Franco-Tunisian graphic artist and philanthropist finds a new purpose for Zoom
The Franco-Tunisian calligraphy artist eL Seed crafted an up-to-the-minute digital collage using the ubiquitous video chat service Zoom, with a tremendous new-found popularity as people around the world are confined to their homes amid the coronavirus lockdowns. The initiative relied on a group effort, gathering 49 strangers onto one virtual chat, each composing a crucial part to complete the larger artwork, whose prints will be sold to raise funds for hospitals in Paris, where he grew up, and Gabès, where his family hails from.
Artist eL Seed’s distinct Arabic calligraphy can be found on facades across the globe, consistently emphasizing the commonalities of human existence and unifying different communities despite cultural and geographic differences… this time around, his work truly transcended all borders, hosted in the virtual sphere.
A fragment of the larger, completed artwork was sent to each volunteering member, by eL Seed, prior to the scheduled video chat, for them to appear in front of the backdropped image for the duration of the call.
At 1PM EST, on April 26 2020, each participant logged in at their specific time slot with their respective virtual backgrounds. eL Seed explains on his Instagram account: “I just had to synchronize the participants, shape the final picture, allowing people to enter the Zoom call according to their position on the artwork. Each person was a single instrument playing a solo. Person by person, I could witness the artwork taking shape. I had to trust everyone to do his or her part so we could create the artwork together. “
49 countries were represented including Nigeria, USA, Portugal, Italy, China, Canada, UAE, Qatar, France, UK, Netherlands, Pakistan, Tunisia, Rwanda, Egypt, and Romania.
As if it weren’t enough, a few famous guests were also of attendance, notably the chart-topping American singer Aloe Blacc, who serenaded the group throughout the call, alongside his wife and fellow singer Maya Jupiter. Dutch dancers Norah, Yarah and Rosa, Instagram stars who appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, also had an opportunity to liven up the group by showing off some of their moves.
Giving credit where credit is due
This project is far from his first that made waves internationally. A few years back eL Seed won the UNESCO Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture and was named a Global Thinker by Foreign Policy for his project ‘Perception’ in Cairo. Despite his young age, he also managed to collaborate with Louis Vuitton on their famous ‘Foulard d’Artiste’ where eL Seed’s signature traditional Arabic-inspired calligraphy made an appearance in fuchsia and golden filigree, overlaying the Parisian luxury label’s classic monogram.
His ambition remains to create art so beautiful that it needs no translation, and, regardless of the medium, eL Seed seems to be hitting the bullseye.
