Continuum: Classical to Contemporary Islamic Art

April 8 – June 26, 2026

“Continuum: Classical to Contemporary Islamic Art,” is a group exhibit curated by Public and Community Artist Kulsum Tasnif that celebrates process, reverence, and renewal within Islamic art. It gathers Muslim American artists working across traditional and contemporary forms — from Tezhip (illumination), Arabic calligraphy and Islamic geometry, to new works inspired by these classical disciplines.

Many of the artists study under masters who hold ijazah, the traditional certification of lineage and teaching. Each considers themselves a lifelong student of knowledge, united by a shared devotion to learning, discipline, and beauty. Their art reflects a deep respect for materials and methods, where the slow rhythm of making becomes an act of Dhikr (remembrance).

In this way, Continuum honors both the heritage of tradition and its living expression today. The exhibition reveals that Islamic Art is not fixed in history, but continually renewed through the hands, hearts, and intentions of those who practice it.

About the Artists

Habibe Kocak

Habibe Kocak is a Turkish-born artist based in Greensboro, North Carolina, working in the traditional arts of Turkish marbling (ebru) and illumination (tezhip). Ebru is a form of paper marbling that creates colorful patterns by sprinkling and brushing pigments onto a prepared water surface and transferring them to paper.

She has studied these arts for more than four years and continues her classical apprenticeship as an ijazah (traditional certification) student in both fields. Rooted in Ottoman artistic tradition, she works with natural pigments and oxide-based paints, following historically transmitted materials and methods.

In her illumination practice, she focuses on balance, proportion, and detailed manuscript decoration, with a particular interest in Turkish Rococo motifs and their relationship to classical tezhip design. Through workshops, she shares traditional Islamic and Turkish arts with communities in the United States, emphasizing both craft and cultural context.

Instagram: @khabbee

Hiba Chohan

Hiba Chohan is an embroidery artist who grew up in Raleigh, NC. She began her embroidery journey at a young age when she learned to cross stitch from her mother, just as it was passed down from generations before her. She attended UNC Chapel Hill for both her undergraduate and graduate degrees in Public Health. Over the years, Hiba began incorporating additional embroidery techniques and styles into contemporary designs. She has exhibited work in various group exhibitions, including the VAE in Raleigh and more recently, The Block and Chapel Hill Community Arts & Culture. Her art has been purchased by many individuals and organizations, most notably the City of Raleigh Municipal Art Collection and the North Carolina Museum of History.

For each piece, Hiba begins by designing a pattern that is both creative and culturally expressive and then meticulously selects the fabric and thread colors before finally picking up her needle to begin stitching. Embroidery is a slow art, and each piece often takes weeks to complete, but with each stitch, Hiba hopes to tell a story that resonates with others through our shared experiences and values.

Instagram: @hibstitches

Kulsum Tasnif

Kulsum Tasnif is a Raleigh-based multidisciplinary artist and curator of Muslim art, whose work is deeply rooted in community. She uses a wide range of techniques and approaches to explore themes of identity and belonging, loss and resilience, and shared human experiences that unite people across borders. She holds a bachelor’s degree in studio art and creative writing and a master’s degree in art and design.

Kulsum spent four years recording oral histories of war survivors and illustrated their stories in her series, “Journey to The Good Life.” Other exhibits include, “The Protest Purse” which empowers women through shared narratives and explores purses as a vehicle to tell their stories. Kulsum was selected by Raleigh Arts as one of the public artists for the Method Rd. Project where she preserves community memory by recording oral histories. Recent projects include the Devotion exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of Art and curating traditional and contemporary Islamic art exhibits across NC.

Her solo exhibits include Meredith College, The Durham Art Guild at Golden Belt, VAE Raleigh, The Carrack, Skylight Gallery and others. Her work has been highlighted in the News & Observer and Uppercase Magazine amongst some, and her essays have appeared in numerous publications. Kulsum currently serves as Director of Artist Ummah and is on the Board of Directors of VAE Raleigh.

Instagram: @kulsumtasnif
Website: kulsumtasnif.com

Melika Osareh

Melika Osareh is a multidisciplinary Persian artist whose lifelong creative journey has evolved into a deep, spiritual practice rooted in the tradition of Islamic calligraphy. Over the years, she has explored a wide range of artistic expressions and found her truest sense of peace through the art of Arabic and Persian calligraphy.

Melika was formally taught the elegant Persian Nastaliq script by two respected instructors, while her exploration of Thuluth has been self-taught—a testament to her dedication and love for the craft. Much of her work is inspired by the holy Qur’an and renowned Persian poetry, such as that of Rumi and Hafez, particularly its timeless themes of divine Love, longing, and spiritual connection. These influences breathe life into her compositions, transforming sacred words into visual meditations.

Beyond the canvas, she shares her art at charity events and community exhibitions. She has been recognized as a featured artist at the annual Ramadan Anatolian Iftar, the Muslim Artists of NC event, and most recently at the Artist Ummah Exhibit at White Memorial Presbyterian Church. At other times, Melika fulfills custom requests for friends and family, infusing each piece with intentionality and heart with reverence for her faith.

Instagram: @East2WestCalligrapher

Nigam Ehsan 

Nigam was born and raised in Pakistan and moved to the US in the 90s. She received her bachelor’s in medicine and surgery from King Edward Medical College in Lahore, Pakistan. After moving to America, her career path led her to Sonography. Alongside her medical career, Nigam remained passionate about art. Her creative journey is deeply intertwined with the traditional Turkish art of tezhip, also known as “illumination” and Islamic geometric designs inspired by the Ottoman tradition. Her formal art education started in 2022 with Artist Ummah, where she studied under the guidance of esteemed Deen Arts masters Hoca Fatma Ulusoy Sirajuddin, Hoca Esra Aslan, and Hoca Farzana Razzaque.

Nigam is based in Cary, NC, and has participated in several traditional Islamic Art exhibitions, including a solo exhibit at Moonlight Cafe and a group exhibit at White Memorial Presbyterian Church, and has been a featured artist at the Islamic Center of Morrisville and the Islamic Association of Raleigh.

Noureen “Noni” Shaikh

Noureen “Noni” Shaikh is a North Carolina-based Islamic illumination artist working within and extending the classical Ottoman tradition of Tezhip, alongside study in Islamic geometry and Arabic calligraphy. She began formal lineage-based training in 2023 with Artist Ummah through Deen Arts under a master teacher in Istanbul, focusing on traditional proportional systems, vegetal stylization, and disciplined compositional structure.

Her work has been presented in solo and group exhibitions across North Carolina, including a Featured Artist exhibition at the North Carolina Museum of Art After Hours event in conjunction with the Venice and the Ottoman Empire exhibition (2024), followed by a solo exhibition at The Rumman Room, Raleigh (2025) and the Eva Perry Library in Apex (2025), as well as group exhibitions with Artist Ummah at the Islamic Center of Morrisville (2024–2025), White Memorial Presbyterian Church (2025), Chapel Hill Town Hall (2026), and other regional venues.

Noureen is the recipient of the 2025 United Arts Wake County Artist Support Grant and has been featured in Voyage Raleigh Magazine. She is a certified Art Wellness coach and leads public and corporate creative re-set workshops. She facilitates North Carolina Museum of Art’s Mindful Museum sessions and also partners with various community arts organizations.

Committed to lifelong study, Noureen’s practice contributes to the continued preservation and contemporary development of Islamic illumination while using Art as a means of reviving creativity and calm in her audience.

Instagram: @artbynoni6890
Website: artbynoni.com

Roohi Ahmed

Roohi Ahmed is a Raleigh-based multidisciplinary artist whose work draws on cartographic systems, geometric structure, and organic form to examine how we map identity, memory, and place. Using layered line, measured repetition, and intricate pattern, she references the visual language of maps – grids, boundaries, routes, and coordinates – to question how territories are defined and experienced. Influenced by Islamic geometric and biomorphic design traditions, her works on paper and mixed-media installations balance precision with fluidity, reflecting both constructed borders and lived realities.

Ahmed holds a Diploma of Fine Art from the Karachi School of Art, completed advanced studies in drawing at the School of Visual Arts in New York, and earned an MFA by Research from the University of New South Wales, Sydney. Her academic training underpins a practice rooted in research, craftsmanship, and material exploration.
Her work has been exhibited widely in the United States and internationally. Most recently, she was included in Voices of the Subcontinent, presented by the Artist Ummah at The Rumman Room in Raleigh (2025), and in Manzar – Art & Architecture From Pakistan 1940s To Today at the National Museum of Qatar (2024). Her work has also been presented at the Johnson Museum of Art as part of Lines of Control: Partition as a Productive Space, along with exhibitions in New York, London, Sydney, and New Delhi.

Ahmed has participated in international residencies including Cicada Press at the College of Fine Arts, Sydney; the COAST International Artists’ Residency in the United Kingdom; and the Vasl International Artists’ Residency in Karachi. Through her detailed and contemplative practice, she contributes to Raleigh’s cultural landscape while encouraging thoughtful reflection on how boundaries shape both communities and individual experience.

Instagram: @ahmedroohi