The Ring of the Dove (Degrees of Love)

The Story

Love is a universal theme with a myriad of manifestations that have intrigued poets, authors, artists and all human beings. The Arabic language is incredibly rich in elucidating the minutiae of love, from its first sparks till it takes hold of lovers' entire being. We built on this initial idea by delving into several Arabic dictionaries and classical sources to gather relevant vocabulary. Then, we classified these words into a hued ring where every corner conveys an essential metaphor about love. Within each metaphor, the words are organized by intensity. The hues merge and interweave to convey the way lovers find themselves oscillating between various shades of the same eternal passion. In the design, we took inspiration from Ibn Hazm's 'The Ring of the Dove', the most famous Arabic treatise on love. The title of the treatise probably refers to the colorful feathers on a dove's neck. It is also an allusion to an old Arabic idiom that means "something permanent and everlasting", which suggests that love is enduring by nature.

Special thanks to Ahmad Husam (research, translation and editing support), Aziza Iqbal (geometric design), Alberto (design and photo editing), EJE (calligraphy)

Product Description

• Our art prints are produced on acid-free paper using archival inks to guarantee that they last a lifetime without fading or loss of color.
• Sizes refer to total paper size (including white border)
  
• Art prints are sold without frame. Images with frames are for demonstration purposes only.
  
• Language: Arabic and English

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