Dear ,
We have made the jump: this newsletter comes to you from Substack, which is also home to Caravanserai and my collector’s edition. It’s so much easier to use and it doesn’t have a habit of logging me out mid-way though a sentence as the other place did.
It has been a struggle to keep up business as usual with new horrors unfolding in the world, and I’m sure many of you are struggling too. I’ll keep this short with one new offering of light as the season darkens.
Till next month, take care,
Joumana
Lately on Caravanserai:
Sept 26: Material Power – Palestinian Embroidery
Oct 9: Letters as Numbers – The Abjadi Order
(All posts are free to read for 4 weeks before they become reserved for paid subscribers.)
Unforeseen
Lapis lazuli and red earth in gum tempera on paper, hand-cut. 56x56 cm.
Uncertainty is now our constant companion; making plans no longer means anything. Anxiety is the usual response, but we can also see this moment where we have no knowledge or control as pregnant with possibility – because what uncertainty really means is "anything can happen", including blessings unhoped for and opportunities we never imagined.
In this piece that was once more inspired by a dream, the background square is made up of a word for “making plans” خطط . Through this solid and safe design, Life bursts with a chaotic but vital design of its own, opening doors for something new.
I’ll start with a heads up that I’ll be away on an art residency for the first half of December, so the shop will close in just over a month so that I can finish shipping during the last week of November. If you’re starting to think of holiday presents, I recommend ordering soon – but you might want to wait a few days and keep an eye on the Supplies page because I’m currently preparing a few special pigment gift boxes, and painted sample sheets for historic inks/paints. Adding them as soon as I can…
A new item in the shop: a series of 6 posters of Kufi character sets I redrew from astrolabes, which often display quirky and overlooked styles of it. These were a reward in my Abjad kickstarter, and remaining sets are available while stocks last. The posters are A3 size (30x42cm) and printed on thick 250gsm paper. Available in the Prints section.
My book Wild Inks & Paints is currently out of print, but I’m still taking orders with a view to reprinting in mid-November (unless no orders come in, in which case it’ll wait). Inks & Paints of the Middle East is also running out, so grab yours now if you want it soon.
And since this is the season, here’s a reminder that I have sets of greetings cards on offer!