International Journal of Innovation and Applied Studies ISSN 2028-9324 Vol. 15 No. 4 May 2016, pp. 952-961 © 2016 Innovative Space of Scientific Research Journals http://www.ijias.issr-journals.org/ Corresponding Author: Reham Mohsen 952 Arabic Calligraphy and New Technologies for a Different Approach to Craft and Mass Production Reham Mohsen 1 and Andreas Sicklinger 2 1 Decoration Department, Helwan University, Faculty of Applied Arts, Cairo, Giza, Egypt 2 Product Design Department, German University in Cairo, Faculty of Applied Sciences and Arts, Cairo, Cairo, Egypt Copyright © 2016 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. ABSTRACT: Arabic Calligraphy is one of the main artistic features which belong to the identity of the region. While the calligraphy crafts are widely spread recently in the Arab world markets, they belong still into the field of handmade craftsmanship. The developing of mass production of Arabic Calligraphy design will enhance and support the revival of Islamic Art Identity. Only to a limited extend and certain applications the Calligraphy has been introduced to product design: in limited editions or as application on surfaces. Furthermore, the combination product form and letter form is very often limited to the adaptation of existing “calligraphic patterns”. Many of the possible mass production technologies are not used, because of financial obstacles or professional needed experiences. Additional to this, as the development process of the design goes from the designer to crafts technicians, the final product is often not alike the original design. For the aesthetics and value of Calligraphy the matching of original and copy need to be completely overlapping. What are the concerns and preparations to guarantee a high quality final product similar to the original design? This study wants to analyse the production techniques that allow designers to apply the Arabic Calligraphy in mass production that can be successfully marketed and still keep the taste and value of the original design. Additionally, it is concerned about the materials in the local market, which provides economic prices of the final product, and using them on mass production technologies. KEYWORDS: Islamic Art Identity, Laser Cutting, CNC Machines, Craft Products, Calligraphic Patterns 1 INTRODUCTION The importance of writing is much wider in the Arabic world than in other cultures due to the central role of the God’s message delivered through the prophet’s tradition. It has conserved through centuries an entire language, the Arabic language, from major changes, being at the center of the religious and ethical education as an intangible support and tool to the populations. In the Qur’an, we can find the importance of the word on one side as a deliverer of knowledge and on the other side the "calamus" as a tool of distribution of the message.