After World War II, a number of Islamic countries won their independence from Western Colonial rule. In all these occupied countries, European art traditions had taken root. With the perception of freedom, the young artists of these countries began to look to their own roots to express themselves. At this juncture, a number of artists turned to calligraphy, the most honored of traditional Islamic artistic forms of expression. Text and Texture is a brief introduction to the evolution of contemporary paintings based on Islamic calligraphy, with 33 innovative full color paintings by the author.