FIRSTSTEPSSERIES

Calligraphy

DONMARSH

www.artistsnetwork.com

Dedication

Dedicatedtoallthosewhohavelaboredattheartbeforemeandhaveinspiredmewiththeirskill.

Contents

Introduction

ChapterOne

ALLYOUNEEDTOGETSTARTED

Allaboutthematerialsyouneedtobeginletteringrightaway.

ChapterTwo

BASICSTROKES

Thebasicstrokesinthe‘a’and‘n’arethekeystoyourfirstalphabet.

ChapterThree

EASY-TO-LEARNALPHABETS

Learnthemostusefulandpopularcalligraphicalphabets.

ChapterFour

PROJECTS

Fifteencalligraphyprojectsyoucandorightawaytolearntheartoffinewriting.

Pre-ruledpracticepages

Recommendedreading

Sources

Glossary

IntroductionWhatIsCalligraphy?Calligraphy, from the Greek: kalligraphia literally means “beautifulhandwriting.” So what is it that makes writing beautiful? Well, in a word:consistency.Consistencyofshape,stroke,weight,spacingandrhythm.Althoughconsistencyisaccomplishedthroughrepetition,calligraphyisanotamatterofmechanicalrepetition.

Thesubtlenuancesofahandwrittentext,asopposedtotheexactduplicationoftype,givesititsuniqueeye-pleasingqualitynocomputercanduplicate.

Calligraphyisasmuchamatterofseeingasofwriting.Itismorethansimplyacquiringamanualskill.Youhavetotrainyoureyetoseethesubtledetailsandproportionsoftheletterforms.

Thehandcannotexecutewhattheminddoesnotcomprehend,andthemindcannot comprehendwhat the eye does not see. In calligraphy, comprehensioncomesfrombeingawareofandpayingcloseattentiontodetails.

ItismyhopeinproducingthisbookthatIcanassistthestudentincultivatingthisability to seebymaking theprocesseasier,more funandultimatelymorerewarding.

Thisbookcoversthebasics.Itwillgiveyouagoodfoundationforalifetimeofdiscovery and creative satisfaction that the studyof calligraphyoffers.Youwillseethatjusttwoletterforms,theaandthen,formthebasisforalmostallofthe letters in the alphabet.Oncemastered, you canbuildupon them tomasterseveral italic styles, or “hands,” which are the most useful and popularcalligraphicstyles.

Eventhougheveryoneimitatesatfirst,forthisishowwelearn,thesehands'cannothelpbutslipintoourownpersonalstylejustaseveryartist,cornposeror

authorhasapersonalstyle.This ishowit shouldbe. In fact, that isultimatelyourgoal:Tobecomeproficientenoughthattheartbecomesapartofusandthatweendupcontributingtotheartintheprocess.

Whatever your intentions are in taking up calligraphy, may you find it asrewardingandjoyfulasIhaveovertheyears.

UsesforCalligraphyPeople seldom realize just howmany uses there are for calligraphy in today'sworldofballpointpensandkeyboards.Themostobvioususeforcalligraphyisforcorrespondence,butitsotherusesareasunlimitedasone'simagination.YoucanusecalligraphyforcreatingChristmas,birthdayandget-wellcards;forpartyinvitations and announcements; for fancy labels and tags, posters, flyers,placecards, and all manner of signs and documents. The most common andconsistent demands for today's skilled scribe are wedding invitations andcertificatedesignorfill-ins.

Designersusecalligraphyinadvertisingandcommercialdesigntoachieveaclassicorstylishlookortocreateacertainatmosphere.Despitetheplethoraofcomputer-generated type and letterforms, there isno substitute forhandcraftedletters.You'llfindtheminmagazineheadingsoronbillboards,posters,signage,bookjacketsandwinelabels,justtonameafew.

Some of today's scribes are reinterpreting the old-world craft of finehandwritingintomoderntermsandcreatingone-of-a-kindbookswhicharetrulyworksof art.Other artists are stretching theartisticboundsof calligraphy intoexcitingnewrealmsofexpressionismandabstraction.

HowLongWillItTaketoLearn?Thereisnorightanswertothisquestion.Resultswillvarygreatlyfromstudenttostudent,butwitha littlepersistenceandconsistenteffort,youshouldnoticeimprovements within a very short time. This book is designed to get youpracticinginthemosteffectivewaybyfirstconcentratingonthecoreshapesoftheaandn.

Howeveryouwillneed togiveyourselfplentyof time,perhapsamonthorevenmore,beforeyoureallystart tofeelcomfortablewiththemedium.Subtledetailstakeawhiletoappreciate.Professionalsspendalifetimedevelopingand

perfectingtheirskills,andyettheyfeeltherearealwaysnewthingstodiscoverandnewhorizonstoexplore.

HowMuchWillItCost?Calligraphy is not a costly pursuit. Compared to other art forms, you canaccomplishmuchwithsurprisingly little in thewayofbasicsupplies.Youcangetstartedwithaninvestmentofaslittleas$10.Aswithanything,though,goodtools and supplies can cost much more but are well worth the expense. Theseriousstudentshouldconsiderspending$20to$50tostart.

T

ChapterOne

ALLYOUNEEDTOGETSTARTED

hesuppliesnecessarytostartlearninghowtocreatebeautifulwritingaresimple.Comparedtomostartforms,calligraphydoesnotrequirealotofexpensive,hard-to-useequipment. In fact,allyoureallyneedareapen,

inkandpaper.Letsstartwiththepen.

DipPenNibsThepreferredtooloftheseriouscalligrapheristhedippen,atoolfilledwithinkbyeitherdippingor loadingthereservoirwithabrushordropper.Thewritingtip,whichisinsertedintoaholder,iscalledanib.Nibsareavailableinavarietyofsizesandshapes:Edged,spoon-billed,pointedandsoon.Thisbook'sfocusisontheedgedpen.

Nibscomeinavarietyofwidthsandunfortunatelythereisnouniformsystemoflabelingnibs.Everymanufacturerhasitsownsystemforidentifyingnibsize,sometimes assigning a systemof arbitrary numbers and/or letters.This can bevery confusing for the beginner, even skilled calligraphers find it frustrating.Probablythebestsystemtobeimplementedismetricidentification,e.g.,a2mmis 2 millimeters wide, etc. Sadly, this system is used by only a minority ofmanufacturers.

Manufacturers

IrecommendusingaSpeedball,BrauseorMitchellnib.Eachhasstrengthsandfaults,andofcourseeveryonehashisorherpersonalpreference.Tofindyourswillbeaprocessofexperimentation.

BuyingNibsWhenbuyingnibs, things towatchout forare:unevenorbent tines,separatedtines, spurson thewritingedge tip,or anyobviousdefect inquality.Stillyoucan expect to throw away about one out of every eight or nine nibs you buybecauseoffaultsthatcan'tbedetectedatpurchase.

NibPreparationAnibmustbepreparedbefore it canbeusedbecause it has awaxorvarnishcoatingtoprotectitupuntilthetimeyouintendtouseit.Thiscoatingwillrepelinkandmustberemoved.Thiscanbedoneinseveralways:

Bydroppingitinacupofhotwaterforawhile,thenwipingclean.

Bydippingthenibingumarabicthenwipingclean.

Bydippingitinwaterproofinkandwipingitoffthreeorfourtimes.

Bysuckingonthenibtipforafewminutes,thenwipingclean.

Somesourcestellyoutoholdamatchunderthetipof thenibandburnthecoatingoff.Avoiddoingthis,asitmaywarpthetinesandruinthenib.

CleaningofToolsToolscannotbekepttooclean,especiallypennibs.Younotonlywanttocleananibwhenyouaredonewithitbutalsooftenthroughoutitsuse.Inktendstodryafter awhile causing the capillaries to clog anddisrupting ink flow to the tip;dryingonthewritingedgecausesclunkyletterformsandhairlines.

When you are completely finished using a nib, you want to clean it asthoroughlyaspossible.Gentlyscrubthenibandreservoirwithatoothbrushandalittledishdetergentandwater.Drythoroughlywithatowel.

NibHolders

NibHoldersAnibholderisthebarrelorhandlethenibisinsertedinto.Afewgoodchoicesare:Koh-I-Noor,with thegreatestselection;Brause,ashort,all-wood,double-nibholderthatcanholdanibateachend;ortheHuntplasticholder,it'stheleastexpensiveandeasiesttocomeby.

ShoppingList

Hereisahandylistofwhatyou'llneed.Takethislistwithyouwhenyougotoanartorstationerystore.

withyouwhenyougotoanartorstationerystore.Essentials:•Oneofthefollowingpennibs:SpeedballC-3,Brause2mmorMitchell2

•Nibholder

•Washableink

•Papertowels

•Markerlayoutpad

UsefulAccessories:•No.2pencil

•Whiteplasticeraser

•Ruler

•30and45degreedraftingtriangles

Complete:•Drawingboard

•Tsquare

•Draftsman'sboardbrush

•Lighttable

FountainPensFountainpenshavetheconvenienceofportabilityandtheluxuryofcontinuouswriting.Buttheyaremoreexpensive,about$10to$70.Youareverylimitedastothenibselectionandthequalityandtypeofmediumyoucanfillthemwith.The chart on Fountain Pen Pro and Con Chart compares the most popularfountainpens.

MarkersCalligraphic markers are popular and have come a long way over the years.They're excellent for starting out or practice. Nevertheless, most still have

drawbacks thatmake themunsuitable forserious finishedwork.Markersoftenhavepoorwritingedgedefinition,fugitivecoloranduneventone.Astheywearwithuse,thequalityofthelinedeclinesnoticeably.

Funandeasytouse,markersareneverthelessveryconvenient,andyoucankeep one in your pocket and practice any time, even when writing notes ormessages.Youwillfindthebroaderthetip,thebettertheperformance.

Good markers include Design Calligraphy Art Pens by Eberhard Faber,Speedball ElegantWriterCalligraphyMarkers, SanfordCalligraphic Pens andZigCalligraphyMarkers.

Newpensappearonthemarketregularly.Theyarerelativelyinexpensive,sothereisnoreasonnottotryallofthemandfindyourownfavorites.

NibProandConChartViewthefollowingtableasanimage

PenNibs Pros Cons Notes

Speedball,C-series

Excellentinkdelivery.Performswellatlargersizes.Easilyobtainable.

Poorcharacterdefinitionatsmallsizes.Unevenqualitycontrol.Nibsarelong,makingitanecessitytoholdthepenfartherbackonthebarrel.Reservoirisnotremovablemakingcleaningdifficult.

Amoderatelyflexiblenib.

Brause Goodcharacterdefinitionatsmallsizes.Predictableperformance.Goodqualitycontrol.Removable,self-positioningreservoirforeasycleaning.

Lessthanadequateinkdeliveryatlargersizes.Somescribesthinkthisnibistoostifftofeel“alive.”

Averystiffnib;agoodchoiceforwriterswithafirmhand.Reservoirisontopofnib.

MitchellRoundHand

Sharpwritingedge,producinggreatcharacterdefinitionatallsizes.Livelyandresponsive.Goodqualitycontrol.Removablereservoir(slipon)foreasycleaning.

Canbetemperamental.Inkdeliverycanbeerratic.Musttinkerwithslip-onreservoirtoachievebestperformance.MustwatchoverloadingwithinkmorethanwithBrauseorSpeedball.

Aflexiblenib,requiringalighttouch.Reservoirsareusuallysoldseparatelyandsliponthebottomofthe

nib.

HiroTape Inexpensive,goodqualitynib. NotaseasilyobtainableasSpeedball,BrauseandMitchell.

Moderatelyflexible.ReservoirissimilartoBrausedesign.

Heintze&Blanckertz

SameasBrause. InkdeliveryisidenticaltoBrause.NotaseasilyobtainableasSpeedball,BrauseandMitchell.

IdenticalindesigntoBrausebutslightlymoreflexible.

OtherBroadNibToolsPosterPensOther broad-edged tools commonly used are an over-sized type of nib calledposterpens.Theseareusedformakinglettersinascalelargerthanthestandardlargenib,suchasforpostersorsmallsigns.Manyinstructorssuggestbeginnersuse poster penswhen first learning calligraphy because they better enable thestudenttoseetheletterformsandtounderstandhowabroadedgeworks.

Somerespectedmakersof this typeof toolare:CoitPens,AutomaticPens,andHiroorMitchellPosterNibs.

QuillandReedCalligrapherscanalsouseaquillor reedpen.Thequillpen is fashionedfromone of the primary feathers of a large bird and oncewas themost commonlyavailablewriting instrument.Thereedpen is fashionedfromashortsectionofhollow reed.Both thequill and the reedpen requirecarefulpreparationof thenib, which takes repeated practice to master and is beyond the scope of thisbook.Bothareancienttools,reveredbyscribesandrichintradition.

AdditionalToolsAn‘HB’orno.2leadpencilwillbeneededtoruleyourguidelinesandmargins.

Flat pencils such as one made by Hardmuth or General's are good forroughing-inletterformstobedonewithverylargenibsorposterpens.

WritingToolsProandConChartViewthefollowingtableasanimage

WritingTools

Pros Cons Notes

DipPens

Goodvarietyofnibtypesandsizes.Maybefilledwithanyliquidwritingmedium.

Takesabitmoreefforttolearn,controlandmaintainthanmarkerorfountainpen.

Worththeextraefforttolearnandusefortheflexibilityofwritingmediums,applicationsandqualityofresults.

FountainPens

Convenient,self-containedandportable.Canwritewithoutpausingtoreload,hence,goodformaintainingarhythm.

Useslimitedvarietyofwritingmediums.Seldomcolorfastorpermanent.Limitedvarietyofnibsizesandtypes.

Goodforpracticingorifyouwanttousecalligraphyinyourdailywritings.Goodforcursiveitalic.

Markers Inexpensive,convenientandeasytouse.

Inaccuratetopoorwritingedgedefinition.Dyebasesonotcolorfast.Verylimitedsizeandcolorrange.

Goodforpracticing.Simplicitymakesthemfuntousebutresultsoftenlacksappearanceofquality.

ReedPens

Canproduceinterestinggraphicresults,especiallyontexturedorwatercolorpapers.

Canproduceunevenresults.Requiresalotofcareandmaintenance.Holdsalimitedload.

Limiteduses.

QuillPens

Sensualfeelingandsmoothaction.Writingedgecanbecustomtailoredtospecialrequirements.

Difficulttofindandprepare.Requiresalotofspecialcareandmaintenance.

Writingwithaquillproducesaninterestingpsychologicalconnectionwithandsenseofhistory.

ErasersErasers are needed for removing pencil lines and marks. The best is a goodnonabrasivewhiteerasersuchasFaberCastell'sMagicRub.Ifyoucan'tfindawhiteeraser,thenuseanartgumorakneadederaser.

Alsohandytohaveinthestudio,butnotrecommendedforeverydayuse,isthePinkPearleraser; this isamildlyabrasiveeraserlikethekindfoundat theendofapencil.Itissometimesusedforsandingoffstubbornstainsorerrors,butitmayruinthesurfaceofthepaperorleaveareddishcoloredstain.

Ink erasers are very abrasive and should never be used, as they willpermanentlydestroythewritingsurface.

InkInk comes in two types:waterproof, which will not bleed after it dries, andwashable,which, being awater base, can bleed after it dries.Both have theiradvantagesanddisadvantages (see inkprosandconschart). Inkalsocomes inpigmented andnon-pigmented.Non-pigmented ink isadyebaseandgenerallynotcolorfast,thatis,thecolorswillfadewithtimeandexposure.Pigmentedinkontheotherhandtendstobemorestableandcolorfastbutshouldonlybeusedindippens.

Inkcomesinavarietyofcolorsandcategories,suchas:Indiainks,drawinginks and Sumi inks, a high-quality Japanese ink that comes in bottle or stickform(thestickformneedstobepreparedbygrindingonasuzuriorinkstone).Which ink is right for you is amatter of trial and error. Anymajor brand ofwashableinkissatisfactoryforstartingoutorpractice.

Inks are transparent and quite often the colors are dull; they should not bemixed.

Watercolors&GouacheInkisnottheonlymediumyoucanuseinadippen.Inmanywaysgouacheandwatercolor,intubeform,aresuperiortoinks.Wherewatercolorisatransparentmedium, gouache (pronounced gwash) is opaque. The advantage of usingwatercolororgouacheispermanence,vividcolorsthatmaybemixedtogethertocreateevenmorevariety,andthefactthattheycanbemadeasthickorthinasyouwant.Theygivethegreatestrangeandversatility.

FountainPenProandConChartViewthefollowingtableasanimage

FountainPens

Pros Cons Notes

Platignum Agoodqualitypenatanaffordableprice. Thinlinesandcrispedgesareadequate.

Standardfountainpenproportions.

Osmiroid SimilarinfeelandperformancetoPlatignumbutproducingslightlycrisperlines.

FeelsslightlyinferiortoPlatignuminquality.

Standardfountainpenproportions.

Rotring Goodqualitycontrol.Smoothwriting.Crispletters.Highestqualityinkavailableinacartridgepen;blackisrich,dense.

Inconsistentinkflow;tendstoskip.

Longstaff,lightweight.

Sheaffer Goodinkflow.Easytouse.Inexpensive. Doesn'tproducefinehairlinesorcrispletters.

Standardfountainpenproportions.

Pelikan Consideredbymanytobethebestfountainpenavailable.Smoothwriting;producesfinelines.

Expensive.Notalwayseasytofind.

Standardfountainpenproportions.

OtherMediumsOther mediums that may be used in a dip pen are: liquid acrylics, dyes andstains.Infact,anythingelseyoucangettoflowfromthenibcouldbeused.

Actually,manywritingfluidsbeingsoldas“inks”todayareinfactacrylics.Acrylics look and perform verymuch like ink but tend to dry out in the nibquicklycausingclogs.Theyarewaterbasedbutwaterproofwhendry,andtheircolorrangeisgreaterandmorevividthanink.

EraserProandConChartViewthefollowingtableasanimage

Erasers Pros Cons Notes

WhiteEraser

Nonabrasive,softandyielding.Leastabrasiveofalltheerasers.

Smearsbadlyiftoomuchgraphiteaccumulatesonitorifitgetstoodirty.

Yoursafestandbestchoiceforoverallcommonusage.

ArtGum Nonabrasive. Smearsbadlyiftoomuchgraphiteaccumulatesonitorif

Agoodsecondchoiceifyoucan'tfindawhiteeraser.Smellreminds

graphiteaccumulatesonitorifitgetstoodirty.

findawhiteeraser.Smellremindsyouofgradeschool.Funtocrumble.

Kneaded Nonabrasive,dustlessandmoldable,likePlay-Doh,toadapttoyourspecialneeds.

Tendstoleaveaslightfilmonwritingsurfacethatmustbedustedaway,oritmayaffectsharpnessofyourletter-forms.

Althoughsoldasdustless,beawarethatitstillleavesaslightresidue.Funtoplaywith.

PinkPearl

Mildlyabrasive.Sometimescomesinhandy.

Canmarwritingsurface,mustbeusedwithcaution.Mayleavefaintredstain.

Goodforremovingstubbornstains,dripsandsomeerrorsdependingonthequalityortypeofpaperyouareusing.Notforordinaryusage.

InkEraser

None. Destroyswritingsurface. Avoidusing.

OthertoolsStraightEdgesStraightedgesaretoolsusedtomakestraightlines,suchasaruler,Tsquareortriangles. You will need at least one of these items for ruling your writingsurface.Althoughyou don't need them all to start, theyworkwell together tomakeyourtaskmucheasierandmoreaccurate.

A T square is only of use if you have a drawing board, preferably with astraight,metaledge.

Triangles, which come in two types, 30 and 45 degrees, work best incombinationwitheachother.Theycanbeusedtoruleparallellinesquicklybyholdingonestationaryandslidingtheotheragainstit.

Arulerisself-explanatoryandalwayshandytohavearoundyourworkarea.

PaperTowelsSome sort of clean-up rag for mopping spills or cleaning nibs is a necessity.Manyinstructorsrecommendusingalint-freecloth,butIhavefoundthatpapertowelswork fineand toilet tissueevenbetterbecause it's themostpliableandabsorbent.

DrawingBoardAdrawingboardisnotanecessity,but itmakesworka lotmoreefficientandeasier.Althoughanyflatdeskortablewilldo,itisuniversallyrecognizedthataslopedwritingsurfacewillaidyouinproducingbetterletterforms.

Aslopedsurfaceismoreconducivetobetterworkbecauseitallowsabetterpenanglerelativetoyourwritingsurface,producingcrisperforms.Italsoplacesyoureyesmoredirectlyoveryourworkforabetterandmoreaccurateviewandpreventsyoufromhunchingoveryourworkinafatiguingposture.

Thereareanumberofrelativelyinexpensivedrawingboardsavailableinartand drafting supply stores, many adjustable to any angle. The degree ofinclinationcanbeadjustedtosuityourcomfortandusuallyvariesfromscribetoscribe.

Draftsman'sBoardBrushAdraftsman'sbrushisnotessentialbutisveryconvenient,notonlyforkeepingyour drawingboardor desk clean, but for brushing eraser dust off your paperwithoutdamagingyourwork.

LightTableAlight table isareal luxury,but itcanbea tremendousaid in learningand isalmost a necessity if you start doing calligraphy commercially—always anexciting possibility. A light table is simply a boxwith a translucent (glass orplastic) surfacewhich is illuminatedbybulbs in the casebelow.When turnedon, the lightenablesyou toseemarks, linesor letterforms throughoneor twosheetsofpaper,enablingyou to traceover themeasily.Light tablescomeinavarietyofsizes.Thesmalleronesare intendedforviewingphotographicslidesandtransparencies.Irecommendyouacquireonethatisatleast11"x18".Lighttablesareavailablefromcommercialartsupplystoresandmailordersources.

StorageofToolsSmall plastic containers, such as medicine bottles and the like, make forprotective and orderly storage of your various nibs. Also small hardwaredrawers,suchasfornailsandscrews,makeanexcellentniborganizer.Besurethatallnibsarecompletelydrybeforesealingtheminanair-tightcontainer,ortheywillrust.

PaperCalligraphersarealwaysinsearchoftheperfectpaper;it'saneverendingquest.Paper comes in three types: machine-made, mouldmade and handmade.Mostcommonandcommercial papers aremachinemade andare excellent formostcalligraphic purposes. They are easiest to come by and the least expensive,althoughyouwillfindthatgoodqualitypaperisnotcheap.

Mouldmadepaperismadeonamachinethatmimicsthehandmadeprocess.Thismakesforastrongerandoftennoticeablyhigherqualityoffinish,similartohandmadebutatlesscost.

Handmadepaperisactuallymadebyhand,henceitisthemostexpensive,butmanyscribesfinditworththeexpenseforthatspecialjob.Bothhandmadeandmouldmadepapersaremostreadilyavailablethroughmail-ordersources.

A good, cheap paper to use for practice is ruled loose-leaf paper. Anothergoodchoice isamarker layoutpad,especially ifyouaregoing touse thepre-ruledsheetsinthebackofthisbook.Markerlayoutpaperistranslucent,soitcanbe laid over the pre-ruling, and you can see the lines. Also, copier or laserprintingpaperworkswellforpracticing;justrunabunchofphotocopiesofthepre-ruledpagesinthebackofthisbookandworkdirectlyonthem.

PaperFinishesPaper comes in three basic finishes: smooth, sometimes called hot pressedbecauseit ispressedbetweenhotrollersinmanufacturing;medium,sometimescalled cold pressed; and rough. The smoother the finish, the sharper yourletterformswillbe.Avoidusingaplate finish, sometimesreferred toasahighfinish,astheinkoftenreactsunpredictablyonthisveryhardsurface.

CharacteristicsofPaperRagcontentreferstothecottoncontentinthepaper,e.g.25percentragmeansthepaperismadeofamixtureof25percentcottoncontent.

WaterproofInksProandConChartViewthefollowingtableasanimage

WaterproofInks

Pros Cons Notes

FW Verydenseblue-blackluster.Excellentcoverage.Quickdrying.Verywaterproof.

Driesoutquicklyindippens.Reluctancetoflowfromnibwhenstartingacharacter.Clogsnibslits.Obstinatetoclean.

Despitedrawbacks,Istillfeelthisisthebesttrulywaterproofinkavailable,especiallyforbrush,rulingpen,crowquillnibsandtechnicalpens.

Calli Pigmented.Brightcolors,fairlyopaque.

Alittlewatery.Dullcolor. Betterselectionofcolorsthanmostwaterproofinks.

HigginsEngrossing

Goodflowing. Tendstobleed. Unsatisfactory.

SpeedballDenseBlackIndia

Goodflowing. Thinandwatery. Adequate.Fordiportechnicalpens.

Dr.Martin'sTech

Veryblack.Verywaterproof.

Popularwithgraphicartists.

Sizingreferstomaterialsuchasstarch,gelatin,glue,rosin,etc.,addedtothepulp when the paper is made or applied to the surface after making. Thisregulatestheabsorbencyofthepaper.Ifthepaperdoesn'tcontainenoughsizingyour writing fluid will bleed into the page. Sizing is usually categorized asheavily sized,moderately sized, lightly sized orwaterleaf,meaning no sizing.Youwillwanttostickwithheavilytomoderatelysizedpaper.

Acidity,orpH,referstohowacidicapaperis.ThemoreneutralthepH,themorepermanentyourpage is.This isnotcriticalat thebeginner'sstage,but ifyouwanttocreatesomethingthatwilllastovertheyears,itmustbetakenintoconsideration.

Decklededgereferstotheuneven,featheryedgesoftenfoundonhandmadepapers.Thisedgeisoftenartificiallyimitatedonmouldmadepapers.

OtherVehiclesOther vehicles that can be used include: illustration and watercolor board,papyrus,parchment,andotheruniquepaperssuchasJapanesepapersorpapermadefromthebarkoftreesorbananahusks.

WashableInksProandConChartViewthefollowingtableasanimage

WashableInks

Pros Cons Notes

HigginsEternal

Agoodflowing,richblackink.Workswellwithalmostanykindofnib.

Apopularandpredictableperformerfordippenuse.

PelikanFountIndia

Agoodcarbonblackink. Notasblackasonemightlike.

Worksinadippenorfountainpen

Pelikan4001

Averygoodflowing,highqualitydyeink. Adyebase.Watery.Verytransparent.

Worksbestinafountainpen.

Rotring Highqualitypigmentedink.Arichblack.Availableinmorecolorsthanmostinksandthesecolorsaremixable.Worksbetteronshinysurfacepapersthanmostinks.

Colorsarekindofdull.

Notforuseinfountainpens.

SumiInks Verydenseblack.Excellentwritingcharacteristics.Highquality.

Willcorrodepens.Needtocleanpensmoreoften.

Arealpleasuretoworkwith.Notforuseinfountainpens.

MediumsProandConChartViewthefollowingtableasanimage

Mediums Pros Cons Notes

Ink Goodflow.Easycleanup. Watery;unevencolorand Washableinksareusually

(washable) Easilyfoundandeasytoworkwith.

coverage.Limitedcolorselection.Blackstendtobemoredarkgray.

notpigmentedandsoseldomcolorfast.Mixingcolorsisnotrecommended.

Ink(waterproof)

Verypermanent.Veryblack.Canbeworkedoverwithothermediumswithoutbleeding.Richerlookthanwashable.

Tendstodryinandgum-upnibs.Requiresfrequentnibcleaningandisabitmorestubborntoclean.Somebrandsareslightlycorrosive.Limitedcolorselection.

Agoodchoiceforilluminationwork.Colorsshouldnotbemixed.

SumiInk Therichestandhighestqualityoftheinks.Youcontroltheviscosityandopacityofthemixture.

Notalwayseasytoobtain.Canbeexpensive.Requiresalotofpreparationandagrindingstone.Verycorrosivetonibs.

Availableintraditionalstickformorconvenientbottledliquidform.Somesumiinkshaveaslightlysparklyoriridescentfinish.Asensualpleasuretoworkwith.

Gouache(opaquewatercolor)

Opaquecoverage,richappearance;mostmixableandcontrollableofallavailablemediums.Almostunlimitedcolorselectionmostofwhicharecolorfastandarchival.

Requiresmorefrequentnibcleaningthaninks.

Prosandconsforwatercolorsarethesameasgouache.Ajoytoworkwith.Thebestmediumforcolorwork.Tubeformispreferabletocakeform.

Acrylics Mixableandstablebrilliantcolors;waterbasebutdrieswaterproof.Goodcolorselection.

Requiresmorefrequentnibcleaningthaninks.

Transparent.Availableinliquidortubeform(liquidformisrecommended).Agoodchoiceforilluminationworkwhentransparencyisdesired.

T

ChapterTwo

BASICSTROKESheemphasisofthisbookisonitalicletterforms,bothformalandcursive.Theyarethemostpopularandusefulformsforthebeginner.

Formal italic is executedmore consciously and precisely, stroke by stroke,using numerous pen lifts. Cursive, while following the same form andproportion, ismore spontaneous and casual. It is executedmore like commonscript,withacontinuouswritingmotionandfewerpenlifts.

WritingPositionandSurfaceWorkingonaslopedsurface,suchasadrawingboard,isveryhelpful;youcanmaintainacomfortableposture,youreyesarepositionedmoredirectlyovertheworkforabetterviewandthepenwillbeinamuchmorefavorablepositiontoproducecrispletters.Ifyoudon'thaveadrawingboard,atableordeskwillalsowork.Somecalligraphersuseasmall,portableboardthattheyrestontheirlapandleanupagainstadeskortable.Movingyourchairclosertothetablegivesthewritingsurfaceasteeperangle;slidingbackawayfromthetablegivesyourwritingsurfacelessslope.

Concerningwritingposition, rememberwhatyouwere taught inelementaryschoolaboutposture:situpstraight,feetflatonthefloor,etc.,butrelaxandbecomfortable.Bendatthewaistratherthanarchyourback.Forearmsshouldrestlightlyonthetopofyourwritingsurface.

HoldingthePen

Thereisnospecialwaytoholdthepen.Holdthecalligraphypenasyouwouldapencil or any otherwriting implement: lightly between your thumb and indexfinger and resting against the first knuckle or yourmiddle finger.Holding thepentoofirmlynotonlyrestrictsfluidmovementbutcausesnumbfingertipsandwriter'scramps.

LoadingthePenForpractice,dippingthepenintheinkbottleisfine.Don'tdunkthewholethenibinink;diponlyaboutone-thirdofthenibtipintotheink.However,foryourfinework,youwillgetbetterresultsifyouloadthepenwithabrushordropper.Thenibwillstaymuchcleanerandwillmakesharperlines.

Toloadthenibwithabrush,lightlyrakeanink-ladenbrushagainstthesideofthenib'sreservoir.Toloadwithadropper,placelessthanhalfadropdirectlyintothereservoir.

ThePenEdgeWhen you come to understandwhat kind ofmarks the edged penmakes andwhy,theprocessofusingthistoolandcreatingletterformswithitallfallsintoplace.Theconceptisnotascomplexasthebeginnermightthink.

Thetipofthenibhasawidthbutvirtuallynothickness(fig.1).Tomovethenibalongitsthinedgeproducesathinline,thisiscalledahairlinestroke(fig.2).Whenyoumovethenibalongitsbroadedge,itproducesabroadline,amarkaswideasthenibis;thisiscalledashadedstroke(fig.3).

TriviaWheredoesthewordcalligraphycomefrom:FromtheGreek:kalligraphiameaning“beautifulhandwriting.”

TriviaWheredoestheword“ink”comefrom?FromtheGreek:enkauston,meaning“burntin.”

PenAnglePenangleistheangleofthestraightedgeofthewritingtipofthepen,relativetothe baseline or horizontal writing lines. This angle is measured in a counter-clockwisedirectionfromthebaseline.Eachhandhasitsownpenangle.Asyouwill soon see, maintaining this angle throughout your writing is the trick toworkingwithanedgedpen.Thisconsistencyisthekeyto99percentofallbroadnibcalligraphy.

Because of theway the pen tip is shaped, if youmaintain a consistent penangle,thepenwillautomaticallyplacethethickandthinshadesintheirproperplace.Alteringthisanglewillalterhowthickahorizontalstrokeisrelativetothevertical.

Themajorityofbroadnibhandsusuallyhaveapenangleintherangeof20to45degrees.Experimentwithmovingthepenplayfullyaboutonpaperwhilemaintainingaconsistentpenangleasyoumove.Afteryouhaveplayedwithonepenangle,tryanother.Noticehowtheweightsofyourmarkschange.Paycloseattentiontothethicksandthinsyourpenmakes.

0degrees:Penangleparallelwithbaseline.Thepen'sverticalstrokesareattheirthickestandthehorizontalstrokesareattheirthinnest.

30degrees:Thepen'sverticalstrokesarealmosttwiceasthickasitshorizontalstrokes.

45degrees:Thepen'sverticalstrokesareequalinweighttothehorizontalstrokes.

60degrees:Thepen'sverticalstrokesarealmosthalftheweightofthehorizontalstrokes.

90degrees:Rightangletobaseline:Pen'sverticalstrokesareat their thinnestwhileitshorizontalstrokesareattheirthickest.

UsingaDoublePencilA double pencil is a handy homemade tool constructed of two pencils heldtogetherwithrubberbands.Byinsertingaspacer,suchasapieceofcardboardorkneadederaser,thescaleofyourletterscanbemadelargerorsmaller.Thisisan excellent tool for producing large letters in outline. Practicewith a doublepencil is highly recommended for understanding the principle and function ofthebroadedge.

MakingMarksYourfirstmarksshouldbelooseandplayful,justgettingusedtothefeelofthisnewtool.Payattention to theshapes thewritingedgemakes,where the thicksandthinsare.Smallsquares,circles,plussignsandXsareagoodfirstpractice.

TriviaWheredoestheword“pen”comefrom?FromtheLatin:penna,meaning“feather.”

AvoidRollingthePenDon'ttwirlorrollthepen.Maintainaconsistentpenanglethroughout.Youcancheck or practice your 45 degree pen angle by making an X that fits into a

square.Thestrokefromtheupper left to thelowerrightshouldbethethickeststrokeyourpencanmake,andthestrokefromtheupperrighttothelowerleftshouldbethethinneststrokeyourpencanmake.

Establish themainverticalstemofeachcharacterfirst thenbuildfromthat.Constructeachcharacterbymovinginorderfromtoptobottomandlefttoright,followingthestrokeorderanddirectiongivenintheductus.

Thecapsmaybeexecutedabitmorelooselyandfreelythantheminuscules,but to quote FredDaBoll: “Deliberate rather than quick in practice” is soundcouncil.

Favoringtherightcomerofthenibproducesastrokewitharaggedleftedge.

Favoringtheleftcornerofthenibproducesastrokewitharaggedrightedge.

Notrollingthepentotherightorleftsideandapplyingevenpressurewillproduceacrisp,stroke.

AnatomyofaLetterformThereareafewbasictermscalligraphersusetodescribedifferentletterforms.

Anib-ladder isameansofmeasuring letterformsbasedon thewidthof thepennib.

Thebaselineisthelineuponwhichthebodyoftheletterrests.

Thex-heightistheheightoftheminusculexinthatparticularhandandisaconvenientunitofmeasure.

Thecapheightistheheightofthecapitalletters.

Anascenderisastrokethatrisesabovethex-height.Itsupperlimitismarkedbytheascenderline.

Adescenderisastrokethatfallsbelowthex-height.Itslowerlimitismarkedbythedescenderline.

Ascenders and descenders are angled to the baseline, usually around 10degreestotheright.

Thecharacterofdifferentletteringstylesislargelydeterminedbytherelativeproportionsofthesemeasurements.

nibladder:5Penwidths=X-height

TriviaWheredoestheword“pencil”comefrom?FromtheLatin:pencillus,meaning“littletail,”asmallbrushusedbyRomanandmedievalscribesfordetailwork.

TheAandtheNThe italic a and the n are the twomost important letterforms to study in thebeginning.Thestrokesusedtocreatethesetwolettersareusedtocreatetwenty-twoofthetwenty-sixlettersinthealphabet.Onceyouhavemasteredthestrokesintheitalicaandn,youcanbuilduponthemtomastertheothers.

Theitalicaismadeupoffourpartsdoneintwostrokes.Partonecreatesthebow.Part two creates the bottom turn.Part three creates the branch.Part fourmakesthestem.

Theitalicnisalsomadeupoffourpartsdoneinonestroke.Partonecreatesthe stem.Part two creates the branch.Part three creates the humped shoulder.Partfourmakestherightverticalelement.

Notethe“branching”strokealongwiththe“humpedshoulder,”theyarethekeystoformingtheitalicalphabet.

Turn thispageupsidedownandyouwillnotice that thebottomof thea isbasicallythesameshapeasthetopofthenonlyreversed;thenisbasicallythesameshapeasthebottomoftheareversed.

An“alphabetchain”isthealphabetwiththeletterninsertedbetweeneachoftheletters, e.g., anbncnd… and so on. This has been a recommended method ofpractice for most hands, especially italic, for more than five hundred years.Beginwithasimplepracticechainofaandn;afteryoufeelcomfortablewiththisexercise,starttoincludetherestofthelettersofthealphabet.

Onthefollowingpages,wewilltakeacloserlookatthebasicstrokesfoundintheaandthen.Youwillseehowonlyafewbasicstrokes,asintheaandthen,form the basis for many of the other letters in the italic alphabet. Once youunderstandhowthesestrokescomposethevariousletterforms,youwillseewhymasteringtheaandthenisthekeytolearningtheitalichand,andhowlearningthe italic hand can be the best foundation for your further explorations of thecalligraphicart.

Herewecanseehowtheaisthebasisforfourletters.Theaformsthebodyofthed,thedsimplybeinganawithanascender.Likewise,thegandtheqareaswithdescendersthatdifferonlyintheirterminalstrokes.

Herewecanseehowthenisthebasisforthehandthem.Thehisannwiththesameascenderasweseeinthed.Themissimplythenwiththeshoulderstrokerepeated.

In this fascinatingexampleweseehow then is thebasis forno less than fivedifferentletters.Inthepreviousexample,wesawhowitgeneratedthemandtheh.Nowweadd thek,p andr.Thek is annwithanascenderandamodifiedshoulderstroke.Thepisannwithadescenderandaloopedbowl.Therisannwithashortenedbranchandshoulder.

Theawithanopenbowl,orthenupsidedown,isthecoreofthelettersu,y,vandw. Theu andv differ onlywith the downward stroke on the right.Theubecomesaywiththedescenderadded.Linkavwiththeutoformaw.

Thestemoftheiisalsosimilartothej,thelandthet.

Thec,eando,startwiththeinitialstrokeofthebowlofa.Infact,thatstrokeisthecletterform.Theeisthatinitialstrokethatloopstightlybacktoclose.Theoiscomposedoftwostrokes,thesecondamirrorimageoftheinitialstrokeofthea.

TriviaIfcalligraphymeansbeautifulhandwriting,whatisthewordforbadhandwriting?CacographyfromtheGreek:kakosgraphiameaning“badhandwriting.”

ConsistencyofFormThese examples deserve careful scrutiny. Beautiful calligraphy is based onconsistencyofform.MuchoftherhythmevidentintheItalichandisbasedonthe repetition of the same component strokes. If you can master these basicstrokes in the a and the n, rendering them identically, you can then generatealmostalltheremainingletterformswitheye-pleasingregularity.

Thenextchapterlooksattheitalicalphabetingreaterdetail,butbuildsonthebasic strokes found in thea andn.As you learn a new alphabet, look for theletterforms' common rudimentary strokes. They form the basis for the uniquestyleandcharacterofthatalphabet.

HowtoUseRuledPagesThe ruled pages at the back of the book may be used to practice the basicletterformsandalphabetsinseveralways.

You can place translucentmarker layout paper over the ruled pages so therulings can be seen through the paper; the calligraphy is done on themarkerpaperwithoutmarringtheunderlyingruledpage.

Youcanalsomakephotocopiesof theruledpagesandworkdirectlyonthecopies.

If you have a light table,most papers can be taped over a ruled page andplacedonthelighttablewherebytheruledlinesmaybeseenthroughthepaperandusedasaguide.

N

ChapterThree

EASY-TO-LEARNALPHABETS

ow that you havemastered thea and the n and have studied how thestrokesinthesetwolettersformthebasisformostoftheletterformsintheitalichand,wecanlookatseveralcompletealphabets.

Eachalphabetisillustratedtwiceinitsentirety.Thefirstsampleshowsalltheletters as theywill appear in finishedwork.On the facing page, each letter isbroken down into the individual strokes of which it is made. The numberedarrowsindicatethedirectionofthestrokeandtheorderinwhichtheyaredrawn.Thisstrokebystrokepatterniscalledtheductus.

Let'sbeginwithamorethoroughlookatitalicminuscules.Buildingonwhatwe have learned about thea and then,we can examine each letter in turn tolearnwhatstrokesareusedtocreateitandinwhatorderthosestrokesshouldbemade.

Onceyouarefamiliarwiththeitalicminusculesandtheimportantdetailsfortheircreation,youcangoontolearntheotheralphabetsinthischapter.Withalittlepractice,youwillbeabletosimplystudytheductusforeachletterinthenew alphabet and, using themodel alphabet pages in front of you as a guide,incorporatethenewletterformsinyoureverexpandingrepertoire.

Ontheoppositepageisanexampleofformalitalicbyamastercalligrapher.Every scribe develops a unique and individualway of forming certain letters,

breathingintothemtheirownpersonality.Theimportantthingisnottostrivefora slavish andmechanical imitationof someuniversally accepted and idealizedmodel, but to work toward the mastery of execution that has an internalconsistency,aneye-pleasingrhythm,andatruthtothespiritoftheoriginal.

TriviaDidyouknowthatifyouareright-handedyouaredextral,andifyouareleft-handedyouaresinistral?Theprejudiceagainstleft-handednessiseveninherentinourlanguage.Peoplewhoaregoodwiththeirhandsarecalled“dexterous,”meaningtherightside;

whiletheword“sinistral”(leftside)wasthe“darkside”likeinStarWars,givinguswordslikesinister.

TriviaDidyouknowthatZwasoriginallythesixthletterofthealphabet?ItwasdroppedbytheRomansthinkingtheydidn'tneedit.Whenitwasreadopted,itlostitsplaceinlineandsomovedtotheendoftheline.

TriviaDidyouknowthatwhenyousee“Yeold…”the“Y”isreallya“Th”?Theletterwascalled“Thorn”andstoodforthecompoundletter“Th,”similartotheRuniccharacter“thorn,”Hebrew“teth,”Greek“theta,”andArabic“zal.”

So“Ye”wasjustashorthandversionof“The.”

TriviaDidyouknowthatforaperiodoftimetheGreeksandRomanswroteinalternatingdirections?ThiswascalledboustrophedonfromtheGreekmeaning:“ox-turning,”i.e.,inthesamepatternasanoxwasusedtoplowafield.

DoubleLettersSomelettersfrequentlyappeardoubled,suchas:tt,ll,ffandpp.Theselettersareoftenligatured,thatis,joinedtogether;butyouhavetobecarefulnottoconfusetheir legibilityDouble letters also offer an excellent opportunity to be playfuland lend interest to the page. Here are a few basic rules and examples forhandlingdoubleletters.

Ifyoutiettorfftogetheratthecrossbar,don'tjointhemattheirbase.Withascenders,staggeringthemworksbest,makingthefirstcharacterabitshorterthanusualandthesecondalittletaller.Pairsoftenbecomemorelegible,evenwhenexecutedatthesameheight,ifyouusetwodistinctlydifferentstylesofentranceandexitstrokesontheascendersanddescenders.Ifyouhavethespace,theascenderordescenderofthefirstcharactermaybeloopedintothefollowingcharacter.

“Loopedg”inDetailOne of the more complex but beautiful letterforms is the “looped g,” alsoreferredtoasa“linkedg.”Itisacharacterthatlendsitselfwelltoswashing.

Thebodyofthegislikeaminusculeoonlydoneatapproximately ofthex-height.Note,itdoesnotsitonthebaseline.Thelinkandarmaredonemuchlike the spine of the majuscule S. The bottom is fuller than the top with theoverall form fitting intoa sloping, conical shape.Thebody'soval shapebeingverticalwhilethelowerloop'sovalshapeissomewhatmorehorizontal.

Herearethe“loopedg”partsandproportions.

TheSinDetailThe s can be a difficult character tomake at first because it is the only letterwhereitsmainstrokeisacompoundcurve,cuttingbackintheoppositedirectionfromwhichitstarts.Thisiscalledanogeecurve,itformsthespineofthes.

Notehowtheformofthesfitscomfortablyintoano,butthetopandbottompartsflattenoutabitmoretokeepthecountersopen.Thebottomofthesshouldbeslightlyfullerthanthetop.

Agoodpracticeforestablishingthepropershapeandbalanceforthespineofthesistodoarowofos,thengobackandexecutethespineofthesineachoftheos,asshowninthecenterillustration.Thisworksforthecapitalsaswellasminuscules.

TriviaWhyisaspecialdaycalledaredletterday?Becausemedievalmonkscribesusedtorubicate(executeinred)thedaysofthe

saintsontheircalendarssotheywouldstandoutasaspecialtime.

TriviaWheredoestheword“paper”comefrom?FromtheGreek:papyrus,awritingsurfacemadeofpressedreedonceincommonusebyEgyptianandGreekscribes.

TheTinDetailThedrawingofthetindetailillustratesitspartsandthesubtleshapeandformofthecharacter.Sincethetisarelativelysimplelettertoconstructandtherearesomany slight variations that have evolvedover the years, it is important to paycloseattentiontoitssubtleties,whicheverformyouuse.

The shaded area at the top of the t is called the triangle and is the mostcomplexpart of the character.The cross bar always extendsmore to the rightthantheleftandisplacedasifgluedtothebottomofthewaistlineinallofitsforms.Makesurethestemisstraightandnotbowed.Theexitturnatthebaseisdonesimilarlytotheexitshapeoftheeandc.

TriviaWhatlettersoccurmostfrequentlyinourwriting?OverwhelminglyE,followedinorderby:AOIDHNRSTUYCFGLMWBKPQXandZ.

AlternateLetterformsThe characters shown below may be used in place of those previouslydemonstrated.Ifyoushouldchoosetouseanyofthealternativeletters,pickonevariantanduseitconsistently.Donotmixavarietyofthesamecharacter.

Thisdworksbestasafinal,i.e.,thelastletterofawordorsentence.

Thistypeofqmaybeusedatanytimeaslongasthetaildoesn'tconflictwithotherdescenders.

Thiskhasanarmratherthanabowlsoitscounterisopen.

Thefirstgismadeaspreviouslyshownbutthedescenderismadeinonestrokeconnectingbackwiththebody.

The second and third versions are linked gs with subtle ear, link and armdifferences.

Thevandwshownherearepointedversionsmorecommonlyfoundhistorically.Theymaybedoneintwostrokesbutaremoreoftenexecutedinone.Notethesubtletyintheirshaping.

The firsty isdonemuch like thatpreviously shown,only the first and secondstrokesarenotparallel.Thesecondversionisagracefulold-style,two-strokey.

Thefirsttisverysimilartotheoneusedthroughoutthisbook,exceptthatwhenstarted,thependoesn'tswinguptotheapex,but“knifes”straightalongthenib'sedgebeforepullingdownintothestem.

Thesecondtisasimple,old-stylecruciformversion.

Thefirsteismadeasshownearlier,andtheswashpushesupoutoftheletterorcanbepulleddownbycreatingthecharacterinthreestrokes.

Thisseconde,doneinthreestrokes,hasahighcrossbar that isdonefairlyflat.Becarefulnottoletthecountercloseinonthisversion.

The first r shown here is the same as throughout this book and given forcomparison.

Thesecondhasaflagthatrunsflatunderthewaistline.

Thethirdrhasaflagwithaslightwaveinitsshape.

Avoidmakinganrwitha“wilted”flag.

SimpleRomanCapsMajuscule letters (capital letters or caps) arewhere the greatest liberties havebeen permitted historically, and so several historic forms are included in thisbook.ManycalligraphersprefertousesimpleRomancapsinsteadofthepurelyitalic.Whichformyouuseisamatterofpersonalchoice.

SimpleItalicCapsThedegreeofdifficultyinexecutingthemajusculesincreasesabitmoreasyoumove from simple Roman caps to italic and on to Swash Italic. Pay closeattentiontomaintainingaconsistentslanttotheletters.

SwashCapsSwashcapitalsformthemostdecorativealphabetinthisbookandrequirecareandattentiontodetailtomaster.Usedwithmoderation,theyaddflairandcolortoyourwork.Theyshouldneverbeusedtowriteanentireword.

SwashLettersSwashcharactersareletterformswhereoneormorestrokesareextendedbeyondthe essential basic form for decorative purposes. Although more common incapitals,swashcharactersmaybecapitalorlowercaseletters.Theyareusedtodress-upapage,lendvisualinterest,impactoranairofelegance.

However,incalligraphy,swashlettersareusefulinotherpracticalways,too:Helpingabriefquotefillaspacesoitdoesn't“swim”onthepage;extendingashortline;or“justifying”copy,thatis,makingthelinesinthetextlineupevenlyattheleftandrightmargins.

Many beginners tend to overdo it when it comes to swashes. This isunderstandable when you consider that these fancy and playful forms areprobably what attract many to calligraphy to begin with. So it is with somereluctancethatI includethis informationinabeginner'sbookbecauseswashesshould be used sparingly, and one must have a competent hand beforeattemptingswashforms.Icannotstressthisstronglyenough.

Whencreatingswashes,aswitheverythingelseincalligraphyeducatingtheeyetodetailsandappropriatenessisthekeytocreatinggoodforms.Studyingtheworksoftheoriginal“writingmasters”ofthefourteenthcenturyandtheworksofdiverserespectedmoderncalligraphersisnotmerelyinvaluablebutessential.

Swashingminuscules usuallyworks bestwhen pulled into a spaciousmargin,suchasanascenderofafirstlineintothetopmargin(fig.1);adescenderofalastlineintothebottommargin(fig.2);orusedtoextendashortlinebydrawingoutanelementofafinalcharacter(fig.3).

Arrighi'sCapsI've taken the libertyof separating someof thevariousversionsofmajusculesfrom Arrighi's writing manual of 1522 into three basic categories. The firstversion is themost simple, a slab serif roman.The secondversion, abitmorecomplex, is a simple swashed italic. The third version is the most elaborate,being an exuberantly executed swash form common during the fourteenthcentury.

At the time, there was no difference between the characters I and J orbetween the characters U and V, and the characterW was rare. In the firstversion,I'veaddedmyownJandW.Inthetwomoreelaborateversions,IandJareinterchangeable,asisVforU.

SerifsSerifs are the finishingmarks foundon the ends of the strokes of a character.Differenttypesofserifsusedonthesameletterformcanproducealphabetswithverydifferent looksandpersonalities.Letterformsnothavingserifsareknownas sans serif. Be consistent, don't mix andmatch, use the same style of serifthroughout. Here are a few common types:

AmpersandsAnampersand,alsoknownasan“andsign,”isaligaturedandusuallystylizedform of et, Latin for “and.” Ampersands can lend an interesting flourish to apageorbeusedtoconservewritingspacesinceitcanbedoneinhalfthespaceofthewordand.Ampersandssitonthebaselineandareexecutedatcapheight,notascenderheight.

Herearefourversionsandtheirductus:

NumeralsNumerals come in two forms: “modern,” also known as “line numerals,” or“non-ranging.”

Manypeoplemaketheerrorofusingonlyonestyleallthetime,buteachhasits appropriate use. If your page is to contain a lot of numbers or lists ofnumbers,suchasaphonelist,thenmodernstyleisyourbestchoice;theyappearmoreconsistentandorderlyandareeasiertoread.Ifyourpageistocontainonlyafewnumbersthenoldstyleisyourbestchoice.Thereasonforthisisthattheirstaggeredformatwillallowthemtoblendinbetterwiththeascender/descenderpattern of the body writing, and your numbers will not stand out like a sorethumb.

CursiveItalicCursiveitalic,alsocalled“informalitalic”or“runninghanditalic”isdoneinafashionsimilar tocommonhandwriting,withas fewpen liftsasnecessarybutstill following the italic form; whereas “formal italic” is more controlled,deliberateandutilizesextensivepenlifts.

Evolving from thehistoric“Chancerycursive,” this sans serifversion lendsitselftoquickerexecution,buttendstolacktheeleganceandreadabilityoftheformalitalic.Manypeopleuseitfortheircommonhandwriting,anditmakesforgreatrhythmicpractice.Usesimpleitaliccapswiththishand.

On the following pages are excerpts from books by three of the greatestmastersoftheitalicstyle.Thesethreetreatisescomprisewhatmostcalligraphichistoriansconsidertobethemostimportanthistoricsourcesoftheitalicform.

ThecopybookofArrighi,awritingmaster inVeniceand laterascribe fortheRomanCuria,was the first illustratedbookof the italic letterformwhen itwaspublishedin1522.Itwasfollowedin1524byacopybookbyTagliente,theoutstandingwritingmasterofhiscentury.Palatino,consideredtobethegreatestofthethree,publishedhisbookin1540.

Thestudyoftheseworksisbothfascinatingandinstructiveforbeginnersandmasters alike. The examples presented here amply embody a sense of historyanddemonstratetheevolutionthathasledtotoday'sforms.Theyshowhowtheguiding principles have remained consistent over the last five hundred years.Theyarealsoexcellentexamplesofpagelayoutandclassicalform.

These works also demonstrate how different styles can be due to theidiosyncrasies of each scribe,while still obviously falling into the category ofitalic form.Thisshouldbereassuring toallcalligraphers,especiallybeginners,sinceweallhaveourownpersonalstyle.Masteringtheformisthegoal,ratherthanachievingagenericitalichand.Apageofmajuscules,minusculesandtextformofeachofthethreewritingmastersisshownhere.

These excerpts were taken from the highly recommended reprint of thesetreatises,ThreeClassicsof ItalianCalligraphy:AnUnabridgedReissueof theWritingBooksofArrighi,TaglienteandPalatino compiledbyOscarOggandpublishedbyDoverPublications,Inc.

ThePartsofaPageIllustrated below are the parts of a page presented in the form of a two pagespread.Mostoftheterminologyisthesameasforasingle-pagedesign.

margin:Theoutsidespacearoundabodyofcopy,occurringinfourtypes.headortopmargin:Thespaceatthetopofapage,aboveabodyofcopy.foot orbottommargin: The space at the bottomof a page, below a body ofcopy.

innermargin:Thespacebetweenthegutterandabodyofcopy,inaspreadorbook.

outermargin: The space between the body of copy and the outer edge, in aspreadorbook.Onasinglepagelayout,theinnerandoutermarginsarejustcalledtheleftandrightsidemargins.

scriptspace:Thespacedesignatedtobewrittenin.livespace:Thescriptspacenotyetwrittenin.deadspace:Thescriptspacethathasalreadybeenwrittenin.

gutter:Theareaofabookor spreadwhere the innermarginsof facingpagesjoin.

recto: The right hand page in a book or spread, which is always an oddnumberedpage.

verso: The left hand page in a book or spread, which always bares an evennumberedpage.

MarginsMarginsare theemptyspacesurrounding thescriptspaceorbodyof text.Thematter of establishing margins is more a matter of personal taste than of setrules.Thekeytocreatinggoodmarginsistohavealogicalrelationshipbetweenalltheinherentproportions,butthefinalarbiterisyoureye.

Marginstoosmallwillappearcrowded,crampedandforced.

Margins too largewillgive theappearanceofcopy“swimming”or loston thepage.

Marginsjustright.Apagewithcomfortablebalancebetweentextandspace.

BasedontheJohnstonianratio,2:2 ⁄ :4.

Afewstandardproportionformulashavecomeintocommonusageovertheyears,andtheprincipleforeachisbasicallythesame.Measurethelongeredgeofthepaperanddividethisbyasimplefractiontogiveyouaconstantbasicunitofmeasure.Mostcommonly,thelongeredgeofthepageisdividedbyfifteenorsixteen for a larger margin, and nineteen or twenty for a smaller margin, toproduceaunitofmeasure.Nowusethemeasureoftwooftheseunitsatthetopof thepage,2 ⁄ on the left and right sides,and fourat thebottom toestablish

1 2

1 2

yourmargins. This is called the Johnstonian ratio, after Edward Johnston, thecalligrapherandteachercreditedwiththerevivalofcalligraphyinthetwentiethcentury.

Here is a rather extensive list of someof themoreoftenusedmargin “unitratios.”Thefirstthreeinthelistseemtobethemostcommon.

LayoutLayoutisthedesignandorganizationofapage.Itisalwaysagoodideatodoafew test sketches, called “thumbnail” sketches. These are just small, roughdoodlestoestablishbasicpageconcept.Onceyouhaveadefinitedirection,doascalemock-uppage,calleda“dummy,”toworkoutanydesignproblemsbeforeyoutrytodofinishedart.Thistakestheguessworkoutofexecutingafinishedpagebyprovidingyouwithablueprinttofollow.

FormalFormallayoutsarebasedonacenterlinewithcenteredtextandarrangement.

Ontheleftisanexampleofcenteredcopy,ragleftandright.

Theexampleontherightiscenteredandflushleftandright.

InformalInformallayoutsarebasedonanasymmetricalreferenceline.

Theexampleontheleftusesaverticalreferencelinetotheleftofthecenterofthepagefromwhichitkeysitslines.

Theexampleontherightusesalineofreferenceoff-settotheright.

Apageofcopythatfavorsonesideofthepagemorethantheother,suchasflushleft,ragright,isalsoaninformallayout.

Herearetwooppositeextremes:

A static layout implies business and formality.But a page that is too staticwillhavenolife,movementorpersonality.

Adynamiclayoutimpliesaparty,actionandexcitement.Butifapageistoodynamic,itmaybealive,butitwillappeartoobusyandrandom,confusingtheeye.Striveforbalanceandhappymediuminyourwork.

AlignmentAlignmentishowthelinesareplacedonthepage.Whattypeofalignmentyouchoosewillcontributetowhetherthepagehasaformalorinformalappearance.

There are five basic types of alignment. Centered and justified are formalchoices. Flush left, ragged right can be used to give a formal or informalpresentation and is a safe choice, as is centered,when you are not quite surewhich touse.Flush right, ragged left andasymmetrical layouts are consideredinformalalignments.

1.Centerediswhereeachlinekeysoffacenterline.Apleasingarrangementandoneofthemostusefulandcommoncalligraphicchoices.

2.Justified,alsoknownasflushleftandright,iswherethelinesarealignedonboththeleftandright.

3.Flushleft,raggedrightiswheretheleftsideisalignedwhiletherightsideisunjustified.Thisishowpeoplecommonlywriteandhowtypeoftenappearsinbooks.

4. Flush right, ragged left is the opposite of number 3. Not a commonarrangementdue to the fact that itmakes fordifficult readingand isbestusedonlyforshortpiecesandspecialtyapplications.

5.Asymmetrical looks theeasiestandmostspontaneous,when in fact it is themostdifficultarrangement, involvingmanysketchesandexperimentstoobtainpleasingresults.

MultipleColumnsYoucanusemultiplecolumnsinyourlayouttoproduceamoreinterestingpagedesign or to organize information into sections for greater clarity or impact.Sometimes it is the onlyway to handle a large volume of copy thatmust becontainedonasinglepage.Amultiplecolumnarrangementcanalsomake foreasierreadabilitysincetheeyedoesn'thavetotravelasfartotakeinaline.

Illustratedbelowareafewideasfortwo-andthree-columndesignsandsomeoftheirvariants.

A.This is a simple two-column format. If a title is to beused it shouldbecentered.

B.Thisisavariantofatwo-columndesignwithaninsetbox.Thetextofthetwocolumns“wraps”aroundthecenteredbox.Thisworksespeciallywellifthetextinthecenteroftheboxisdoneinadifferentweight,sizeorstylethanthetextintheoutercolumns.

C.This isa three-columnformat.Titlesusuallyworkbestwhencenteredinthisformat.

D.Thisisatwo-columndesigndoneoverthree-columngrid.Usingthissameconcept,thelargeandsmallscriptspacesmaybeorderedinreverse.Thistypeoflayoutwillusuallyopticallybalancebetterifthetextinthelargerspaceisdonesmallerthanthetextinthesmallerspace.

E.&EThesearecomplexcombinationsofseveralformatdesignchoices.

E. A single body of copy followed by a doublecolumn works fine, but adoublecolumnfollowedbyasingleisconfusingbecausetheeyedoesn'tknowwhichboxofcopytogotonext.

EThisisbasedonathree-columngrid,butthecentercolumnisraggedleftand right andcentered, the left column is flush left, ragged right and the rightcolumnjustthereverse.Centercolumntextshouldbelargerorbolderthanoutercolumns.

LineLengthandCenteringLine lengthwill varybasedon the aesthetic results one is striving for and thespace with which one has to work. Figure out which line of text will be thelongestandwriteitoutonatestsheetwiththepenyouintendtouse.Measurethislineandyouwillknowtheminimumwidthofwritingspaceyouwillneed.You can vary line length by trying different nib sizes, altering letter size. Ifnecessary, you can slightly change the spacing between letters and words toadjustlinelength.Ifalineneedstobeextended,youmaywanttouseextendedletterswashesorflourishesattheendoftheline.

As for centering, there are several ways by which you can center lines ofcopy.Hereareafewmethodscommonlyused.

Viewthefollowingtableasanimage

Method Pros Cons

1.Pencilinaverticalcenterline;lightlypencileachofthelinesintoplace,theninkover.Whendry,carefullyeraseoutthepencil.

Quickandsimplewhenusedonshortpieces.

Involvesatrialanderrorprocessthatmayinvolveseveralattempts,sonotagoodchoiceforlongerpieces.

2.Doascalemock-upusingthesamenibyouintendtouseonthefinish.ThenwithscissorsoranX-Actoknife,cutouteachlineasclosetotheletteringaspossible.Foldeachstripsothatthefirstandlastletterscovereachother.Wherethefoldoccursistheline'scenter.Onthepaperthatfinishedworkistobedone,lightlyruleinaverticalcenterline.Linethefoldmarkupwiththepage'scenterlineandtapejustabovethewritingline.Dofinishedwritingjustbelowcutoutstripguides,followingascloselyaspossiblethewordandletterspacingonthestripabove.

Atried-and-trueeasymethodthatgivesyoutheopportunitytoshiftthelinesaroundandviewforbestpositioningfirst;forthisreason,itisthebestchoiceforasymmetricallayoutsalso.Thismethodallowsforrhythmandspontaneityonthefinishedpiece.

Atediousandmessyprocedure,butthereisnogettingaroundit.Also,itiseasytostrayfromtheexactpositioningofyourexamplestrip,soproceed

finishedpiece. proceedcautiously.

3.Usealightbox,orifyoudon'thaveaccesstoone,useaglasstabletopwithalightunderit.Writeoutthelines,measuretofindthecenterofeachandmarkthecenters.Ruleaverticalcenterlineonthepagewherefinishedworkistobedoneandplaceoverthefirstversion.Placeonthelighttableandlineupthecenterlinestoinkalineatatime.

Simple,accurateandconvenient.

Youhavetohavealightbox.Canbeveryfatiguingontheeyes.Becarefulthatyouroverlaysdon'tshiftonyouwhileworking;linescanendupaskew.

4.Ifthisisnotaone-offoriginalpiece,theeasiestmethodistodoa“pasteup”tomakephotocopiesoraprintingplate.Doyourfinishedworkononepagethencutoutlinesasinmethod2.Measureandmarkthecentersofeachline.Aligneachstripwiththeverticalcenterlineonasecondpage,pastingeachintoplace.Younowhaveacamera-readypageforphotocopying.

Averyaccurateprocess,itallowsforalotoftweaking,correctionsandmodifications.

Amessyprocedureandyouwon'twanttoshowanyoneyouroriginalpaste-up.

T

ChapterFour

PROJECTShefollowingprojectsservetwopurposes:Thefirstistoprovideexercisesto copy for practice; the second is to provide models of practicalapplicationsofcalligraphy.

Practice is essential. Calligraphic skills can only be acquired or improvedthrough diligent practice. However, this practice can be fun and practical. Itdoesn'thavetobeboringortedious.

Irecommendyoucompletetheexercisesinthepreviouschapterbeforeusingthese projects. I suggest youdo them in the order presented, because they arearrangedfromsimpletomorecomplex.However, ifyouare tooeager towait,you can start with any of the projects and try your hand at it. If you aren'timmediately satisfied with your results, you can turn to the alphabet in thepreviouschapterandpracticethoseletter-formswithwhichyouneedhelp.

These projects are also examples of practical uses of calligraphy. Besidesgivingyouideasofwhereandhowtoapplyyourdevelopingcalligraphicskills,thesemodelscanbereadilycopiedasis.

Thereisnoneedtocopythesemodelsslavishly.Feelfreetomakeyourownelegantvariationsof theprototypeshere. In time, asyour skill andconfidencegrows,youwillbeabletodispensewiththemaltogether.

ProjectOne

DAYSOFTHEWEEKThis is the first of fifteen projects designed to familiarize you with commonapplicationsofitaliccalligraphy.Theleftpageillustrateswhatyouachieve.Theductuspageontherightshowshowyoucanachieveitbyusinghorizontallinestoindicatetheheightandalignmentofletters,linestoguideyourwritingslope,andarrowstoindicatepenmovement.

Thisproject,shownherereducedinsize,waswrittenwiththeC-3nib.

ProjectTwo

MONTHSOFTHEYEARAsyoustrive todevelopyour letteringskill,youwill findyourselfwriting thesame letterform over and over again.Your practicewill bemore beneficial ifyou keep a good model within your eyes' view, compare your letter to theexampleandaskyourselfhowitcanbeimprovedbeforeyouwriteitagain.Feelfreetosmileatyoursuccesses.

ThemonthsoftheyearwerewrittenwithaC-3nibbutareshownhereinareducedsize.

"Practicedoesnotmakeperfect.Perfectpracticemakesperfect."

—VinceLombardi.

ProjectThree

GREETINGSHerearesixpopulargreetingsinsetsofthree.Thefirstsetiswritteninsimpleitalic.Afteryoufeelcomfortablewiththebasicletterforms,moveontosettwowith alternate letters and swash capitals, and then you may just want toexperiencetherobustembellishmentsofsetthree.Havefunwiththeflourishesbutrememberthatthereis“eleganceinsimplicity.”

ProjectFour

SIMPLEQUOTEThetruecalligrapherdoesnotjustwritewords;theirverypenmanshipillustratesthemeaning of the words they write. This is accomplished through style andtechniqueor,asthisprojectshows,howthewordsareseparatedintolines.Thedecorative flower is one modeled from the work of Edward Johnston in hisclassic Writing and Illuminating and Lettering. It, too, adds life to “TheGarden.”

ThissimplequotewaswrittenwiththeC-3nib.

ProjectFive

RHYTHMANDSPACINGContinuing the organic theme, thesewordsmaybe ones youwould choose toletteronspicelabelsorsmallgardenplacards.Irecommendthatyouphotocopythesepages(enlargeto133percent).Thelettersaregreysothatyoucanactuallytrace over themwith your pen. As you do so, you should feel the rhythm ofmovementandseetheequalspacingbetweenandwithinletters.

Theselabels,shownhereatareducedsize,werewrittenwithaC-3nib.

ProjectSix

FORMALLAYOUTOnewaytocenterformallayoutistomeasurethelengthofeachlineinordertoestablishitshalf-waypoint.

1.Letterouttheinformation.Yourworkappearsmorecrispifyouletterandthenreducetosize.

2.Measuretheline.

3.Cutandpositiontocenter.Pastedown.

4. Use a light blue pencil to indicate the layout's positioning on the paperstock. Blue does not photocopy. Your work is now prepared for printreproduction.

ThisformallayoutforreproductionwaswrittenwithaC-3nib.

ProjectSeven

ENVELOPEAbeautifullywrittenenvelopeisawonderfulwelcometoaspecialevent.Mostlikelyyouwillbeaddressingquiteafewatatime,inwhichcaseyoumaynotwanttoconsumeyourtimebyruling,pencilingandthenerasinglines.Preparedguidelinesarehelpful.Youmayalsowanttoconsidertheuseofalighttableinordertoseethoselinesthroughthelayerofpaper.

1.Designtheguidesheettoaccommodatethepensizeappropriateforthesizeoftheenvelope.

2.Markaregisterforproperplacementoftheenvelopeupontheguidesheet.Youcanlayyourenvelopeonaline,catchtheguidesheetsecurelyintheflap,orplaceitsecurelyintheenvelope,whichistimeconsuming.

TriviaWhatisthemostfrequentlettertostartaword?S,followedbyC,thenPatabout10percentofourwords.

TriviaWhyisadiplomacalledasheepskin?

Becausediplomaswereoriginallydoneonvellum,ananimalskinwritingsurfaceoftenobtainedfromsheep.

ProjectEight

NAMETAGSItalicisanattractivechoicefornamebadgesbecauseitisfriendly,artistic,andmostimportantly,readable.Ifyouareletteringaparty'sworthofnametags,youmaywanttouseaguidesheetandlighttable.Writethenameaslargeaswillfitthesizeofthebadge.(Noonewantstobecaughtstrainingtoreadanametag,youknow.)

Youcanwritethenameintwolinestoallowittobelarger,butbecarefultoavoiddescender-ascendercollisions.Itisdesirabletokeepthetwo-linenameasclosetogetheraspossibleandcenteredonthebadge.

ProjectNine

PLACECARDSThesmallestwritingyoumayeverpencouldbeuponaplacecard.Again,ifyouare letteringmore thana few,youmaywant tomakeuseof aguidesheet andlighttable.

Positioningthelengthofanametoaccommodatethelengthofthecardisanobviousdilemma.Onewaytosizeupanameisbysearchingandwritingoutthelongest name on the list, then use that example to gauge the other names incomparison.Itisbettertobeginfartherleft;ifthenameisnotbalanced,youstillhavetheoptionofaddingaswashtofilluptheemptyspace.

Thenamemustbeeasily identifiable to serve thepurposeof theplacecard.Anotherplacecarddilemmaisthe“Mr.andMrs.”whichcouldconsumehalfofthecard.Becreativetoconservespace.

ProjectTen

SIMPLEPOSTERLike name badges and placecards, which must be readily recognizable, thepostermustbereadableataglance.Yourfirstobjectiveistoattractattentionandthenprovide information: thewhat,whenandwhere.Keepyour lettering largeandsimple.Trythelargernibssuggestedinthisbook.

ProjectEleven

FLYERBecauseaflyercanbeheldinthehandofthereader,moreinformationcanbemadeavailable.Aflyeriseffectiveifitbeckonstheattentionofthereaderandcompelshimtoreadit.Youmaywanttoreviewtheinstructionsonlayoutandpagedesigninchapterthree.

ProjectTwelve

QUOTE—VARYINGNIBSIZEThere are simple ways to create attractive layout. These two pages provide avisualcomparisonofletteringwrittenwithonenibversusonewrittenwithtwodifferentsizenibs.Thelargerlettersemphasizethewordsofimportance.

ProjectThirteen

QUOTE—USINGFLOURISHESFlourishesarefunandadddramatoyourlettering.Ifthoughtfullyplanned,theseembellishmentsaddemphasisandcanenhancethemeaningofthewords.Notehow effectively two simple flourishes change the appearance of the page andgivelifetothewords.

ProjectFourteen

LENGTHYQUOTEYou can break up the monotony of a large block of text by using differentlayouts.Asshowninprojecttwelve,particularwordscanbeemphasizedtostatetheirimportance;thiscanbeachievedbywritingthemlarger.NotethattheworkisattributedtoRalphWaldoEmerson;however,hisnameiswrittensmallerthanthetext.Thespacesurroundinghisnameaffordstheauthorduerespect.

Thisversion iswritten inshorter lines,whichnaturally lengthens thepoem.Drama is created by the widemargins surrounding the text. It is actually thespacewherelettersarenotwrittenthatemphasizestheimportanceandcreatesareverenceforthewrittenword.

ProjectFifteen

COLOR—REVERSALBlack inkonwhitepaper is alwaysagoodcontrast,but lookat thedifferencewhen the letters arewhiteon ablackbackground, as createdby this photostatreversal.

Ihopetheseprojectsencourageyoutobeginexperimenting.Playwithcolor.Dipyourpenintodifferentwritingfluidsandletterondarkandmedium-coloredpaper.Theintriguing,oftenunexpectedresultswillshowyouhowtocreatefreshexpressions and inspire you to seek new and exciting discoveries with theletterformsyouhavelearnedtowritesocarefully.

AlphabetSentencesAlphabet sentences, also known as “pangrams” and when used to teach orpractice an alphabetmay be referred to as an ‘abcedarium,’ is a goodway topractice any calligraphic hand. A pangram is a sensible or fanciful statementrendered as briefly as possible using all twenty-six letters of the alphabet, AthroughZ.

Soyourpractices remain funand interesting,here is a small collectionyoumay want to use, or if you enjoy puzzles, you may enjoy the challenge ofcomingupwithyourown.

TriviaWhatdotheselettershaveincommon:AHIMOTUVWXY?Theyareallmirrorimageletters,appearingthesameinreverseaswhenwritteninnormalfashion.

InspiringExamples

RecommendedReading

Forthebeginner:TheLittleManualofCalligraphyCharlesPearceTaplinger,1981

PenLetteringAnnCampTaplinger,1984

WrittenLetters:Thirty-threeAlphabetsforCalligraphersJacquelineSvarenTaplinger,1986

Also:ItalicCalligraphyandHandwritingExercisesLloydJ.ReynoldsTaplinger

CalligraphicLetteringWithaWidePenandBrushRalphDouglasWatson-Guptill,1967

AnItalicCalligraphyHandBookCarolynKnudsenStemmerHouse,1985

CalligraphyfortheBeginnerTomGourdieTaplinger

Fortheadvancedstudent:WritingandIlluminatingandLetteringEdwardJohnstonDover

TheCalligrapher'sHandbookHeatherChildTaplinger,1986

Forhistoricinformation:MastersoftheItalicLetterKathrynAtkinsGodine,1988

ThreeClassicsofItalianCalligraphy:TheWritingBooksofArrighi,Tagliente,PalatinoOscarOggDover,1953

Booksnowoutofprintworthseekinginlibrariesorusedbooksources:

ThePensExcellencieJoyceIreneWhalleyTaplinger,1980ABookofScripts

AlfredFairbankFaber,1977

TheFirstWritingBookJohnHowardBensonYaleUniversityPress,1954

Sources

JohnNeal,Bookseller1833SpringGardenStreetGreensboro,NC27403(919)272-7604

Paper&InkBooks15309ASixesBridgeRoadEmmitsburg,MD21727(301)447-6487

DanielSmith4130FirstAvenueSouthSeattle,WA98134-2302(800)426-7923

PendragonPOBox25036Woodbury,MN55125(612)739-9093

DickBlickPOBox1267Galesburg,IL61402-1267(800)447-8192

UnitedArtandEducationSupplyBox9219

FortWayne,IN46899(800)322-3247

Glossary

AAbecedarium:Aprimerforteachingthealphabet;sometimesintheformofanalphabetic sentence. The name is derived from the first letters of the latinalphabet(abeced(e)+-arium).

Alphabet:Anysystemofcharacters,symbolsorsignswithwhichalanguageiswritten; from thenameof the first two lettersof theGreekalphabet (alpha-beta).

AlphabetChain:The lettersof thealphabetwrittenwith the letter“n”placedbetweeneachone(anbncnd,etc.).Especiallyrecommendedforthepracticeofitalicwritingtoestablishrhythmandform.

Ampersand: A ligatured form of the Latin word et, meaning “and.” Theampersand has often been called the twenty-seventh letter of the alphabet.Alsocalled“andsign”or“etsign.”

Arch:See“branching.”Ascender:Thepartofalowercaseletterthatrisesaboveitsbodyorx-height.

BBaseline: The imaginary guideline upon which the bodies of the upper-andlowercaseletterssit.

Blackletter:Ageneraltermformedievalalphabetstyles,socalledduetotheirheavy, black appearance; often very compressed letterforms combinedwithangular strokes. Also called Text and Gothic; other forms include OldEnglish,Fraktur,Rotunda,etal.

Body(ofaletter):Thepartofanylowercaseletterthatsitsbetweenthebaselineandthewaistline,i.e.,occurringwithinanalphabet'sx-height.

Book Hand: A very general term used to describe any number of various“hands” that have been used for the purpose of producing manuscripts orbooks.

Branching:This is thepartofacharacterwhereafter themainvertical strokehas beenpulled down to the baseline, the pen retraces upward slightly thenarcsslightlytotheright.Thisisalsocalled“arching.”

BusinessHand:Ascriptcommonlyusedforbusinessendeavorsorcommercialcorrespondence and chosen for its ability to be rapidly executed and easilyread.

CCacography:FromtheGreek,literallymeaning“badhandwriting.”Calligraphy:FromtheGreek,literallymeaning“beautifulhandwriting.”Cant:Totiltthepagetotherightorleftofverticalrelativetothedrawingboard,e.g.,tiltingthepagetotheleftisaleftcant.

Capital: From the Latin meaning, “head”; the large letters also known asmajuscules and uppercase.These letters are the descendants of the classicalinscriptionalalphabetusedbytheRomans.

ChanceryCursive:TheEnglishversionofCancellarescaCorsivo,theoriginalname for italic writing. This informal cursive script was so named for thePapalChanceriesofthefourteenthcenturyfromwhichitevolved.Alsocalled“ChanceryHand.”

Counter: The totally or partially enclosed white space contained within aletterform.

Cursive:Literallymeans “flowing”; any scriptwritten in a continuous, joinedfashionwithoutpenliftsorappearingtohavebeenconstructedassuch.

DDescender:Thepartofalowercaseletterthatextendsbelowthebaselineorx-height.

Display Letters: A general term for large letterforms used for graphicapplicationssuchassignage,posters,bookcovers,etc.

DoublePencil:Twopencilsfixedtogether(suchaswithrubber-bands),usedtoduplicateanedgedpeneffectinlargesize.Usefulfordemonstratinghowanedgedpenworksorcreatinglargeletterstobefilledin.Akneadederasercanbeusedtocontrivespacingbetweenpencils.

Ductus: From Latin meaning conducting or leadership; this term refers toinformationorillustrationshowingthenumber,orderanddirectionofstrokesthatgointomakingacharacter(i.e.,directions).

Dummy:Amock-upofapageorpages inscale toshowplacementofall theelements.Aworkingmodel.

EEdgedPen:Apenhavingathin,wide,truncatedwritingtipliketheedgeofachiselorscrewdriver.Alsocalledachiselnib,broadnib,widenib,squarenibor straight cut pen. (The terms: point, edge, nib and pen are often usedinterchangeably.)

Engrossing: Originally a termmeaning an extremely elaborate hand used forformal documents, but since the mid-seventeenth century, more generallyusedtodescribeastyleofdecorativeandusuallycolorfultreatmentofletters,words,textandbordersoncongratulatory,commemorativeormemorializingworks,suchascertificates.See“illumination.”

Exemplar:Amodelcharacter,alphabetorbookworthyofcopying.Letterformsofahighstandardtobeemulated.

FFeathering: The action of ink “bleeding” or spreading on paper producingraggedorerraticedgesratherthancrisp,sharpforms.Thiscansometimesbehelpedbyrubbingwithsandaracorsprayingwithaworkablefixative.

Flourish:FromtheLatinmeaning“toflower,”anunnecessarystrokeorelementpulledoutoforaddedtoaletterforthepurposeofornamentation.

Formal Writing: Letterforms produced with care and accuracy. Usuallyexecuted more upright and with pen lifts, often a separate stroke for eachelementorletterpart.

FugitiveColors:Colorsthatarenotpermanentorhaveatendencytofade(mostoftenduetoexposuretoultravioletlight).

GGumArabic:Awater-soluble exudationobtained fromacacia treesused as abinderandemulsifierininksandpaints.

HHairline:Thethinnestpossiblestrokeapencanmake.Alsocalledan“unshadedstroke”oran“edgestroke.”Withanedgedpen,thisstrokeiscreatedwhenthepenismovedinthedirectionofitsthinnestedge.

HalfUncial:Ahandoriginatinginthefourthcentury.Uncialbutwithascendersanddescendersduetocertaincursiveinfluences.ThishandisoftenmistakenbybeginnerstobethelowercasealphabettotheUncialfamily;itisnot.

Hand:Generaltermforagivenstyleofwritingorletteringdonebyhand.

IIllumination:Atermconfusedwith“engrossing”(seeengrossing).Illuminationis the decoration of a layout with drawings and/or embellishment andornamentationofinitialletters,wordsandbordersoftenwithcolorandusingburnishedgold. Illuminationmeans tobring light intoor lightup;burnishedgoldmustbeusedandnotjustcolorordecorationtomeetthisdefinition.

InformalWriting:Writing donemore casually than formal, usually executedmorequicklyandwithminimalpenlifts.

Ink:A fluid used forwriting. From theLatin encaustummeaning “burnt in.”Therearemanydifferenttypesofink.

Interspace:Thespacebetweenwords;alsocalledwordspacing.Intraspace:Thespacebetweenletterswithinaword;alsocalledletterspacing.Italic:Namegiventocancellarescacorsivo(chancerycursive)asitwasadoptedinothercountries,duetoitsoriginationinItaly.

JJustified Text: Text where the lines start and finish evenlywith the left andrightmargins.

KKern: A part of a letterform projecting beyond the shank or body. Also atypographic term meaning moving pairs of letters either closer together orfartherapart.

LLadder:Alittlestackofsquaresconstructedofnibwidthsusedtodeterminethebodyheightofaletterwhenusingthatparticularnib.

Layout:Ageneraltermforthedesignofapieceofartwork,usuallyshowinginpositionall theelementssuchasmargins,headings, text, illustrations,color,etc.

Letter:Analphabeticcharacter.Oneoftheunitsofanalphabet.Asign,symbolormarkusedtorepresentspeechsounds.

Lettering: Differs from calligraphy in that the letterforms in calligraphy arecreated during the act of writing, whereas in lettering it is more an act ofdrawinganddesigningtheletterforms.

LetterSpace:Thespacingbetweenletters,sometimescalledintraspacing.Letterspacing:Refers to adding additional spacebetween letters in awordorsentence;creatinggapsbetweenletters,spreadingoutaword.

Ligature: The connecting of two ormore characters into a single form, usedmostlyfordecorativeeffect.

Lowercase: An old printing term for the small letters or minuscules that hasfallenintocommonusage.Socalledbecauseprintersusedtostorethesmalllettersinthelowertypecasesandthecapsintheuppercase.Abbreviatedlc.

MMajuscules:Theformaltermforthecapitalsoruppercaseletters.Manuscript:Abookordocumentwrittenbyhandratherthanprinted.Margins: The space or border around the outside of a page surrounding thewrittenorprintedtext.

Minuscules: Formal term for the small or lowercase letters. Usually writtenwithin the parameters of our lines; the upper and lower lines being theascenderanddescender linesrespectively,andthebodiescontainedbetweenthebaselineandwaistline.

Monoline:Termdescribinglettersofconsistentlineweight.Nothicksandthins,i.e.,withoutshading.

NNib:Thewritingtipofapen.Alsocalleda“neb,”“bill,”“beak”andsometimes“point,”eventhoughit'snotnecessarilypointed.

NibWidth:Thewidthofthewritingtip.Thethickestshadeapencanproduce(withanedgedpen)isitsnibwidth.Alsocalledpenwidth.

OOblique:AslantedversionofaRomanletter.Obliquesareoftenconfusedwithitalics.

PPangram:Analphabeticsentence.Canbeconsideredaformofabecedarium.

Parchment:Apreparedskinusedforthepurposeofwritingordrawing,usuallycalf, sheep or goat; however, historically, the skins ofmany other types ofmammalshavebeenused.Theparchmentmostpeoplearefamiliarwithtodayisavegetable-basedpapermadetolookliketrueparchment.Seevellum.

Pen: From the Latin pennameaning feather, although the first penswere cutfromreeds.Atoolthatholdsafluidforthepurposeofwritingand/ordrawing.

PenAngle:Theangleofthestraight,cut-offwritingtipofthepenrelativetothebaselineorhorizontalwritinglines.

PenInclination:Theangleofthepenshaftrelativetothewritingsurface.Pen Lift: Refers to raising the pen from the writing surface after making astroke,beforemakingthenextstroke.

PenScale:Therelationshipofthenib'swidthtothex-heightorbodyheightofthe letters.For instance, thex-heightof italic is fivepenwidths; thiswouldmakethepenscaleonetofive.

PenSlant:Anotherwayofsayingpenangle.Pen Strokes: To make marks with a pen by pulling, pushing or sidling. (Asidledstrokeistomovethepenalongitsthinedge,thusproducingahairline.)

PenWidth:Thesameas“nibwidth.”Thewidthofthenibofanedgedpenatitswritingtip.See“nibwidth.”

Print-Script:AsimplifiedversionoftheRomanlettertaughttoschoolchildren;sometimesreferredtoas“ballandstick”writing.

QQuillPen:Apencutfromoneoftheprimaryfeathersofalargebird,suchasagooseorturkey.

RRag Paper: Rag refers to the cotton or linen content. To say 25 percent ragmeansthatthepaper'scontentis25percentcottonorlinen;a100percentrag

paper is made of 100 percent cotton or linen. This type of paper, thoughexpensive,isthemostdurableofpapers.

ReedPen:Apenfashionedfromareed.Thisappearstobetheoldestformofpen;theEgyptiansbeganusingacutreedabout600B.C.ItwasalsoadoptedbytheGreeksandRomansastheirwritinginstrument.

Romans:A general termused to describe the category of letterforms that arebasedontheclassicalinscriptionalcapitalsoftheRomans;alsoincludingthecarolingianminuscule,etal.,uponwhichourpresentdaylowercaselettersarebased.Thetypographicdefinitionisanyuprightletterconstructedofthickandthinelements(orstrokes).

Rotunda: Also called “Southern Gothic” or “Round Gothic” because it wasdevelopedandprimarilyused inItaly,southernFranceandSpainduring thethirteenth through fifteenth centuries. Though not appearing to be quite asheavy as the northern blackletter styles, it is easier to read due to itsmoreopencountersproducedbyitslesscondensed,rounderform.

Rough: Short for a rough sketch or layout; done quick and loose to show aconcept.

SSandarac: A resin exuding from the bark of the sandarac tree. In powderedform,usedbycalligrapherstosealthesurfaceofpaperorothersurfacesthataretooporous,thusinhibitingfeathering,bleedingorspreading.

SansSerif:Aletterformnothavingserifs.Withoutserifs.ScripturaCommunis: A very formalway of saying “common handwriting,”i.e.,youreverydayhandwriting.

Serif:Small finishingstrokeson thestems,armsand tailsof letters.Therearedozensofformsofserifsthathaveevolvedoverthecenturies.Aletterwithoutserifsiscalledasansserifletter.

Shading:Atermdescribingthevariationincharacterweightfromthicktothin.Shadingisproducedbythemovementofabroadedgedpenheldataconstantangleorbythevariationofpressurewithaflexiblepointednib.

Shoulder:Thecurvedstrokeoftheh,mandn.Skew:Referstotheangleofthecutatthetipofanibwhenotherthansquare.Slant:Theangleorslopeoftheletterstems,asmeasuredfromthevertical.Alsocalledletterslopeorletterangle.

SouthernGothic:A fuller, rounder version of gothic or blackletter stemmingfromsouthernEurope,suchas“rotunda.”

Spacing:Therelationshipofplacementoflettertoletter,wordtoword,andlinetoline.

SplitPen:Anibwithanotchremovedfromthecenterofitsedgetoproduceadoubleline.

Stem:Themainverticalstrokeormainstraightdiagonalstrokeina letterformwhichhasnoverticalstrokes.

Stroke Sequence: The order and the direction of the strokes in which acharacterisconstructed.

Stylus:Anypointedtoolusedforwritingormarking.SumiInk:AJapanesewater-basedinkmadefromthecarbonsootofburntpineboughs and roots. This ink traditionally comes in a stick form andmust begroundonan inkstone,asuzuri,but isavailable today ina liquidform.Aninkprizedforitshighquality.

Swash:Theextensionofastrokeorelementofaletterfordecorativepurposes.

UUncial:Aroundstyleofbookhandappearingaboutthethirdcentury,evolvingintomanyvariationsupthroughtheninthcentury.Thisstyleofletterisoneofthemostmalleableandiscapableofbeingveryplayful(pronounced“un-see-al”).

Uppercase:Anothertermforcapitalsormajuscules;thelargeletters.Socalledbecauseprintersusedtostorethecapitallettersintheuppertypecasesandthesmalllettersinthelowercase.AbbreviatedUc.

VVellum:Ahighergradeofparchmentusuallytakenfromyoungeranimalswithfiner skins. The vellummost people are familiarwith today is a vegetable-basedpapersocalledbecauseofitsverysmoothsurface,whitetranslucencyandhighquality.

Versal: An ornate, “built-up letter” often filled in, sometimes with color; socalled because it used to be used in manuscripts to begin a verse in aparagraph,sectionorchapter.

WWaistline:Alsocalled the“body line”or“mean line,” this is the line that thebodyofaminusculeletterascendsto.

WritingLines:The linesused toguideandalign thebodiesof the lettersandtheirascendersanddescendersduringwriting.

XX-Height: The height of the body of a minuscule letter, measured from thebaselinetothewaistline.

YY-Height: Also called “cap height” or “Z-height,” the height of the capitalletters;measuredfromthebaselinetothecapline.

ZZ-Height:Sameas“Y-height.”

AbouttheAuthorDon Marsh has been a freelance graphic artist and illustrator since 1977,working exclusively as a lettering arts designer since1980.Hiswork includesposters, commercial and product logos, corporate promotional materials,brochures, signage, point of purchase displays, television and billboardpromotions,andbusinesscardandstationerydesign.

Marshhasstudiedthehistoryanddevelopmentofletterforms,takingspecialinterest in researchingandcataloging themoreeccentric formsof the last fivehundredyears.HehastaughtcalligraphyattheDiscoveryCenter,UniversityofCincinnatiCommuniversity,GreaterCincinnatiCalligraphers'Guild and at theCincinnati Civic Garden Center. He has lectured on calligraphy at the PublicLibrary of Cincinnati and Hamilton County and at Northern KentuckyUniversity.

A musician who enjoys fishing and camping, film, model building andanythingthathastodowithWorldWarIIaircraft,MarshresidesinCincinnati,Ohio.

Acknowledgments

Specialthanksto:KarenMcMannon,MarthaEricson,WandaKinzieandAnitaMarks

Fortheircontributionstothiswork.

LindaIpp,DeborahHastingsandTomHoltkampForhelpingmeorganizemythoughts.

GregAlbertandeveryoneatF&WPublicationsForgivingmetheopportunitytosharethisinformation.

Calligraphy.Copyright©1996byDonMarsh.ManufacturedinChina.Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedinanyformorbyanyelectronicormechanicalmeansincludinginformationstorageandretrievalsystemswithoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher,exceptbyareviewer,whomayquotebriefpassagesinareview.PublishedbyNorthLightBooks,animprintofF+WPublications,Inc.,4700EastGalbraithRoad,Cincinnati,Ohio45236.(800)289-0963.Firstedition.

OtherfineNorthLightBooksareavailablefromyourlocalbookstore,artsupplystoreordirectfromthepublisher.

14131211101918171615

LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData

Marsh,Don

Calligraphy/byDonMarsh.p.cm.—(Firststepsseries)Includesbibliographicalreferences.ISBN-13:978-0-89134-666-1(alk.paper)ISBN-10:0-89134-666-X(alk.paper)1.Calligraphy.I.Title.II.Series:Firststepsseries(Cincinnati,Ohio)

Z43.M32199696-4014745.6'1—dc20CIP

EditedbyGregAlbertDesignedbyBrianRoethCoverphotographybyPamelaMonfortBraun/BronzePhotography

“TheFamilyQuilt”,“We'refromthesamebranch”,“ChildrenLearnWhatTheyLive”and“AlphabetBirdCard”areusedbypermissionofAnitaS.Marks.

“Weareheretonight”,“Congratulations”and“LettertoDaniel”areusedbypermissionofWandaKinzie.

Thehistoricselectionson♣arefromThreeClassicsofItalianCalligraphybyOscarOggandarereprintedbypermissionofDoverPublications,Inc.,NewYork.

“TheColleaguesofCalligraphy”,“FreemanFloral”,“Delights”and“SoYou'reintheCalligraphyBusiness”areusedbypermissionofMarthaEricson.

“TheSimplifer”usedwithpermissionofKarenMcMannon.

ThetextandartinChapterFour:Projects♣wascreatedbyKarenMcMannon;theauthorexpresseshissincerestgratitudeforhercontribution.

METRICCONVERSIONCHART

TOCONVERT TO MULTIPLYBY

Inches Centimeters 2.54

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Meters Yards 1.1

Sq.Inches Sq.Centimeters 6.45

Sq.Centimeters Sq.Inches 0.16

Sq.Feet Sq.Meters 0.09

Sq.Meters Sq.Feet 10.8

Sq.Yards Sq.Meters 0.8

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Pounds Kilograms 0.45

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