The hurufiyya art movement (also known as the Al-hurufiyyah movement[3] or the Letrism movement[4]) refers to the use of calligraphy as a graphic element within an artwork, typically an abstract work.[5] The pan-Arab hurufiyya art movement is distinct from the Letterist International which had an Algerian section founded in Chlef in 1953 by Hadj Mohamed Dahou.