Professor Nassar Mansour is an artist, calligrapher, academic and designer in the field of Islamic Arts, specializing in Islamic Calligraphy. He is considered to be one of the most accomplished contemporary Arab calligraphers today.

He is Professor of Islamic Art/Arabic calligraphy at the Institute of Islamic Arts in Amman, Jordan.

Nassar is best known for his serious academic research on Islamic Calligraphy and for his academic and artistic efforts in reviving Muhaqqaq (one of the six classical scripts الخطوط الستة) as a successful artistic medium for contemporary Islamic calligraphers. Nassar was the first Jordanian to obtain the traditional Ijaza in calligraphy from the Islamic world's premier master calligrapher, Hasan Çelebi, in 2003, Istanbul. In April 2018, he was awarded The Artistic Creativity Award for his academic and artistic efforts in reviving Muhaqqaq script by the Arab Thought Foundation (ATF).

Keynote Address Title: Square Kufic Script: Between Sacredness and Everyday Use

 

Poosapati Parameshwar Raju is an artist, calligrapher, researcher and an expert in communication. His expertise in Communication, Documentation and Publication design, is celebrated across the Globe. In his work, we witness the phenomenon of a new genre that could be termed as iconic -calligraphy. His images are offspring of an epistemological discernment and the minimalist's aesthetic, ensuing from his personalized research of iconography, signs, and symbols inherent in the Indian ceremonial culture.

Based on his research in Indian Iconography, he has creatively experimented and explored calligraphy to represent the sacred using narratives and storytelling. He is highly skilled and the forms are minimal and both contemporary as well as traditional.

His works has been exhibited in Delhi, Bangalore, Baroda, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Germany and Beijing. His works have been published and has conducted several workshops with students at events and colleges in India. He lives and works in Hyderabad. He has a BFA from the Government School of Art Aurangabad and an MFA in Applied Art from Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad.

Keynote Address Title: Sacred Geometry: Traditional Indian Grids, Natural Forms, and Their Role in Visual Design

 

Padma Shri Achyut Palav is one of the foremost names in Indian calligraphy today. With his unique approach and faith in the aesthetic appeal of the art, he has made significant contribution in reviving the glory of Indian calligraphy. His efforts & initiatives have made it possible for the Devnagari Script to gain popularity on national & international platform. Through his various exhibitions and workshops in India and abroad, he has demonstrated calligraphy in Devnagari, English & other Indian languages. He believes that each letter & symbol is a design in itself & has the potential of a becoming a piece of art. He has successfully experimented in fusing calligraphy with performing arts while working with noted musicians, dancers & theatre artists.

Achyut Palav has many publications, exhibitions and awards to his name befitting the tremendous work he has done.

He has founded the 'Achyut Palav School of Calligraphy' & established 'Callifest' –A Festival of Indian Scripts. His current work primarily is to promote calligraphy in all spheres of life and ensure that it reaches newer heights of glory.

 

Professor (Dr.) Ramesh C. Gaur is presently working as Dean (Administration), Director & Head-Kala Nidhi Division at Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi, Ministry ofCulture, Government of India. During the period March 2022to October 2023 he was the Director of National School of Drama. He has also served as Dean(Academics) IGNCA from 2019-2022. www.ignca.gov.in His past assignments includes;Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi (www.jnu.ac.in ),Tata Institute of FundamentalResearch(TIFR), CRRI-CSIR, RIS, New Delhi, Management Development Institute(MDI), andIMT Ghaziabad etc.

Fulbright Scholar (VT, USA), Prof. Gaur has visited more than 24 countries and has received / honoured with over 18 National and International awards. Some of theimportant one includes; NCPEDP-Mphasis Universal design Award 2017 and Turnitin GlobalInnovation Awards 2017(USA).

Prof. Gaur is the first Indian nominated as Member- International Advisory Committee (IAC)UNESCO Memory of the World (MoW) Programme (2018-2025) as well as Member UNESCOGlobal Task Force on Indigenous Languages (2020-2032).

 

Prof. Archana Shekara is a graphic designer, researcher, creative director, and educator. She is a Professor of Graphic Design and the Harold Gregor Endowed Professor of Art, Co-Director of Ethnic Studies Program, and Creative Director of Design Streak Studio, a research based social innovation lab focusing on human-centered service design at Illinois State University, USA

Shekara has close to three decades of professional experience designing for diverse industry clients. She uses design as a tool to build cross-cultural understanding, acceptance, and respect. As a socio-cultural researcher, she investigates her transnational identity as an Indian American by understanding racial equity and decoloniality through a brown cultural lens and creates critical awareness using ethnographic narratives. Her medium for creative expression takes on various forms such as type design, curating immersive participatory experiences, interactive installations using mixed and various emerging digital media which evoke multi-sensory responses.

 

Pouya Jahanshahi is an Iranian-born graphic designer, scholar, and curator, currently an Associate Professor of Graphic Design at Oklahoma State University, an endowed professor at the Global Studies, and the director of the MFA program.

He earned his M.A. at Cal State Fullerton, with a focus on the Anatomy of a Visual Message and the realm of semiotics in time-based media. He received his MFA in Graphic design and Integrated Media, from the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) where he researched the global development of what he has termed Hybrid Visual Cultures; Focusing on the post-revolutionary and hybrid characteristics of Iranian typography, he has been the voice of Iranian graphic design in western academia.

He is the co-founder of Pasaj Collaborative and Local-Not-Local art and design collaboratives. As a design activist, his curated 20x20 Posters For Peace collection is now being exhibited across the globe, disseminating the message of peace. While working with a broad range of cultural organizations and clientele. When time permits, he pursues his hobbies of Persian calligraphy, silk screening, and concrete poetry.

The following are the accepted papers for presentation during the conference:
6th, 7th and 8th March 2025,
at IDC School of Design, IIT Bombay, Mumbai, India.......Click to Google Map

A moribund language – an intangible cultural heritage – understanding how Kodava language can be taught without having a prevalent script, even after several attempts to develop a script were made since the 1800’s
Kavana Khanna, Doon University, India

 

Enhanced Reading: Exploring the Principles of Typographic Storytelling from Message to Narration
Alexander Tibus, Berlin International University of Applied Sciences, Germany

 

ETERNAL LETTERS AND THEIR IMMORTAL STORIES
Ashok Gopal Parab, Sir J.J. Institute of Applied Art, Mumbai, India

 

Conventional liberation [Why and how did the Nastaliq script help classical Persian poetry in storytelling?]
Mahmood Mazaheri Tari, Formino, Tehran, Iran

 

Excerpts to Edifice: Phenomenological Writings as an instrument to Spatial Design for well-being
Mohesh Babu Radhakrishnan, CARE School of Architecture, Trichy, India

 

The Impact of Typography Over Storytelling: Revolutionizing Arabic Learning from Script to Screen
Dr. Fahad A. Dhawi, American University of Kuwait, Kuwait

 

Expressive Devanagari : The Visual Storytelling of Kamal Shedge
Apurva Milind Vaidya, SOPHIA POLYTECHNIC, India

 

Craft, Culture, and Collective Memory: An Analysis of Storytelling with Typography Using Malayalam and Latin Letterforms in Day-to-Day Life in Kerala
Durgambika P Varma, Karghewale(Loomers India Pvt. Ltd), India

 

Other Images of the City
Jaap Knevel, Fontys Academy of the Arts Tilburg, Netherlands

 

Scripted in Style: The Aesthetic Reclamation of Malayalam Typography in Contemporary Design
Ashish Mathai, Unitedworld Institute of Design and Jesna Jose, St. Stephen's College, Uzhavoor, India

 

Typographic Devotion: The Role of Script and Style in Ramnami Samaj Tattoos
Nivedita Laxman Thakur and Dr. Avadhut Atre, Vishwakarma University, Pune, India

 

Speaking Volumes: Celebrating typographic diversity and storytelling in old regional periodicals in Gujarati and Tamil
Jayasri Sridhar, National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, India

 

Type-less: The fluid form of typography in zines & ‘non-books’ serving as an inclusive medium of cultural storytelling
Sayali Milind Phadke, Dentsu International, Mumbai, India

 

Street Stories in Type: Documenting Cultural Narratives through Typography in Indian Urban Spaces
Aashim Tyagi, Street Type Archive, Mumbai, India

 

Creative Coding in Devanagari Typography: Techniques, Challenges, and Possibilities
Tejas Nerlekar, Ektype, Pune, India

 

Visual Storytelling Through Typography: A Study of Marathi Book Covers and Genre-Specific Design
Monali Balwant Chopkar and Vaishnavi Vijay Patil, MIT Institute of Design, Pune, India

 

Bridging Heritage and Design: A Typeface Inspired by the Cultural Identity of Majuli
Udit Dutta and Dr. Abhijit Padun, Central Institute of Technology, CIT, Kokrajhar, India

 

Typography and Storytelling Across Generations: A Case Study of Sandesh Magazine
Rahul Kumar Shaw, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), India

 

Beyond Aesthetics: Typography’s Role in Shaping Stories
Saqib Kaleem, INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, IIT ROORKEE, India

 

Exploring Child Psychology through Writing Patterns: Emotional Expression, Storytelling, and Experimental Typeface Design
Ahchana Fariha and Dr. Abhijit Padun, Central Institute of Technology, CIT, Kokrajhar, India

 

Ornamental Heritage in the Digital Age: Reimagining the Kaithali Script for Contemporary Use
Pramiti Borah and Dr. Abhijit Padun, Central Institute of Technology, CIT, Kokrajhar, India

 

Visual Voices of Kerala's Politics: A Study of Hand-Painted Political Graffiti
Neetha Joseph Kalappurakkal and Prof. Ankita Roy, Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Hyderabad, India

 

Typography as Cultural Storytelling: A Typeface Inspired by Assam’s Indigenous Food Heritage
Aitijya Bharadwaz and Dr. Abhijit Padun, Central Institute of Technology, CIT, Kokrajhar, India

 

A homage to Sukumar Roy through type design with the Bangla script: Introducing Hiji-bij-bij
Adrija Mukherjee , University of Petroleum and Energy, India

 

Anthropomorphism of the Phone Directory, Storytelling :one Character at a time
Tejaswini Anil Rajput, Rachana Sansad College of Applied Art and Craft, India