Objectives:

The main aim of the forum is to gather the specialists in all fields of calligraphy studies from all over the world to help creating specialized dialogues amongst them and to present the new discoveries and researches in calligraphy. This Forum will be held every two years. It was held for the first time from 24-26 April 2003 and the second Forum will be held from 24-26 April 2005.

Topics of the Forum:

The Forum aims at studying calligraphy in the world. Within this framework, it will cover the study of calligraphy according to a certain axis, which follows the historical and geographical classification in the following sequence:

1. Calligraphy of the Ancient Near East civilizations.
2. Calligraphy of the Far East civilizations.
3. Calligraphy of the classical civilizations and its contemporary civilizations.
4. Calligraphy of the Arab-Islamic civilizations.
5. Calligraphy in Africa .
6. Calligraphy in Latin America .

The study of calligraphy in each civilization or geographical area is based on the inclusion of studying their calligraphy within the framework of the following sub-topics:

• Evolution and development
• Patterns of calligraphy
• Mutual effects
• Aesthetics of calligraphy
• Content of inscriptions
• Important issues
• Modern research fields
• The scientific term in calligraphy and writing
• Writing tools
• The relation between form and content
• Symbols of writing
• The modern techniques and research related to the formations of calligraphy

Graffiti was selected to be the main theme of the Forum main sessions.

Idea of the Forum:

The granite wall mural surrounding the Bibliotheca Alexandrina reflects the inscriptions and writings of the ancient world, hence reflecting the role of the Library in collecting the human knowledge through the ages in its attempt to become a center of human civilizations.

This Forum aims at studying the evolution of human knowledge of inscriptions since the pre-historic eras.
This knowledge started as an imitation to animals and the surrounding environment, which soon developed into a certain written language relevant to each civilization.

This language was not only man's means of identifying his life and his achievements, but also an archive of the history of man. Some calligraphy was distinguished by its marvelous artistic style. The organizers of the Forum aim at collecting integrated and various studies on the history of inscriptions and writings in the ancient world and throughout the middle and modern ages.