The doors of heaven

"The concept of God in Islam is absolute monotheism, with Allah (God) who is incomparable to anything in Creation. In Islamic tradition, 99 attributes of God are named, enabling an understanding and appreciation of His various qualities. These names, or qualities, include: al-Rahman, the Merciful; al-Raheem, the Compassionate; al-Ahad, the One; al-Hayy, the Ever-Living; al-Qayoom, the External; al-Aleem, the All-Knowing; al-Adl, the Just and al-Khaliq, the Creator. Many Muslim given names are based on these attributes, prefaced with ‘Abdul’ meaning ‘servant of,’ for example, ‘Abdul-Raheem’. All 99 names appear in Arabic within this delicate paper-cut piece by artist Tusif Ahmad, which took four months to complete. " The Artist

About the Artist: Tusif Ahmad is a Perth based artist of Pakistani heritage, who applies the ancient craft of paper-cutting to explore Islamic calligraphy and his own unique designs. Each piece is meticulously hand-cut from a single piece of paper. His work has featured in many international galleries, starting with a solo exhibition in 1987 in his home town of Rawalpindi, Pakistan.