Loading...
Interior view inside the openwork globe looking up, the perforated dome casting patterned light, Globe N°1.
Loading...
Illuminated openwork metal globe covered in pierced calligraphy, glowing at dusk beside an ochre earth wall and palm.

N°1 - Globe

Invisible Light Serie (2012)

Invisible Light No. 1, titled Globe, belongs to the Invisible Light collection developed by Yahya in collaboration with Moroccan painter Mehdi Qotbi. The collection was first exhibited at the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris within the Zaha Hadid Pavilion, before being shown in Marrakech. Conceived as an exploration of abstraction through Islamic calligraphy, the series does not seek legibility but rather engages with movement, rhythm, and visual poetry. Globe stands as the most monumental expression of this approach, translating calligraphy into a universal and symbolic form.

The sculpture presents a three-dimensional map of the world, rendered as a continuous spherical form. All continents are expressed using the same abstract calligraphic language inspired by Islamic script, removing hierarchy and borders. These landmasses appear to float within oceans composed entirely of the word Salam, peace, forming a poetic vision of continents suspended in an ocean of harmony. The continents are cut from 8–10 mm stainless steel, while the oceans are formed from 5 mm stainless steel sheets, each element individually hand-sawn, engraved, and assembled.

Entirely handmade in Marrakech, Globe required over eighteen months of fabrication and the collaboration of multiple specialised teams. Hundreds of individually cut and engraved components were welded together into a perfectly balanced spherical structure of exceptional scale. The sculpture is internally illuminated from a concealed central source at its base, allowing light to pass through the calligraphic surface and project intricate patterns onto surrounding walls. The calligraphy extends uninterrupted toward the light source, rendering the technical process deliberately unreadable and heightening the sense of mystery.

Loading...
Close-up of the globe's curved surface densely pierced with Arabic calligraphy in warm light.
Loading...
The pierced-metal globe glowing softly within a dark vaulted earth-walled space.
Loading...
The large openwork calligraphic globe beside a long ochre rampart wall lined with palms at dusk.
Loading...
The illuminated globe set in a lit niche flanked by a clipped shrub at night, Globe N°1.
Loading...
The glowing pierced-metal globe under a sculptural canopy with reflections on the floor, Globe N°1.
Loading...
The glowing globe in a garden niche at night surrounded by trees and warm light, Globe N°1.
Loading...
The illuminated openwork globe on a stand beneath a curved canopy in a dim interior, Globe N°1.
Loading...
Hands holding a small cut-metal calligraphic figure against a spinning polishing wheel.
Loading...
Close-up of the calligraphic globe's curved surface, fine perforated Arabic letters under side light, Globe N°1.
Loading...
A hammer and chisel resting on a round sandbag while shaping a small silver calligraphic metal piece.
Loading...
An artisan working the surface of the large calligraphic globe, monochrome, Globe N°1.
Loading...
A craftsman fitting cut metal letters onto the globe's surface, black and white, Globe N°1.

Photography Credit: Warren Wesley Patterson