The simple answer:

Calligraffiti is a combination of calligraphy and graffiti.

Calligraphy is about the art of writing and can have many forms. Whether it be Japanese ancient brush characters, Arabic pictorial scripts, illuminated mediaeval books or swirly quill writing… all calligraphy.

Graffiti is the art of getting your (pseudo) name up in an urban environment. Perfected in New York City and now a worldwide phenomenon.

The fairly new art of Graffiti and its somewhat rigid rules prompt us to look further back into the history of writing. This is exactly what Niels Shoe Meulman has been doing since his teens, and at the beginning of this century he started combining the two. Thus resulting in Calligraffiti: traditional handwriting with a metropolitan attitude.

The simpler answer:

Plough through this website and you’ll know.

About the artist, short version:

Born in Amsterdam in 1967, Niels Meulman is an internationally known artist, designer, and art director. Meulman began tagging in 1979 and became a graffiti legend by the time he was 18. Known as ‘Shoe’ within the graffiti community, his work evolved into a business for lettering and he furthered his technique by apprenticing under the Dutch graphic design master, Anthon Beeke.
In the nineties Meulman ran his own design company, Caulfield & Tensing, before joining the international advertising network BBDO. In recent years, he has been a Creative Director for MTV Networks, while also freelancing in typographic design. Meulman revolutionized the art of writing with Calligraffiti, an art form that fuses calligraphy and graffiti. He launched this movement in 2007 with a successful solo exhibition in Amsterdam, with contributions from graffiti pioneer and graphic artist Eric Haze and sneaker retailer Patta. Meulman has also teamed up with international record label Rush Hour, to mount a Calligraffiti exhibition entitled Different Strokes. He is currently working on exhibitions in Paris, Berlin and New York.
Widely acclaimed, Meulman’s designs and artwork are in the permanent collections of the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Amongst his essential works are a signature shoe design for the British sports brand, Umbro; the re-styling of the Dutch television channel TMF; calligraphy for Bols Genever; the Christel Palace logo that was awarded by the Art Directors Club New York a line of luxury silk scarves for his label Unruly and of course his glossy Calligraffiti pieces.
www.calligraffiti.nl
www.nielsshoemeulman.com
www.unruly.nl

About the artist, shorter version:

Niels Meulman is an internationally known artist, graphic designer, and art director. Meulman began tagging Shoe in 1979 and became a graffiti legend by the time he was 18.
In the eighties he met New York artists like Dondi, Rammellzee, Haze, Quik and Keith Haring. He then formed the Crime Time Kings with Bando from Paris and Mode2 from London. Together they gave graffiti in Europe its own distinctive style.
In the Nineties he furthered his technique by apprenticing under the Dutch graphic design master Anthon Beeke. Shoe ran his own design company, Caulfield & Tensing and was partner in ad agency Unruly, which he later turned into brand for silk scarves.
Shoe revolutionized the art of writing with Calligraffiti, an art form that fuses calligraphy and graffiti. He launched this movement in 2007 with a successful solo exhibition in Amsterdam. Since then, his Calligraffiti pieces (signed NSM) can be seen in various international exhibitions.
www.calligraffiti.nl
www.nielsshoemeulman.com
www.unruly.nl