Culture of calligraphy

THERE’S no doubt that being a lord opens doors, and, for Lord Richard McLeod, perhaps the most notable of these to date has been being a guest of Boris Johnson. The London mayor hosts a party to celebrate the annual Muslim festival of Eid, and, since receiving his honour, Lord McLeod, who is from Lebanon, has found himself on the guest list. He once attended, presenting the eccentric politician with a painting of his calligraphy.

Being a lord, he says, can be a mixed blessing. “Sometimes people treat you differently, but sometimes it has a positive influence. I just take it with a pinch of salt.”

The title was conferred on Lord McLeod by a gentleman he will only describe as “someone of importance” following a meeting at the opening of a Newcastle shopping centre. Lord McLeod was demonstrating his calligraphy and the individual, hearing about his project to create a unique script named after Queen Elizabeth, awarded him land in Scotland to which the lordship was attached. “He thought having a title would open doors to me and make my message go further, and it has,” explains Lord McLeod.

Now 42, and living in Birtley, near Newcastle, Lord McLeod learned calligraphy from his father as a child growing up in Saudi Arabia, where the family lived during the state’s period of rapid development. He always loved it, but felt that he couldn’t make a living from it, so, on returning to Lebanon, studied architecture and went on to become a successful architect. At one point, Lord McLeod counted high-ranking officials among his friends and was in line to become an MP or even a minister – then in 1998, the ruling party lost power and was immediately discredited, bringing him down with it.

After being imprisoned for 66 days charged with bribery and corruption, in 2001, he decided to flee. “A guy I called the Godfather called me one day and said, ‘that’s it. Just leave’,” says Lord McLeod. “People had started being killed and that was new in Lebanon.”

Armed with a forged passport and a new surname (he was formerly Makdache), Lord McLeod arrived in the UK – only to be swallowed up in the immigration system. It took an arduous decade for him to be granted asylum.

“Straight away as an asylum seeker, you lose everything,” says Lord McLeod. “You’re not human any more. People from my land might say dignity, might say status, but I would say your humanity. For one, you’re not believed. I’ve seen some people abusing the system, but, equally, there are genuine people who have been abused by the system.”

Eager to ameliorate the situation – and to make use of his skills and education - Lord McLeod did a law conversion degree and became an immigration case worker. He also pursued other avenues, including volunteering for the North of England Refugee Service – but failed to find his niche. A breakthrough came when he was asked to demonstrate calligraphy at an event at Newcastle’s Discovery Museum.

“I ran a workshop and it turned out to be the most popular one,” says Lord McLeod. “There were about 20 stalls and mine was the main feature. I chose calligraphy because I felt it was something distinguished. Six years ago I found out that calligraphy was something that was wanted.”

Traditionally, in the Arab world, calligraphers are highly respected, often being trusted to record religious texts. The ancient art of calligraphy, from the Greek for “beautiful writing”, relies on precision and a high level of skill.

Lord McLeod decided to embark on an Masters degree in the discipline, drawing on Arabic and Western styles. He stumbled upon what he calls the “crazy” idea of writing the first script combining the two, which he thought of naming after the Queen, and, to his surprise, his tutor encouraged him.

“What I wanted was to create something that’s Arabic and British,” says Lord McLeod. “I was trying to make Arabic calligraphy more accessible to a Western audience because of my journey, coming from East to West, and because people have identity issues.

“Most Muslims have some sort of Islamic art in their home and most of that will have some calligraphy in it. Arabic calligraphy is the most supreme form of art in the Islamic world. There’s always a subconscious message that says, ‘that’s home’. The art that people have is used to express identity.”

Lord McLeod took inspiration from Western fashion (tall and thin); its curved architecture and fluid spirituality to come up with an entirely new script, which he called Queen Elizabeth II. He used a blend of Arabic and Western characters, and, in a book due for completion shortly, he has modified the original as version two.

“It’s a combination of two scripts – Kufi, which is the official first script in Islam – and Blackletter, or Gothic, which the Nazis used,” says Lord McLeod. The book is in Arabic and talks about the journey of the script.

While, in the West, calligraphy has diversified into different forms, in the Arab world tradition prevails, which has led to Lord McLeod facing resistance. However, he feels that he is starting to win over his critics. “The Islamic world has stopped developing new scripts, but eventually they bowed to my concept,” he says. “There are already people who are on the ball and want to support this.”

Realising there was a market for calligraphy as art, Lord McLeod began selling paintings in different styles – including those using 24 carat gold. He also designs logos, and was recently commissioned for this by a company in London. As well as writing, Lord McLeod is a keen photographer and film maker, having secured music by Michael Nyman, composer for the hit film, The Piano, for one of his works.

It is for his calligraphy, however, that he is attracting the most attention. “I’ve just had an exhibition in Bradford which had almost all the styles that I do,” says Lord McLeod. “When people start to know about it, it becomes popular.”

Always keen to find new outlets for his creativity, he already has his next goal in sight – in effect, taking the opposite approach to the Queen Elizabeth II project. “Now, hopefully, my PhD will be, ‘where is the influence of the West in calligraphy?’,” says Lord McLeod. “My plan is to get myself a job as a lecturer in the Arabic world and do my PhD from a university here.”

Website: www.fouadisms.com