Nasser Al-Salem was born in the Holy City of Mecca in 1984. His family’s trade was tent-making and their business was located in the ‘first belt’ around the Haram Al-Sharif, and so Al-Salem spent the majority of his childhood within sight of the holy Ka’ba, helping his family sell tents to the myriad of pilgrims who came for Hajj.
He became interested in calligraphy from an early age and his parents signed him up for calligraphy classes, which took place every Friday in the Haram Al-Sharif itself. However, as calligraphy is not accepted as a profession in its own right in Saudi Arabia, Nasser received his formal education in Architecture at Um Al-Kora University in Mecca, and currently lives and works as an architect in Jeddah.
Al-Salem did not abandon his passion for calligraphy and continued to practice, taking part in community projects and calligraphy workshops and even winning a prize in 2009 in a Calligraphy and Fine Arts competition in Jeddah. and In 2010 obtain his Ijaza.
Although Nasser’s training has been traditional, he felt that it was not enough to inscribe the word on paper, that he needed to do more justice to the concept of the word by means other than mere inscription. His architectural background allowed Nasser to develop a unique tri-partite approach to calligraphy – the word, the medium, and the aesthetic. This dynamic style provides the viewer with a multi-layered path with which to approach the artwork, each layer further reinforcing the ultimate concept of the work.
Nasser’s concepts venture far outside calligraphy’s traditional box of contents. His artworks shed light on verses and concepts that lie outside the mainstream and that have particular resonance with him; “I try to draw attention to the things that I find astonishing and awe-inspiring. These are usually things that people don’t notice, or pay attention to, so I try to bring them to life and to give them importance. Although you could say my work is very much inspired by my religion and my community, I by no means have a specific audience, and hope that my messages have a spiritual or historical significance for everyone’
Al-Salem has exhibited internationally at ‘Edge of Arabia’ shows in Istanbul (20019) and Jeddah (2012) and he has also participated in the British Museum’s Hajj exhibition (2012), where not shortly after, his work “Zamzam” was acquired by the museum. He is actively involved in community calligraphy projects and in 2010, took second place at the Kingdom’s National Calligraphy competition. He is also a member of the National Guild of Calligraphers and is an active member of Saudi Arabia’s Arts and Culture Group. In 2012, he successfully opened his first solo exhibition at Athr Gallery ‘And it Remains..
Al-Salem’s solo shows; Amma Baad, at Delfina Foundation, London [2019]. Amma Baad, Casa Arabe, Madrid, Spain [2019], State of Affairs, Athr Gallery, Jeddah [2016], And It Remains, Athr Gallery, Jeddah [2012] Al-Salem’s work has been part of numerous group exhibitions including: Al Burda, Abu Dahbi [2019], Ekphrasis, Writing in Art, Villa Empain, Brussels [2019]. Nomadic Traces: The- Journey of Arabian Scripts, Warehouse 421, Dubai [2019], Also, In 2019, he was a part of Out of Place, Athr Gallery, Jeddah, KSA.Hajj: Journey to the Heart of Islam, The British Museum, London [2012] Rhizoma, Edge of Arabia, Venice Biennale [2013]; Echoes, Nelson-Atkins Museum, Kansas City [2013]; The Language of Human Consciousness, Athr, Jeddah [2014]; Common Grounds, Villa Stuck, Munich [2015]; Nour/Light, Sharjah Islamic Arts Festival, Sharjah [2015]; Safar, 21,39 Jeddah Arts, Jeddah [2017]; Cities Of Convictions, Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, Utah [2017]; Epicenter X: Contemporary Saudi Art, Arab American National Museum, Detroit [2017], The Clocks Are Striking Thirteen, Athr Gallery, Jeddah [2018].“Abstraction and Calligraphy − Towards a Universal Language” louvre abu dhabi [2021].
His work is part of the collection of The British Museum, London, LACMA Museum, Los Angeles, Guggenheim، Abu Dhabi, and Centre Pompidou, Paris. In 2013, Al-Salem was shortlisted for the Jameel Prize at the Victoria & Albert Museum.In 2018, 2020 the artist’s work was a part of The Royal Commission of Al-Ula’s, Saudi Arabia.