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Art Opening: Alibaba Awrang
May 30 at 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm PDT
Alibaba Awrang is a celebrated Afghan painter and master calligrapher whose work blends classical Islamic traditions with contemporary visual language. Trained in Shiraz and Tehran and shaped by years of teaching at Kabul’s Turquoise Mountain Institute, Awrang’s practice reflects a deep devotion to spirituality, poetry, and cultural memory.
Now based in Connecticut after his 2021 evacuation from Afghanistan, he continues to create richly layered works that honor his heritage while exploring new artistic landscapes.
Awrang’s paintings merge calligraphy, geometry, and bold color to create meditative, architectural compositions. Each piece is built through meticulous layers of ink, gold, and pigment, where fragments of poetry, historical scripts, and symbolic forms drift between abstraction and text. His surfaces feel both ancient and contemporary, echoing illuminated manuscripts, sacred architecture, and the rhythmic flow of classical calligraphy.
Through this fusion, Awrang transforms language into visual light, offering viewers a space of contemplation, resilience, and cultural continuity.
