Tag Archives: calligraphy

May7

Handwriting on Adventure

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Funky Calligraphy Adventures in Hand LetteringMartice Smith II is an established freelancer illustrator and graphic designer. She has established a niche for herself within the Mixed Media Art since she does more specializations on the mixed media illustrations.

That said, she has a thing for graffiti – style which she considers a fun mixture of bold and expressive calligraphy.  It makes her handwriting become more unique and easy to recognize. With her spirits more often than not transcending into artistry, there are times she will prefer to look imperfect and scribbly.

She describes the world around you as your oyster hence advises that “You take an adventure” as she takes you through a quick adventure on finding your voice within your handwriting.  And what are the sources of her inspirations:

  • Food packaging
  • Billboards
  • Kids’ writing
  • Murals on trains
  • Expanding the powers of observation
  • Looking out for brand packaging.

Having gained the inspiration, here are the supplies that you shall need:

  • Assortment of markers and fine point pens
  • Skewer or toothpick
  • Speedball’s Super Black India ink.

Here is what you now need to do:

  • Writer large letterforms with your chise – tip marker and work randomly across the page
  • Try writing a phrase is a circular shape using a pen with a smaller point. For smoother writing, you may have to rotate the page and allow the words to look like a series of marks
  • Exaggerate the letterforms and lines as you make your own way
  • Finally draw scribbly flourishes with a toothpick dipped in India ink.

It’s all about what makes you happy.

Aug22

Have you Tried Calligraphy?

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Calligraphy for Mixed Media ArtistsCalligraphy is “the art of giving a pleasing, harmonious form to the written word”. While one would think that calligraphy and mixed media should be a natural combination, Katja Blum who has been into collage and other paper arts often finds herself developing a special form of writer’s block – calligrapher’s block.

Many works of mixed media art include text – individual words or text blocks – as a focal point and added layer of texture, color and meaning. The surface of a piece of mixed media art is often textured and varied, with layers of different materials that make it hard to control the nib or brush, the classic calligraphy tools. Katja embraces her handwriting and forgets aids such as ruled lines and light boxes. So there is just freehand writing. And for good results she advises that you take a good look at your art tools first. Choose your tool, take a deep breath and just start writing on your artwork. The tools should be simple tools. For example; a calligraphy pen with a broad and fine tip is a good choice for a block of text, perhaps on a journal page.

Play with brushes. Pastels and crayons look substantial, but still relaxed – lovely in white on a dark background. Katja Blum is a big admirer of the work of calligraphy artists and to the delight of her husband she also likes to find creative solutions for ugly or broken things around the house.

Apr24

Media Mixed Illuminated Letters

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Illumination which is the art of embellishing individual letters or symbols on a page of written text has been around since 1500 BCE, when scribes began to illuminate Egyptian Books of the Dead. The word “illuminate” means “to fill with light and usually, the first letter of a page or particularly important passage is decorated with patterns and may contain intricate symbolic drawings or a miniature. As the printing industry progressed, illuminations became too labor-intensive and fell out of style thus an English artist William Morris came in, in the 19th century and led a brief revival of the art form.  This has resulted in many calligraphers being able to create commissioned illuminations, often as monograms for special occasions.

Focusing on the shape, form and symbolic value of a single letter can bring an extra dimension to your artwork. It is also rewarding to create within the rules of traditional illumination. Exploring different letter shapes as the basis of your work lets you play with space and contours and takes you far away from the ever-present rectangular boundaries of paper and canvas. Following your imagination ‘to the letter’, you will discover more creative potential of mankind’s most powerful invention – the alphabet. You can also explore the possibilities of illuminated and embellished letters in mixed media artwork, combined with text, imagery or standing alone.