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05/22/2005 Archived Entry: "Advice To A Young Calligrapher"

Jae Leslie (some of her work here) describes what materials and advice she sent to a young friend.

Sharzi was very interested in calligraphy and wants to learn. (She is the girl I got many of my Barbies from, long ago when she was young enough to be losing interest in Barbies.) Unfortunately all the gear I had with me was for brush lettering, not a single broad-edge metal nib to be found, as I had just organized my supplies before I came, so I couldn't show her much of anything. But I had an extra watercolor fillable brush-pen with me, which is pretty cool, so I gave her that, and when I got home I went through all the handouts and stuff I have from when I was first learning, found some useful instructions, and made up a packet... then this morning took half of that stuff out and mailed her just the first couple of bits, with markers and paper to practice. The quality of markers available has really improved a lot from back when, and they are now okay for learning with until she can get her hands on a bottle of ink and a proper pen (when that happens I'm sure her mother will not appreciate the inevitable spill). I also have way too much in the way of duplicate paper supplies and instructional handouts.

"You will never cry over spilt milk once you have spilt ink."

I figure she should start with a Humanist Bookhand (Johnston called his Foundational). This is an upright hand so one doesn't have to deal with getting the right slant; the shapes ares round which is fairly uncomplicated as these things go, while one is getting used to holding the pen at the correct angle. Bookhands are familiar as the basis of much modern type, and it is possible to make fairly attractive letters pretty quickly. But everyone usually wants to start with Italic, what most Americans think of as "Calligraphy", which is only easy to do badly. I says it who knows, and I'm going to throw out more of my old practice sheets Real Soon Now.

Then I also sent her a page of skeletal Roman letters, to trace or copy in order to get an introduction to the basic classical proportions, from Neuegebauer's Mystic Art of Written Forms, not pretty but essential to study. All of these I had on hand in duplicate, from my notebooks, so I didn't even have to go to the copy store. I stuck little post-it notes all over, with tips on how to practice. If she sends me a page of nice letters back again as I invited her to, I'll send on the Italic and medieval stuff.

(Tags: calligraphy, fannish, jaeleslie)