As humans living in this increasingly complicated and stressful global society, we can all benefit from more positivity and cross-cultural connection. FiftyFifty, a new typographic exhibition created by Nada Abdallah, an assistant professor at the University of Sharjah’s College of Fine Arts and Design in the UAE, is one small but powerful reminder. Abdallah conceived the project to use typography and calligraphy to unite student work across different cultures and languages.
FiftyFifty put out a global call for typographic artworks of one word in their language that encapsulated the theme of “Positive Synonyms.” An incredible 1,500 student submissions from 34 universities in 32 countries (in 20 languages) were juried by nine industry judges who selected 150. The resulting collection of hand-drawn and digital calligraphy, typography, and lettering designs is now a traveling exhibition featuring 50x50cm black-and-white posters.
Left: قمة or”Qima” (Arabic, meaning “Top”) by Zena Khanfar, Palestinian, University of Sharjah;
Right: કુટુંબ or “Kutumb” (Gujarati, meaning “Family”) by Krishna Tandel, Indian, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies
Humanity, love, care, understanding, and tolerance are not just desirable but essential qualities in our challenging times. Words are powerful.
Nada Abdallah, University of Sharjah’s College of Fine Arts and Design
The University of Sharjah supports the traveling exhibition, which is endorsed by the Association Typographique Internationale (ATypI). Founded in 1957, ATypI is a worldwide organization dedicated to type and typography design. Its annual conference has been a recurrent event since its founding. FiftyFifty was part of ATypl’s 2024 annual gathering in Brisbane, Australia.
Left top: 진솔하다 or “Jinsolhada” (Korean, meaning “Outspoken”) by Jiyeon Park, Hongik University; left middle: 温和 or “wēnhé” (Chinese, meaning “Gentle”) by Ding Yifu, Beijing Institute of Graphic Communication; left bottom: 和平 or”hépíng” (Chinese, meaning “Peace”) by Yanrong Zhu, Tongji University; Right: πολύ or “polý” (Greek, meaning “Very”) by Candela Amestoy, Universidad Nacional de Lanús
Maha Abdullah, a senior international typography manager at Adobe, said she was impressed by the exhibition’s “brilliant approach to transforming how we look at typography…in the digital world.”
Cвабода or “svabOda” (Belarusian, meaning “Freedom”) by Lizaveta Kasinskaya, Polish-Japanese Academy of Information Technology
FiftyFifty will be at the Ionion Center for the Arts and Culture in Kefalonia, Greece, on July 27 and will open at the College of Fine Arts and Design at the University of Sharjah in September. You can see all the selected works on FiftyFifty’s Instagram feed or in this fantastic animation of the winning entries.
The global showcase will continue under a new theme in 2025, soon to be announced.