Digital technology and the migration of people have resulted in multi cultural societies, in which traditions are perceived to be threatened. In order to visually communicate in a globalised world, cultural bridges must be built while still preserving heritage and identity. Therefore a new form of social visual communication is needed. Abdellatif, while adopting a bi-lingual and multi-cultural approach, explores a number of challenges in developing this new form of communication, including whether Arabic calligraphy/typography can visually communicate with viewers from different backgrounds and whether a balance can be found between Arabic and Western graphic design, in particular with regard to typography.

This research will be primarily achieved through the use of type and image and it might take different forms varying from editorial design to installation using the multi-cultural setting of Dublin.