The calligrapher Nja Mahdaoui is a ball of fire, energy and creativity. Having a coffee with him can not be trivial! At my invitation, he responds with a generous smile and two sublime art books that are almost exhausted after touring the world. There are people in life that we thank not only for what they do but want to embrace for who they are. Nja Mahdaoui is one of them. After having traveled the world, he poses more and more and engages in his own way for his country.

By Amel DJAIT

Nja Mahdaoui is currently the Director of the Plastic Arts Days of Tunisia, an event conceived on the models of the Carthage Film Days (JCC) and the Carthage Theater Days (JTC) which will be held every year intermittently to the first two.


When he does not participate in the program of the opening of the City of Arts of the city of Tunis and his small museum, Nja Mahdaoui meets the young artists of the country. He tries to make an inventory, to feed himself on what is happening and to share with the young people: “My objective is to accompany the young artists, especially from the regions of Tunisia, to the international. If they are able to perform well in spite of the difficulties that surround them, imagine what they could be able to achieve if they had the means, and were supported , recognized …. “


Prize for craftsmanship by UNESCO in 2005, one of the most well-known Tunisians internationally, brings loud and clear the flag of his country while traveling the world and returning tirelessly to his native Marsa, he settled in Djerba, where he set up a “houch” for his holidays.

Currently, Nja Mahdaoui participates in the international competition “Global Art Awards 2017” with a series of works. The awards for this artistic competition will be presented at a ceremony scheduled for November 17, 2017 in Burj Khalifa, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.


In this artistic re-entry in 2017, he participated with his longtime friend Khaled Ben Slimane in Paris at the Institute of Islamic Cultures with an exhibition devoted to calligraphy and urban art entitled “Lettres ouvertes, de la calligraphy at street art “.

Nja Mahdaoui has exhibited worldwide in numerous institutions, such as the Institute of the Arab World in Paris, the Mathaf in Doha, the British Museum in London. He produced numerous illustrations of organizations such as Amnesty International, for which he drew a logo in 1991 or even dressed the aircraft of the United Arab Emirates airline.

For further information about the artist:http://www.nja-mahdaoui.com