Help us raise £6,000 so British Muslim artist Soraya Syed can transform the iconic Arab Hall fountain at Leighton House into a living artwork exploring our special connection to water through moving calligraphy and imagery. This is the final commission in the Arab Hall series, and your support will make it possible.

On 31 July 2026, Leighton House will unveil From Water, Every Living Thing, a moving-image calligraphy installation projected directly onto the black marble fountain of the Arab Hall.

Step inside Leighton House in Kensington, London, and you are immediately met with the sound of water. Follow it through the building and you arrive at the Arab Hall, one of the most extraordinary rooms in Britain, where a black marble fountain sits at its centre like a magnet, drawing you in.

From Water, Every Living Thing is a new interactive installation by Soraya Syed. Working directly with this historic space, she creates an immersive installation where movement, light and reflection converge, and golden calligraphy script ripples across water in motion.

The work draws on the Qur’anic verse, “We made from water every living thing", bringing it to life through light and movement. Water holds deep significance in Islamic tradition. It is a source of life but also of power, awe and destruction. This reflection is woven into the Arab Hall itself, where Hizb al-Bahr (Litany of the Sea), a historic prayer for protection composed by the 13th-century scholar Abu’l-Hasan al-Shadhili, is inscribed in the glasswork above the fountain.

Your support helps bring this history full circle. Motion resolves into stillness, image becomes reflection, and the viewer, for a quiet moment of contemplation, is drawn into the installation itself.

It is the final commission to mark the museum's 100th anniversary, and technical production must continue. Leighton House has already contributed funding, but we still need £6,000 to complete it. Your donation will ensure this final piece becomes a reality.

LEIGHTON HOUSE MUSEUM & ARAB HALL

Leighton House was once the home of Victorian artist Frederic, Lord Leighton. Its Arab Hall was inspired by the architecture of Damascus, Cairo, Istanbul and Granada and is lined with centuries-old tiles drawn from across the Islamic world. It remains one of the most extraordinary interiors in Britain, where every surface holds a sense of history and craft. At its heart is the fountain that will become Soraya’s canvas. 

Please donate today and help make it happen.

THE ARTIST

Soraya Syed is the first Briton ever to be awarded an icazetname – the prestigious Ottoman licence certifying mastery in Islamic calligraphy. She trained in Istanbul under renowned masters Hasan Çelebi and Efdaluddin Kılıç before going on to build an internationally acclaimed practice spanning film, sculpture, performance and immersive installations. This year, her work is being presented in London, Venice and Houston alongside the publication of her new monograph, The Living Script (Skira). 

Through the Art of the Pen, she has dedicated her career to carrying this centuries-old tradition into new forms for a new generation.

WHY THIS MATTERS

• A British Muslim artist takes centre stage at one of London’s most iconic museums, at a moment where visibility and representation matter.
• Islamic calligraphy is reimagined in a contemporary form that invites viewers into a deeper experience of seeing and reflection.
• The project forms part of the centenary programme at Leighton House, bringing a living tradition into dialogue with a historic cultural space.

Your support will do more than bring this installation to life. It will help sustain Soraya’s wider artistic mission, ensuring that Islamic art continues to inspire, engage and bring communities together long after this installation ends.

Any funds raised beyond our target will support the publication of Soraya Syed's forthcoming monograph, The Living Script, to be published by Skira in September 2026.

This is a rare opportunity to be part of a landmark moment for Islamic art in Britain. Your donation ensures this work is seen, honoured, and shared with the visibility and care it deserves.

Donate now and experience it first-hand this summer.

From Water, Every Living Thing opens at Leighton House, 31 July – October 2026.