Mohamed Zakariya

Mohamed Zakariya (Zak-a-ree-ya), an accomplished artist, calligrapher, and maker of custom instruments from the history of science, was born in Ventura, California, in 1942.  He has devoted more than 35 years to the study of Islamic calligraphy and has presented workshops, demonstrations, and lectures on the subject for the Exxon Corporation, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Asia Society in New York; the Detroit Institute of Arts; the Walters Art Gallery in Baltimore; the Smithsonian Institution; and the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C. 

Zakariya’s calligraphy has been exhibited in Washington, D.C., at the Intercultural Center at Georgetown University, the Renwick Gallery and the S. Dillon Ripley Center of the Smithsonian Institution, the Dadian Gallery at Wesley Theological Seminary, and Washington National Cathedral.   In addition, he exhibited at the Liturgical Arts Festival in Springfield, Illinois, and the Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College.  In 1994 Zakariya participated in an interfaith exhibit at the B’nai B’rith Klutznick National Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., the same year he designed and executed calligraphic panels for the mosque at the Muslim Community Center in Silver Spring, Maryland. 

Outside the U. S., Zakariya has taught and exhibited in London, England, as well as in Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Turkey.  A consultant on Islamic arts for the Khalili Collection in London and the Smithsonian Institution, he has also written articles and books, including The Calligraphy of Islam: Reflections on the State of the Art, Observations on Islamic Calligraphy, and Music for the Eyes.

A master woodworker, engraver, and machinist, Zakariya has designed and constructed many historical-style instruments including astrolabes, celestial globes, and sundials.  In 1996 he re-engraved the sundial in the Haupt Garden of the Smithsonian Institution.

Zakariya works from his studio in Arlington, Virginia. His first project for the U.S. Postal Service was creating the design for the original Eid stamp, first issued in 2001. More recently, he created the art for the new Eid stamp design, first issued in 2011.