As a master calligrapher and teacher, I present here the Siyah-Mashq exercises created by my students at the CalligraVie school in Paris. Developed together over several years, this practice is central to my pedagogical approach and artistic practice, especially in a Western context, where I continue to adapt and refine my methodologies among non-Persian-speaking students.

Historically, Siyah-Mashq—literally “black exercise,” a calligraphic drill in black ink—emerged and developed during the Safavid period within the Persian calligraphic tradition. The practice also appears in other styles and schools of Islamic calligraphy, each with its own concepts and approaches. Calligraphers trained through tirelessly repeating letters and words, often until the page was saturated with dense layers of ink. Intended as technical practice to refine mastery of gesture, rhythm, and use of the reed pen (qalam), these exercises gradually evolved into powerful, abstract works of art, in which the energy of writing takes precedence over legibility.

Building on this lineage, in my teaching I treat Siyah-Mashq as both a tool for technical training and a space for creative freedom and personal discovery. For my students in the West, it serves as an accessible entry point into Persian calligraphy—a place to learn movement, breath, and balance without the immediate need to comprehend the text.

In developing my concept of Musicalligraphy, I have been particularly inspired by the sonic and rhythmic dimensions of Siyah-Mashq. Each stroke, each repetition, each variation carries its own musicality where the written gesture becomes melody and the black ink resonates like a pulse. For me, Siyah-Mashq is a bridge between calligraphy and music, between silence and sound, and between discipline and improvisation.

The works in this series speak to both the historical richness of this tradition and its immediate relevance, revealing how students make a centuries-old heritage their own through continuous practice and, eventually, the ability to reimagine it through the traditional principles of harmony and their own unique sensibilities. Through this collective mosaic of Siyah-Mashq, I aim to highlight transmission—the passing on of a traditional art that continues to inspire, shape, and open new creative paths at the intersection of cultures and disciplines.