morteza karimi reinterprets calligraphy with ALEPHba jewelry series

NYC based architect morteza karimi began exploring the art of calligraphy in today’s digital era, when the value of handwriting is fading day by day. as part of an on-going series related to that topic, he reveals his latest work: the ALEPHba jewelry. it is a unique collection of 3D printed accessories that make up the 26 letters of the alphabet.

ALEPHba ‘hashtag’ turns your fingers into a social media outlet

traditionally, calligraphy is handwritten on flat surfaces -be it paper or walls. however, morteza karimi’s latest creation is an interpretation of how this artwork can be expressed differently in our digital and technological age.

3D printing is one of the latest popular tools used primarily for architectural purposes: it consists of digitally creating any object (via a software) that would ultimately be printed into its physical three dimensional shape. karimi thus decided to choose the same technique in his collection. indeed, the jewelry pieces are 3D printed in wax, with a liquid plaster mold poured around them; this allows the molten metal (gold or silver) to fill the cast once the wax is taken off.  

3D golden print of the letter ‘w’

one intriguing aspect to morteza karimi’s collection is the overall similarity of the different items, and the discrete variations at a closer view. this results from the different shapes of each letter, therefore challenging his original exploration of calligraphy.   

each piece has a different mold, depending on the 3D shape of the letter

 ‘G’ is printed with a silver finish

 ‘m’ offers a more voids on the sides

a more discrete configuration with the letter ‘A’

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lea zeitoun | designboom