past experiences with water and create pieces based on them.”

His work is created for residential and commercial art using various metal materials.  Syed further explains, “the dichroic’s interesting properties allow me to stack the glass in many layers to achieve significant visual depth in an essentially two dimensional piece.” All put together, creates beautiful art! Here are some samples from his site: