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Newsletter Issue #54 January 2013 Regular monthly meetings
Linda Yaychuk Jane Taylor Ria Lewis Jane Taylor Alane Lalonde Barbara Qualley Lucy Hylkema, Joyce Gammie, Pat Wheatley Muriel Heggie Judy Lowood Front– Denise Rothney Back– Leslie Healy Headings– Times New Roman 26pt Copycat Printing & Design Ltd.
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General Guild Information
are held on the Second Tuesday of each month from 9am to 12:00pm (no meeting in July and August) Exhibition Grounds Duncan, BC (Exceptions are Dec. and June)
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President’s Message and Front Cover Artist
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Bamberton Anniversary
Executive Meetings
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May Program
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May Galleria
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St. Francis Xavier Celebration
are held on the First Tuesday of each month At Linda Yaychuk’s home from 9am to noon All members are welcome!
Membership in the Warmland Calligraphers guild includes two newsletters. Annual membership dues are C$30 Canadian residents and US $30 for US/International Warmland Calligraphers of the Cowichan Valley (the Guild) is a nonprofit group formed to facilitate the exchange of information between calligraphers, and to promote interest in and appreciation of calligraphy as an art form within the community. Membership is open to calligraphers at all levels of expertise as well as those with a love of beautiful writing. Contents of this newsletter are copyrighted by the authors/artists. Requests for permission to reprint any part must be made through the Editor. The views of contributors are not necessarily those of the Editor or of the Guild. Members are invited to submit concise pieces for publication as well as to alert the Editor to conferences, papers, speeches and other matters of interest to our readers. The Editor reserves the right to make editorial changes in material accepted for publication. These include such revisions or additions deemed necessary to ensure correctness of grammar and spelling, clarification of obscurities, brevity and conformity to the newsletter style. Contact us at: P.O. Box 2, Duncan, B C, V9L 3X1 Canada http://members.shaw.ca/warmlandcalligraphers
10/11 Heather Held Workshop 12
Tribute to Judy Matheson
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September Program
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W.O.O.L.
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Weaver Workshop
!9-22 Christmas Cards 23
October Program
24-27 October Galleria 28/29 Portland Conference 30
Jottings From the Library
31/32 Expose and Editor’s Message 33/34 Carousel Book Workshop 35-38 November Galleria 39
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November Program and Back Cover Artist
President’s Message Welcome to the first public on-line edition of Warmland Calligraphers’ Newsletter. The Guild’s decision to move in this direction was in answer to the problem of rising production costs for printed editions and dwindling income. I hope you enjoy this new format and are inspired by its content. The change of venue for our General Meetings implemented in September seems to be working well. The Meeting Room in Mellor Hall at the Cowichan Exhibition Grounds provides us with a bright, cheery room at ground level with plenty of parking right outside the door. We owe a big thank you to the Maple Bay Painters group for offering to meet in the afternoon on the second Tuesday of each month so we could maintain our regular morning time. For the first time in a few years, we are able to enjoy coffee during the break. Looking forward to our next big event, the Loft Show and Sale at Valley Vines to Wines in Mill Bay Shopping Center, I’m happy to see that Trish Peebles and Marilyn Silver have preparations well in hand. As 2013 marks the 15th Annual Show and Sale in this venue, the time has been extended by one week making the dates Saturday, January 26 to Thursday, February 28. As a special anniversary feature, we are looking forward to some of our members entering one of their favourite pieces exhibited in a previous show. As the new year begins, I am thinking about upcoming elections. Please give some serious thought to how you can help by serving on the Executive. It is a great way to meet Warmland members and help the Guild at the same time. Let me know if you are interested. Joyce
Front Cover Artist Denise Rothney In searching for an idea for the cover of our newsletter, I looked up the origin of the word January, which comes from the word Janus. In ancient Roman times, Janus had a dual nature; he was the god of beginnings as well as endings. I chose to think of his “looking ahead” aspect, as a chance for us all to move forward. I combined three of my passions to draw the illustration- a love of miniatures and illuminated letters and a fascination for the world of birds!
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Bamberton’s 100th Anniversary Submitted by Pat Wheatley On July 8th 2012 Bamberton Historical Society celebrated 100 years of the cement producing township. From 1904 – 1982 millions of tons of cement came from the Bamberton plant changing skylines, shorelines, creating airports and docks. They were the only Western BC plant from 1920 – 1956. What has this to do with calligraphy? Well, our calligraphy group was asked to attend the celebration as one of the representatives of the Cowichan Valley’s artisans. We rubbed shoulders with the Quilter’s Guild, the Tzouhalem Spinners and Weavers and The Cobble Hill Farmer’s Institute and a photography group whose name I cannot recall, but who did wonderful work. I think it had been anticipated that we would make name tags and be really useful, but it turned out that
adventure, and the rules for the resident school teachers included being at home between 6 pm and 8 am! We set up our display under a provided tent. Examples of galleria work using a wide selection of scripts, cards, envelopes, library books and signs announcing who we are and what we do. The event was scheduled from 11am until 5pm. By 10am we
A good time was had by all, especially Ria.
A visit to the old Manager’s House on Trowse Road is well worth the time. A fascinating period of not-so-long ago. I would like to include a big thank you to the calligraphy members who helped. I know I can say, with some certainty, that we enjoyed ourselves!
Ria demonstrates some calligraphy under Pat’s watchful eye.
Pat Wheatley and Ria Lewis are obviously enjoying the day
most of our time was spent chatting, promoting ourselves and generally enjoying the absolutely gorgeous day. The event took place on the grounds of the old Managers. The Bamberton Historic Society has a museum in the old house. The artifacts are beautifully displayed, each piece holding its own story. It was not so long ago when traversing the Malahat was a huge
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were set up and ready to go. Joyce and Marilyn Silver took the first shift and at noon Lenore joined forces with me until 2 pm when Ria came to relieve Lenore. Marilyn Lundstrom who had also volunteered was unable to be there due to unforeseen circumstances. And June, with Hans, came by to take the photos.
Quick Tips
It was a beautiful day; fun things to see; old friends dropping by while we enjoyed the goings-on around us in the beautiful setting. There were lots of folks interested in what we do, and they were very impressed by the calibre of the work. Maureen Alexander was most appreciative of our participation and I thanked her for inviting our group and doing such a great job of organizing the whole day. She is part author of a book: Bamberton: From Dust to Bust and Back, which was launched as part of the day’s proceedings
Gum Arabic added to your
Before starting to work with your nib or changing to a different medium; rub your nib with gum Arabic.
watercolour or gouache enables you to erase lines with little damage occurring to your piece. Avoid excess ink on the top of your pen when writing.
May Program The May program, led by Marilyn Lundstrom, was one of those activities where a picture is worth a thousand words, so study the photos carefully. Marilyn introduced us to Funky Lettering, a type of drawn letter which works well for single words or very short phrases. Prior to the meeting, she had sent us an email with exemplars and a supply list (she does tend to be one of our more organized members!)
Submitted by Lucy Hylkema Then there is something called “throughout the window” where each letter has its own little box, and parts of it peek through. The take-home message was that there are different types of funky letters, and that they are also called “casual capitals” and “doodle lettering.” Because they are drawn letters, they tend to take on the personality of the calligrapher and allow a lot of room for artistic expression.
beyond the drawn letter, and there should be two of them, close together so that there is white space within the letter as well. In addition to the white space created by the narrow parallel lines, you can also add small circles (or other shapes) within the body of the letter that will remain white once the letter is coloured in. This white
Marilyn introduced us to the various styles, and then we worked mainly on the one that Judy Matheson had taught
space adds sparkle to these funky letters, and keeps them from being too blocky and solid. Now that your word is drawn, you get to use your colours. It is entirely up to you what media you use to fill in the letter segments.
Linda Yaychuk and Pat Wheatley
This type of lettering has a lot of energy, and when used with bright colours is a strong focal point. The style that we concentrated on was one that
Marilyn had learned from our honourary life member, Judy Matheson. There are other styles of funky letters as well: Lynn Slevinski's books on marker lettering have some examples and ideas of different ways to decorate them. Connie Furgason also has an alphabet that she has developed using drawn letters with lots of fine lines and dots to give it movement.
Marilyn Lundstrom
her. I will give a basic outline of the process, and remind you that these letters should feel as though you are playing. I also need to remind you to use your exemplars and to study the photos. Have fun!
Marilyn mentioned a workshop where they used puffy fabric paint to outline the letters and draw the lines, and then dropped paint inside to colour the letters. For the May program we came with pencil crayons, but colour can be added with any type of media (paint, pastels, ink, etc.). You can also fill segments in with zentangles or decorative doodles, and once you start experimenting, it is hard to stop. As Shirley Johnson said, “It is quite addictive.” So consider yourself warned!
You start by drawing a fairly thick upper or lower case letter. Draw an outline around it with a thinner pen, so that there will be a narrow band of white space around each letter. With the same thinner pen, draw double lines randomly through the drawn letter. These lines need to extend
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May Galleria
Submitted by Alane Lalonde The May galleria was to create a piece that expressed an oldfashioned idea. It was to be done in tones of sepia or browns to emulate the qualities of elderliness. The submissions were interesting and there were some very good teaching moments with Betty Locke leading the way.
Betty described Marion Craig’s piece as a ‘joy’ with an intricate tea set and different tea pots pasted on. The proportions are not in sync with the sizes, but Marion has lots of guts and can get away with it. Marion used pencil crayons, pigma pens and watercolour and let the artwork lead her.
Betty stated that this is a very courageous and absolutely beautiful piece by Shirley Johnson. It was styled after the Debbie Thompson Wilson workshop. Shirley told us that the dragon was hard to do but the ‘W’ gave her the most difficulty. It becomes so lush and begins to lose itself. She had a dilemma in the bottom right corner and wished she had put in some leaves. When doing a Chaucer quote, you try to keep up with the words and spelling, making it a challenge.
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Joyce Gammie says that this was a last minute thing. She found a calendar picture, put it into iPhoto, chose the sepia settings, and printed it on Arches text-wove paper. She didn’t have to add any color. She used the Copperplate hand. Betty says there are lovely lines and that a muse holds her hand.
Betty says she loves the art quality of Marilyn Boechler’s Girl with Chickens piece with its lovely lines and realistic chickens. Marilyn used a pen with walnut ink to draw her. The tree was an afterthought stemming from a mistake. Betty says that the child and tree are beautiful. Her lettering uses an Italic hand. Betty says that the tree really adds to it. A note about drawing rules: Adult humans are 7 ½ heads high.
Betty Locke created her piece using dirty grays and browns in 17 layers and left some space whiter. When she was done she stated that she wasn’t happy with it. She felt that the white made a contrast. This was one of her favourite quotes. She stated that she has redone it.
Betty loves Judy Lowood’s piece done in Blackletter - nicely done. She says that it has a formality to it, but also informality and that she took on a very big task. Judy mixed black and green teas creating a moldy look. Betty was fond of the little hearts.
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Anne Atkinson’s galleria piece was about silence. Betty said that it was lovely to have three quotes on the same theme.
Trudy Kungold Ammann wanted to show us how we can antique paper by taking an old slightly yellowed piece of sheet music and crumpling it by pressing it into a tight ball a couple of times to get broken lines. Flatten it and do a wash of burnt sienna and burnt umber, and finish by blotting it with burnt umber. Trudy has been asked to share her wash techniques in a later program.
Ria Lewis said that she wrote on a brown paper bag and then crumpled it. She glued it onto paper, used a sponge with walnut ink and then ripped it by hand. Betty says it has an interesting and enticing border around it. Good solid advices from the past. Betty says that it catches the light well.
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Marilyn Lundstrom did two pieces and this one was a crumpled paper bag. Although the bag was old, she used paint with gold, but it is dark and not enough contrast. Betty thinks that it is quite gutsy and that it is very hard to do this. If she went black on brown she could have had more contrast.
The 125th Anniversary of St. Francis Xavier Church Submitted by Linda Yaychuk St. Francis Xavier Church is a beautiful, quaint, little church tucked away just off the highway on Kilmalu Road, Mill Bay. On September 8th they celebrated their 125th anniversary. We were lucky enough to be asked to man a booth during their celebration. Jane Taylor and I answered the call.
of the steps a monk went through to create a book from scraping the skins to binding the finished product. Another board explained how the term “penknife” arose. There was a photograph and description of Judy Lowood’s sterling silver penknife which was used by her great grandfather to sharpen the quills he used to keep books for his business in England. We were also lucky enough to have a special penknife made for Betty Locke by a knife maker. Her name is engraved on the blade. Joyce Gammie lent us a beautiful chart which explained the steps to cutting a quill pen.
then the children used the ones we provided to write or draw. We had calligraphy books available for people to peruse. The Visconti Hours interested a number of people and we were asked were it could be purchased. A number of members provided pieces to be displayed. These were very much admired and our thanks go out to those who generously provided materials.
The activities were varied. A board held a number of copies of illuminated
The Anniversary celebration started off with a parade made up of the church’s priest and the congregation. Some children enjoyed using the feather quills as well as the other tools.
Since they were celebrating the history of their church, we were asked to link calligraphy to religion. What a great opportunity for research. We were quite proud of our booth and received many positive comments.
Visiting priests also took part in the celebration.
Our booth was made up of a number of information boards as well as activities. One information board consisted of pictures and explanations
pictures from the Visconti Hours pertaining to bible stories and participants were asked to guess the bible story. The answer was hidden under a flap under each picture. A number of calligraphy tools were provided for people to try out. There was also a number of letters drawn for them to copy. Some of the children did very well-definitely future calligraphers.
The most unusual and exciting presentation was a page from a Book of Hours written in Rouen, France in 1490. Barbara Qualley generously lent us the document for the day. Needless to say people were very impressed with the piece. Our booth was well received and enjoyed by the participants of the celebration. We received many words of thanks and appreciation for participating.
The activity that was the most popular was writing with feather quills. Thanks to Betty Locke I was able to demonstrate how to make one and
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The Artful Flourish with Heather Victoria Held Submitted by a Charlotte Whiteley woods. Heather is basically self-taught and sought out advice from the experts as she started to master styles. By 2009 Heather was teaching flourishing techniques. She credits so much to her mentors and instructors, one of these being Dr. Joe Vitolo. Today Heather sits on the executive of “IAMPETH”
On September 20-21, 2012, fifteen members of Warmland Calligraphers were treated to a fabulous workshop with Heather Victoria Held. I started to rewrite my notes when I got home and realized how much valuable information was imparted from this talented gal. Each student received an eighteen page manual with Heather’s favourite materials, techniques, exercises, hints, examples of flourishes and website references. We enjoyed two very full days of soulful playing and learning. Heather started to play (as she likes to call it) about nine years ago after receiving a calligraphy pen from her husband. Today they make beautiful nib holders out of ancient and exotic
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When this class was announced I was a little apprehensive about signing up for it. I thought I would be very frustrated trying to create nice curves and details; it looked way beyond my skill level. But Heather presented the progression of the pieces so well. It was a bit like taking baby steps to a very impressive outcome. Thank you
and is preparing for the 2013 conference. We suggested to her that they think about having it in Seattle. Day One started with tips on proper posture, pen holding, materials and why she chose certain nibs and inks. We warmed up with our pencils just making ovals and more ovals. From there we made figure eight designs. As the day progressed we learned to move from simple curves to compound curves. Soon we were adding great accents and designs. We learned new vocabulary and how to add interest with colours and metallic details. The day practically flew by. There is something very Zen-like when doing flourishing.
Betty for making me experience feelings of guilt to sign up so we can fill up a class. I would have hated to miss this one. Heather makes it all look so easy but she told us in confidence that when she first started she went through 13 reams (a ream is 500 sheets ), of paper. By the end of this two-day workshop, we were creating beautiful flourished borders, plumes, swags, scrolls, free and constrained shapes, Christmas card ideas, flowers, birds and the list goes on. Each student did
no fewer than seven flourishing pieces with some students being more productive and some even did homework after day one. Wait until you see the Christmas cards this year!
One of the best tips Heather gave to us is to not fight with your materials, you will pay for it! If you are trying out a
Another tip was never stir your Dr. Ph. Marten’s Bleed Proof White ink to the bottom of the jar. Add only a few drops of distilled water on the top and only stir the top 1/8 to 1/4 inch down. If you stir to the bottom of the jar the ink will become gummy and you will want to throw it out or across the room. An ink such as Indian ink contains shellac and will not work well in your pens. Walnut ink is not waterproof and is not suitable for flourishing work.
I really could go on and on about all the neat tools she showed us, the wonderful techniques and reference materials she shared with us but there isn’t enough paper and time to do so. These websites are worth checking out and I hope they will inspire you: www.iampeth.com, and www.zanerian.com. Heather suggests you check out the Clinton Scrapbook for accent strokes and C. C. Canan’s Collection on Penmanship for Illustrative Flourishes. www.pastestudio.ca is a site to order Dianne Townsend’s Terrages Pastels. John Decollibus’ site www.beyondwordsscript.com is truly inspirational. http://www.penpeople.org.uk/ groups.htm for more information on Brian Walker and find out more about the Spencerian study group and information for ordering this newsletter, Spencerian Review for about £15.00. And last but not least Heather’s websites, www.heathervictoriaheld.com, www.inkflourishes.blogspot.com and heather@heathervictoriaheld.com Reference books: Ornate Pictorial Calligraphy by E.A.Lupfer. Spencerian Script and Ornamental Penmanship Volume II by Michael Sull, An Elegant Hand by William E. Henning and The Universal Penman by George Bickham the Elder.
new nib, buy three to give it a good test. Do your work on dark paper as the details will stand out and you can critique yourself better. It is all fine to practise but the key is to study your work. If your eye begins to see it, your hand will perceive it better. Study the masters. Journal your progress and make notes for yourself.
At the end of the day Heather told us to keep practising, keep playing and to keep in touch. She would be more than happy to advise and guide us. Thank you for a great workshop, Heather. Photo Credits: Barbara Qualley. All artwork (except the Rose border piece done by Charlotte Whiteley) is by Heather Victoria Held and is reproduced with her permission.
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Judy Matheson Honorary Life Membership Submitted by Barb Qualley Judy joined Warmland Calligraphers in 1996. During her membership she edited the newsletter for 3 years, printed the newsletter for a total of 4 years, and was the Treasurer for 9 years. Judy taught 'kitchen table' classes and workshops in several hands.
May 1999 newsletter cover was contributed by Judy. Judy now resides in a seniors' home in Chilliwack and her address is in our Roster.
Judy's calligraphic studies began with a book and self-teaching. However, when she discovered the Westcoast Calligraphy Society in Vancouver, she had proper teachers, studied a variety of hands and developed her recognizable style. Judy was also a master at intricate Celtic knot work.
At the November General Meeting, it was unanimously voted by the membership that Judy Matheson be presented with a life membership.
Due to arthritic fingers and tricky eyesight, Judy no longer does calligraphy. Of course her love of the written word carries on and Judy has a Martin Jackson fish print hanging on her wall.
Betty Locke prepared the certificate and on Saturday, December 8, 2012 Barbara Qualley presented Judy with her life membership in Warmland Calligraphers.
Look for Judy's work from Galleria's in newsletters to 2005. There are articles on Judy in the February 2003 and October 2006 newsletters, and the
Cowichan Library Display Our beautiful library display impressed many people and convinced two new members to join our Guild.
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September Program Submitted by Lucy Hylkema Connie Furgason gave a presentation for our September Program that she calls “Scrappy Bits”, although she said it could also be subtitled, “The Book of Hour”. There is no way that one article can capture the amount of information and enthusiasm that Connie delivers in an hour. Our Guild is very lucky that she lives only an hour away, and the idea that you can accomplish art in an hour all seems to tie in with her subtitle… although it doesn't have to be a book, you can collage scraps onto canvas and paper too.
and a journal to begin with means that you do not have to drag out all your art supplies before you can even get started. Connie uses a UHU glue stick for most papers, slightly watered down white/PVA glue for fabric and watercolour paper. Her cutting tends to be a bit random (the scissors move fairly quickly!) and journals can range from those cheap small notebooks from the corner store, up to handmade ones. Journals are a good starting point because they are not intimidating, but this idea of gluing a few little pieces you really like, onto a bigger piece of paper, or canvas, can create a “launching point for a piece.”
give it time, put it aside for awhile, try adding things to it later. I left the meeting feeling filled with possibilities and ideas. Connie’s parting words were ones I shall try to take to heart, “Don't hesitate, that’s it, and it is okay.”
The finished project
From left to right; Jim Wisnia, Barb Galeski, Marilyn Silver and Denise Rothney.
Connie Furgason
Connie’s presentation deals with what to do with those pieces of calligraphy and art that did not work out, those practice sheets that have really good bits on them, those bits and pieces from magazines/brochures/business cards, and even fabric that you are in love with. Her main message is “just start doing,” and this technique of gluing little bits of stuff into a journal, or using them as a starting point for another piece, makes the ‘starting’ and the ‘doing’ relatively simple. Artistically, the idea of using left over bits takes a lot of the pressure off creating something perfect. Practically, the idea of just using glue, scissors
Her idea is to interject a bit of randomness into your art, while also paying attention to white space, contrast, connection and transition…and she makes it look like fun. As Connie says it's a “gluey-in, type of book” so we don't have to take it too seriously, and we can play with colour and shape and texture, and we can start to notice what works for us. If it is not working,
Thank You The following people provided many of the photographs in this issue. Hans van der Werff Pauline Thompson Liz Moss Susan Miller Barbara Qualley
Welcome The following people have recently joined our guild.
Ria Lewis and Lenore Le May
Barb Galeski Eunice Champion Mieke van der Vliet Rocke Wightman
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September Galleria Submitted by Jane Taylor This month’s galleria was based on a prescribed quote about butterflies. The critique was led by Betty Locke.
Linda Yaychuk produced a beautiful calligraphic piece done in black, red, gold and white. It took Linda as long to do the word ‘butterflies’ as it did to do the rest of the piece. She felt it should have a larger matte, that it was too close to the piece. Betty suggested that perhaps fewer lettering styles should be used in a short piece and that Linda could take the flourish on butterflies up into the text..
Shirley Johnson created her beautiful piece using a simple Roman monoline. Betty suggested that perhaps it should not have quite so many mattes around it. Shirley would have liked a square frame for the piece. Betty loved the ‘ou’ in the word ‘would’ and the ‘s’ in butterflies which is similar to Frank Lloyd Wright’s style. The gorgeous butterfly was from a workshop by Debbie Thompson Wilson..
Betty said Susan Miller’s piece was done in a beautiful copperplate hand.. She used the same beautiful butterfly design as Shirley Johnson. She struggled to make an uppercase ‘I’ in copperplate. Susan had trouble with her nib catching in the paper. A change of nib and ink didn’t help. It was suggested that her name be higher up on the page to avoid drawing attention to the corner.
Leslie Healy presented her work as a framed piece. Betty thought it was wonderful. It was done in the upper register and was very uplifting and beautiful. Betty thought the size of the butterfly suited the tiny hand. Leslie felt there should be more white around the quote.
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Barbara Qualley used zentangles in her piece as well. Betty felt the use of dots on all the ascenders was lovely. Barbara wanted the hand to look like antennae.
Denise Rothney had this idea in her head since last May or June and it grew over the summer. She was pleased with it as it happened the way she imagined and this rarely occurs. She loves the black and white contrast of the zentangles. Illustrations were done using watercolours. Betty said Denise used a wonderful repetition of the quote and that the small border made the foreground come forward.
Lenore Le May presented two versions of the same quote with just the colour of the butterflies altered. It was felt that the orange butterflies were not as well spaced. Lenore had moved the butterflies down to accommodate a frame. The white butterflies make the piece feel light. The large ‘B’ was done in such a manner as to reflect the shape of a butterfly. Lenore says she achieved the picture that she had in mind when she originally thought of this piece.
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Bettty Locke wanted to make the word ‘butterflies’ look like what they do. In her second piece she wanted to do the quote without a picture of a butterfly. It was agreed that lovely results were achieved in both pieces.
Betty stated that Ria Lewis’ piece had a real intellectual quality, with beautiful perspective. It was noted that both the text and illustrations increase in size as they go down the page. The lettering was done after the illustrations using a C4 nib. It was felt that the butterflies had a ‘Mexican’ look.
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Betty loved the feeling of Marion Craig’s piece. She felt the butterflies gave it a beautiful feeling. Marion used the French word ‘papillion’, meaning butterfly to make a connection with the picture of the French girl. Betty suggested that Marion could pull down, the red word butterfly into the word papillion in order to connect the two. The final line is beautiful. Marion thought she might use this for a birthday card.
Anne Atkinson created a very exciting piece using a card format. She put the quote on the outside and the butterfly art on the inside. Judy Lowood’s piece reminded Betty of Timothy Botts’ style. Judy used Lisa Engelbrecht’s work for inspiration to ‘free herself up a bit’. She just ‘winged it’. Betty felt you could see the freedom and that it was a lovely piece which ‘draws your attention’. Friskett was used to maintain the white of the lines.
Pat Wheatley created her own quote as she found the suggested quote a little boring. Betty’s eye was drawn to this piece from afar. She liked the sweetness of the butterflies. Pat used a modern cursive italic which was difficult to write on the paper she chose. Pat was not really happy with the background placement of the butterflies.
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Weaver Writing Workshop With Marilyn Lundstrom Submitted by Linda Yaychuk
descenders. The letters are also formed by using heavy-light-heavy pressure on the strokes. There are no capitals. We started by using a pencil and regular strokes to learn the shape of each letter. When we came to y, s, g and j it took a while to master the huge oval descenders which extend to the left of the letter. r, k, w and v are quite attractive with their long ascending hairline strokes.
Marilyn was very helpful in getting around to everyone in spite of the huge class size.
Four years ago Marilyn Lundstrom and a number of other Guild members took a two-day course in Duncan with Gwen Weaver. Gwen had created a hand known as Weaver Writing which has become very popular. Certain members, such as myself, were anxious to learn this hand and we were able to persuade Marilyn to give a two-morning workshop. It was in such demand that the enrolment went over the maximum. The workshop was as informative and enjoyable as we expected. Weaver Writing is a fun hand to use. It is made up of small ovals, used in about one-third of the alphabet, and huge
Marilyn gives some assistance to Denise Rothney.
On the second morning, after some practice pieces, Marilyn showed us how to make the heavy-light-heavy strokes that make up the letters. After working with a pencil we moved to a pointed pen and ink. It took a bit of practice to get the strokes down properly but we were quite pleased with the results. Marilyn gave us a quote to write and suddenly we realized the importance of planning the layout as the huge descenders require more than the normal space between the lines. We also wrote the same quote in a smaller size which was quite interesting.
Marilyn Silver is practicing the Weaver hand.
This hand is appropriate for cards or light hearted pieces. It also works well when emphasizing a word in a text. Our thanks go to Marilyn for giving us a chance to learn this whimsical and unusual hand. Look for it in the Christmas card section of this newsletter. Lenore Le May and Liz MacDonald are having a great time.
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Westcoast Odyssey Of Letters (W.O.O.L.) Submitted by Trudy Kungold Ammann, Liz Moss, and Marilyn Silver In September, seven of our members attended the Westcoast Odyssey Of Letters conference held in Vancouver. The following are comments and photographs of their enjoyable experiences.
Members who attended are Hans van der Werff, June Maffin, Susan Miller, Liz Moss. Pauline Thompson and Marilyn Silver
Trudy Kungold Ammann found Connie Furgason’s workshop on Free Versals an adventure into a fun calligraphy form. She felt the very free, loose versals were a fabulous addition to many projects. Their structure allows the addition of watercolour and experimentation. They are complimentary to line drawings and provide contrast to other alphabets. Connie encouraged them to introduce colours that reflected the topic of their text and to limit the free versals to a title or focus word as overuse can make a piece busy and difficult to read. The word itself can dictate what spacing will look best and to what degree the design details are utilized. Have fun and play was frequently repeated.
Cards made using Die Cut and Embossing machines.
At Station#3, we used an embossing pen on Stonehenge paper, sprinkled gold embossing powder on it and heated it. A raised or embossed letter resulted which we then washed with water followed by a wash of walnut ink.
Marilyn Silver wrote: Brigitte Stermann’s Workshop was titled Visual Chemistry and provided a hands-on experience using the principals of design. Participants combined the basic rules of design and added their own creativity to make a visually pleasing collage from materials supplied by the instructor. Brigitte is a graphic designer and member of the Westcoast Calligraphy Society in Vancouver.
Modern Gilding using metal stencil, glue and transfer foil.
Liz Moss wrote: Efficient and organized, Suzanne Cannon had set up five stations with all necessary equipment provided and set up in sequential order of use. We were also given two sheets outlining each technique thoroughly. We began at “Modern Gilding” where we used a metal stencil, covered it with a glue compound, and then removed the stencil. We waited until the glue was tacky and then applied metallic foil. Voila! Ready for letters. Station #2 was a demonstration of Die Cutting using Cuttlebug and Spellbinder equipment. Connie Furgason and the Versals class
Suzanne demonstrates one of the machines used to emboss or die cut.
At Station#4 we embossed a piece of paper with an embossing machine and moved on to station #5. Here we used sticky snowflakes which we decorated with glitter and markers. We then attached them to our embossed papers from Station #4. All in all a very productive morning followed by a box lunch and another class in the afternoon.
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Christmas Card Exchange by Alane Lalonde
Janet Peters
Trudy Kungold Ammann
Anne Atkinson
Denise Rothney
Mary Nelson
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Mieke van der Vliet
Above picture shows the inside of the card by Hans van der Werff and below shows the outside of the card by his wife, June Maffin. June shared with us that the outside of the card would be decided by the toss of a coin and she won.
Linda Yaychuk
Ria Lewis
Ida Marie Threadkell
Marilyn Boechler
Trish Peebles
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Gillian Mouat
Pat Wheatley
Betty Locke
Marion Craig
Lenore Le May
Brigitte French
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Judy Lowood
Marilyn Silver
Muriel Heggie
Carolynn Dallaire
Charolotte Whiteley
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October Galleria Submitted by Jane Taylor The challenge for October was to do a piece on black paper. Judy Lowood led the discussion. She began by reading from a booklet that Betty Locke had done on Critique. “The job of a critic is not to say a work is good or bad or I like it or I hate it. It is his job to say what is available to the eye and to engender conversation from the artist and the group. In our group, critique is acknowledgement, enjoyment and learning from the process through which the artist has gone. It is a time when we come together with pleasure to offer encouragement to those who have bared their artistic souls to produce something intrinsic to themselves.” Again this month we see beautiful examples of our members’ ‘artistic souls’.
Marion Kelbrick’s quote is from Robert Service. The piece had a lovely flow and really conveyed the idea of Northern Lights. It was felt that it was a good idea to put the colour down through the text. The piece was done on black construction paper.
Pat Wheatley used a Zebra nib, gold gouache and Heather Victoria Held’s technique to create the dandelion. The lettering was done using a pressure/release technique. It was felt that highlighting the o’s brought it altogether and that the gold dots in the dandelion were a nice touch.
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Marilyn Lundstrom’s piece reflects a course taken from Diane Von Arx in pen versals. She used Roman capitals and three colours of gauche white, gold and black.. The effect was achieved by not cleaning your nib between the loading of different colours. The placement of the dots was thought to be very effective.
Anne Berens completed a piece on ‘that old black magic’ using jelly roll pens and some touches of gold pen as well. The quote was well placed on the page.
Charlotte Whiteley produced a 3 dimensional piece that incorporated cut-out paper techniques as well as some of the skills she learned in Heather Held’s flourishing workshop. She tried to use a simple cartouche and gel pens. It was felt that the raw edge on top was very effective.
To achieve the gorgeous colours in her piece Linda Yaychuk used Prang metallic watercolours. The accents were done using pressed leaves. She then went back in, to add the flourishes. Linda said she struggled with the upstrokes of the copperplate lettering, for which she used a Zebra nib.
Joyce Gammie’s piece really ‘pops out’ at you. She used Fine Tec paints for both the background colour and the gold writing. She used Saral wax-free transfer paper which is erasable and is available at Scott’s in Duncan. This is going to be a birthday card.
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Anne Atkinson produced two pieces for this theme. Her inspiration was ‘that old black magic’. It must have cast a spell on her because she did it on white first and then on the black. It was felt that she did an amazing job. The folding itself was ‘magical’.
Betty Locke made excellent use of the knowledge she acquired from the Heather Victoria Held ‘s flourishing workshop. It is a beautiful piece which incorporates both the roses and some of the flourishes. Betty used a white pencil crayon to sketch and then Dr. Martin’s Bleed Proof White.
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Judy Lowood found that using cardstock for her piece was a bad idea. Her pen kept sticking and she found the Dr. Martin’s Bleed Proof White hard to use.
Goya’s painting entitled ‘The Bewitched Man’ was the inspiration for Marion Craig’s piece. The idea for the scroll came from Heather Victoria Held’s workshop. Marion has used different hands and colours which blend very well together.
Barbara Qualley’s piece was done on Canson paper using Dr. Martin’s bleed proof ink. The dots were done with a gel pen. It was felt that her flourishes and leaves were lovely. Another beautiful example of the skills learned in Heather Victoria Held’s workshop. Shirley Johnson did this colourful alphabet in Neuland. Letters were done using a sponge on a brush. She achieved her lovely results using pastels on top of gouache. She did most of the piece upside down. The letters were outlined in Dr. Martin’s Bleed Proof White and a Jellyroll pen was used for the small letters.
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October Program
Submitted by Lucy Hylkema
College, where the conference was held. He is considered the “father of West Coast calligraphy”, and it turns out that Steve Jobs was one of his students! But he is also known for his weathergrams, and Barbara had many slides showing them hanging in the trees all around the campus. They are narrow pieces of paper with messages and quotes that he has written out on them. The papers are left on the tree to fall off naturally and biodegrade. Barbara gave me a link to the website that shows how to make these beautiful and meaningful pieces of transient calligraphy: www.popcanpen.com/ how_to/howto_make% 20_weathergram.html. Reed College, Portland, Oregon
Barbara also included a few slides of the many, many calligraphy and art supplies available at Calligraphy Northwest. Both Paper and Ink Arts, which specialize in calligraphic and book makers supplies, and John Neal Booksellers were at the conference. The number of supplies and specialty books that were available were amazing, and very tempting. I know our library has some new books from there, and I am looking forward to checking them out.
October's program was a Powerpoint presentation given by Barbara Qualley, who had gone to Calligraphy Northwest International Conference in Portland, Oregon this summer. Actually quite a few of our members attended, and it sounds as if it was a very good time, calligraphically and otherwise!
Weathergrams
I have included some of the slides that Barbara took, because her presentation is definitely a case of “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Barbara spent some time talking about Lloyd Reynolds who taught at Reed
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The two courses that Barbara took were Lyrical Lombardics with Harvest Crittenden, and Gilding on Vellum with Reggie Ezell. The slideshow showed some of the stunning work from these courses. Luckily for us, Barbara also had slides from the many other workshops being given so we all got a taste of what was offered at this conference. These slides made me appreciate just how much a conference has to offer participants; you are exposed to so many possibilities, and can see professional works alongside students’ achievements…oh! and you can shop (and get great goodie bags when you arrive).
I would like to thank Barb for creating such an interesting and complete overview of the conference. Her enthusiasm has me thinking I need to go to one too…and soon!
Calligraphy Northwest Conference Gilding on Vellum with Reggie Ezell
In June, seven of our Guild members set off for Portland, Oregon to attend a week long conference. They were Joyce Gammie, Marilyn Boechler, Marilyn Lundstrom, Carolynn Dallaire, Barbara Qualley, Susan Miller and Gwyneth Evans. The following are comments the girls wrote about their experiences. Lyrical Lombardics with Harvest Crittenden This was my first formal class on laying gold on paper. Harvest was well prepared and taught us lots of techniques. I took a ton of photos, but would love to take another class to reinforce the information in my mind.
the variations. Submitted by Joyce Gammie and Marilyn Boechler. Copperplate Variations with Pat Blair Pat’s class was very good with lots of encouragement and demonstrations. There were fifteen in the class and Pat tried to get around to each one of us for a critique but it didn’t always work out that way.
Oh wait! I DID take another class to reinforce the information. There was a twist though. Instead of gilding on 140lb Arches Hot Press, we were now gilding on vellum. Yup. Calf skin. It has to be prepared by sanding it to a smooth finish: either by hand, or with a Random Orbital Palm Sander. I hope Stew has one! Sanding by hand is tedious. As the old school scribes knew: it is beautiful to write on. Reggie was exceedingly well prepared, but I was pleased to have Harvest's technical information to add to Reggie's practical. When queried, he said that this 2 1/2 day class was cramming in about a four day workshop. He wasn't striving for perfection, but for the experience. Our practice would produce 'perfection'. Don't get me wrong he taught us very well.
We learned a lot about nibs, inks and paper suitable for Copperplate. We also learned what being a White House Calligrapher entailed. Pat has a calm patient manner about her and as a beginner in this script I certainly appreciated the pace of her instructions.
I would take another workshop from either one in a flash. Submitted by Barb Qualley
This is the letter that Barbara Qualley created in Harvest’s class.
Reggie Ezell Blackletters and Beyond This inspirational, fast-paced class introduced several variations to the formal blackletter hand. Reggie's Elvis style showed how one could modernize a very traditional hand. We experimented with several different types of paper and ways to treat them for lettering. The ink jet prints on watercolour paper. This opened up a lot of possibilities. We came away with two samplers incorporating all
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The Primary Palette with Sheila Waters
down and get it done. The recommended reading was Blue and Yellow Don’t Make Green by Michael Wilcox. It is a wonderful book which clears up many misconceptions about colour mixing. It explains how we can paint more efficiently and with less waste. “Among other things, you will discover that yellow and blue do not make green, that the artist’s primary colours, pure red, yellow and blue do not exist…” (Wilcox)
Sheila’s class was chock full of laughs and stories and if you could walk and chew gum (paint and listen) there was a wealth of learning to be had.
The girls enjoy lunch in the cafeteria.
I was intrigued with Sheila’s stories and wealth of knowledge.
I loved her humour. When asked about the size of ascenders, descenders and waistlines Sheila threw up her hands and said “Oh get me out of this prison!!!” I think she meant don’t sweat it, get some lines
This was one of the many pieces hung in the halls of the college upon arrival.
Barbara Qualley, Joyce Gammie and Marilyn Boechler enjoying the beauty of the school grounds.
You Can’t Stop Betty Submitted by Linda Yaychuk At a recent Executive meeting a number of plans for workshops etc. were being put forth. Betty seemed to be the only one qualified to handle them and therefore was called upon again and again to volunteer. “Oh I guess so. I can handle it.” was her repeated reply. That’s when I decided that this was the moment to give Betty a helping hand when it came to volunteering. I gave her a napkin with the caption “Stop me before I volunteer again.” Do you think she’ll get the hint?
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Exposé
Submitted by Ria Lewis
Lahr. She stayed 4 years and made many lifelong friends from all over Canada. Joyce took advantage of the opportunity to travel and visited many countries which gave her some incredible experiences.
Joyce Gammie was born on December 4, 1937 in the Duncan Kings Daughter’s Hospital. For most of her life she has lived on Vancouver Island, in Duncan, Chemainus, and Port Alberni. Her parents owned various restaurants in Duncan and Joyce worked as a short order cook and waitress during her teenage years and again, part time for several years during and after her teacher training. Joyce’s formal education occurred in the Duncan area where she graduated from Cowichan High School in 1955. She attended one year of Normal School in Victoria and at age 50 earned her Bachelor of Education degree after spending many years of completing courses at summer and night school. At age 18, Joyce started her teaching career in Port Alberni where, in her first year, she taught 40 children in a split 2/3 grade. She was a primary teacher in Port Alberni, Ladysmith, Chemainus and Duncan.
Joyce’s daughter, Sandra, accompanied her to Lahr where she met her future husband, also a Canadian. Sandra ended up staying in Germany for another ten years. Joyce’s first two grandchildren were born there which gave her the opportunity to return often for a visit. Her daughter with family returned to Canada in 1994. Joyce’s travels have taken her across
Beautiful embossing
three continents. She has visited central Europe, Canada, the United States and Australia. She also visited Kenya, Great Britain, Russia, Egypt and New Zealand. Her favourite trip was to Kenya where she stayed for one week
Joyce met her husband, Sandy while working at the Greenhaven restaurant during her high school years. They started dating at age 15 and were married at 21. Sandy passed away in 1975.
While living in Europe, Joyce visited several East Bloc countries. She was amazed at how gray and drab everything looked; from the people to the buildings, everything seemed colourless. There were very few gardens or flowers, such a contrast to West Germany. Line ups were a way of life where stores limited the number of customers allowed to enter the premises. Berlin was fascinating with its Wall and surrounding “no man’s land.” Crossing from west to east Berlin was an unsettling experience. Joyce traveled through the Balkan region, in particular to Albania which had recently opened its borders to tourists. However, no Americans were allowed to enter. They were quite a novelty to the general population and everything stopped when their bus drove by. Visiting Albania reminded Joyce of living in the 1940s with only a ball of string and brown paper to wrap purchases, and old style telephones and appliances. There were virtually no cars on the roads. Another dream had been to travel to Egypt. Cruising the Nile was everything Joyce had hoped for and visiting the pyramids and ancient temples with all their hieroglyphics was just amazing.
Joyce has a son and daughter. Her son, Dean, lives nearby in Crofton where he works at the Catalyst paper mill. Joyce’s daughter, Sandra, with husband, Rick, and three children live in Sydney, Australia, where Rick is employed by Costco. In 1980 Joyce left Vancouver Island and moved to southern Germany where she had been hired by the Canadian Department of National Defence to teach at a military school in the town of
at a resort on the Indian Ocean and went on safari for another week. The safari covered four game parks. Traveling to Kenya was a lifelong dream come true. Joyce was able to experience and see, up close, just about any African animal you could imagine: lions lazing in the sun, elephants and giraffes grazing among the trees, herds of wildebeest, zebras and countless gazelles of all types. The flamingos on Lake Nakuru were countless. A special highlight was a visit to a Masai village where Joyce was invited into a mud hut where a family of six and several animals lived together.
Calligraphy on a photograph
Joyce started her visit to Russia in Moscow where she saw all of the highlights. Red Square and St. Basil’s cathedral made a particular impression. She cruised the river system from Moscow to St. Petersburg and along the way stopped at many interesting small
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villages. The palaces in and around St. Petersburg were awe-inspiring. The stark contrast between the opulence of St. Petersburg and the simplicity of the villages was quite obvious. Her travels through Britain, on the “wrong” side of the road, took her to many beautiful sights and gardens. Five weeks in New Zealand and six weeks traveling eastern Australia were all great experiences. Marilyn Boechler has been a great travel companion ever since she visited Joyce in Germany in 1981. When Joyce retired in 1996, she started to volunteer as a driver for Meals on Wheels. This continued for 14 years. Most recently, she has been a volunteer flower arranger at Government House in Victoria. In 2006/07 Joyce took an extensive course in Victoria to become a qualified Floral Design Judge. She is called upon regularly to judge at various flower shows in local fairs and garden clubs. Other hobbies include calligraphy, lawn bowling and curling. Her interest in calligraphy started in 2000 when she took a Foundational/B nib course from
Arrangers’ Show. While there, she is planning to explore more of the Emerald Isle.
Ayer’s Rock, Australia
Betty Locke. Joyce is a member of the Warmland Calligraphers’ Guild, where she presently serves as president. She also is a member of the Cowichan Valley Garden Club, the Victoria Flower Arrangers’ Guild, the Cowichan Lawn Bowling Club and the Duncan Seniors’ Curling League.
I want to thank Joyce for sharing her many fascinating experiences. No doubt her many skills and talents serve her well in her various activities and volunteer work. Thank you, Joyce.
Her busy life includes a love of books, good food, theatre, music and dance. She has been a season’s pass holder for the Chemainus Theatre since it opened. Attending the live feeds from the Met in New York is a particular enjoyment. Through all her activities and involvement in several clubs, Joyce stays very active and enjoys learning new skills and meeting new people. Her future plans include a visit to family in Sydney, Australia and in 2013 she is planning a trip to Ireland to attend the World Association of Flower
Editor’s Message I wish to extend my thanks again to the wonderful group of women responsible for organizing and recording all of the guild activities that have taken place over the last six months. Thanks also to those people who have spent time taking pictures and passing them on to committee members and to those who wrote up the articles for workshops. We cannot produce a newsletter without you. A particular thank you goes to Susan Miller who provided many pictures and articles for this edition. Of course, where would we be without Charlotte Whiteley who is still working behind the scenes getting us out of hot water. As I suspected, we have experienced problems related to organization and communication which will hopefully be overcome and dealt with as we prepare for the next Newsletter. We knew this would be a learning experience and it certainly has. I want to extend my apologies now for any misinformation, names missed in accreditations or articles, unused articles or pictures etc. Mistakes happen but I'm willing to be forgiven.
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Carousel Books with Carolynn Dallaire Submitted by Linda Yaychuk ( I know I've never given one.) All the materials were cut to the various sizes we needed but we still had choices in colours and patterns. The Carousel Books are made up of two hard covers and several special pages containing three dimensional scenes or collages. The covers are opened and tied back to back so that the scenes are viewed like a carousel and the book can sit opened on a flat surface.
Carolynn showed us a number of books she had created including one she made for Betty recording her various trips.
What a fantastic workshop. These articles are not meant to be written from a personal point of view but I am taking liberties. The books we made became very personal to some of us so I feel it is appropriate to report on it this way. I don't think I have ever attended a workshop that was so well organized.
Carolynn began by showing us some of the books she had made. Generally they were created around a theme. She showed us the one she had created for Betty Locke which was based on the travels of Betty and her husband.
Betty created cut-outs for her book of quotes.
The pages of the book are made into three dimensional scenes containing pictures, quotes, comments and embellishments. Carolynn demonstrated how to glue decorative papers onto our covers, how to fold and arrange the pages and then how to sew them all together. We spent the afternoon constructing the pages of our books. Betty Locke wanted to do something a little different so she created decorative cut outs to go with her quotes. She said that at first she was a bit hesitant about taking the course as she hadn’t made books before but found it to be absolutely delightful.
This is a page from Betty’s book showing the cut-outs and flourishes she used.
Liz MacDonald created a book for her daughter’s 50th birthday. It contained photos of milestones in her daughter’s life as well as peek-a-boos and embellishments pertaining to her daughter’s interests. Liz said her daughter was very moved by the special gift and daughter #2 is hoping for one too.
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Hopefully you were able to see some of them at our October meeting. They will be displayed at the Loft Show in January and February.
Liz MacDonald and Anne Atkinson discuss their books over a wee cup of coffee at break time.
One of Lenore Le May’s interests is quilting. For her book she actually created a tiny quilt to be part of a scene in her pages. Liz Moss chose to put a cord at the top of her binding so it could hang from the ceiling when opened. Pauline Thompson had kept pictures and mementoes of her visit to her
What a great day we had. Carolynn is such a good teacher, explaining the steps slowly and clearly. If you get a chance to take a workshop from her you won’t be disappointed. You can line up behind me. Thank you so much Carolynn for a job well done.
At the end of the session Carolynn had us display our books on the table so we could all have a good look at what everyone had done.
brother’s place in Florida. Her book became a keepsake gift of that visit to thank them for the special things they had done while they were there and to show how much they had enjoyed the visit. For my aunt’s birthday I created a party with an Asian theme and dressed her as a Geisha complete with white make-up. I used the photos to create a keepsake for my aunt and decorated it with Asian motifs. The rest of the books had brilliant themes and were very beautiful.
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Cherish your mistakes. They give you something to strive for. Carolynn demonstrated how to use the various tools needed to create the book.
Betty Locke
Jottings From the Library Submitted by Pat Wheatley delight—such a contrast in calligraphy to the previously described additions. Also purchased, Italic and Copperplate Calligraphy by Eleanor Winters, has wide appeal in its subject matter, and Beyond Paste Papers by Rosie Kelly will be welcomed by creative “paper people.”
Well, our library has found a new home in the Cowichan Exhibition Grounds and is in good company in its storage room with The Maple Bay Painters, The Cherry Point Artists and The Camera Club. My spatial imagery was definitely challenged trying to open our library stack and the door to the storage at the same time. Quite a bit of jockeying went on, but I won in the end; it is not a large space. But it is wonderful to have it located close to our meeting room and accessible! The books purchased this summer at Calligraphy Northwest in Portland are a wonderful addition to our club. They have been discussed at our meetings. The compiling of the St. John’s Bible, Illuminating the Word by Christopher Calderhead, is a truly magnificent work, not the sort of book you whip through between lunch and tea. This also could be said about The Visconti Hours. The vibrant colours are extraordinary and the presentation of the illuminations with the stories is excellent. Take time to read the introductions by the two authors, and the accounts of some of the lesser known biblical characters. Those members who took Carrie Imai’s course will be able to hear her talking through her Dancin’ Pen; she is a wonderful instructor and the book is a
If anyone finds a library book, or part of one, particularly helpful or fun, I would like to invite the member to let me know and we can share it. By the time this newsletter appears, I will have been away for November and December and, hopefully, newly returned. I am indebted to Marilyn Lundstrom who kindly said she would deal with the library for the November meeting. In December, of course, the season is celebrated courtesy of Barbara. My aim while in the position of librarian, and I am tip-toeing behind some impressive librarians, is to try to make the labelling more uniform and to keep the journals and newsletters current. This may mean having a sale of back issues—we shall see in 2013! Just a note on practice pads. We have about 30 remaining of our old ones and it has been decided by the executive that Warmland will not be buying any more in bulk. Members will be able to buy locally, but not at the same wonderful price we have been enjoying.
“He is a self-made man and worships his creator. John Bright
Quotable Quotes
On a final note, if anyone would care to be co-librarian please let me know. Two brains are always better than one!
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November Galleria Submitted by Alane Lalonde November’s galleria was to create a piece using something from your childhood: a memory or a toy. The submissions were varied and interesting. Betty Locke guided us down this particular memory lane.
This beautiful piece was done by Denise Rothney. Denise says that she wanted to create something for her grandchild to remember their favorite toy. Betty says that this is so well done and that she wants to laude her. Denise says that she used thick water colour for the blue. Appreciating the softness Betty wouldn’t mind it if it had some grey going around it. Betty loved the feet.
Betty loved the way the hand goes into the writing in this piece done by Marilyn Boechler. Marilyn’s piece which she drew was done in memory of a Barbara Ann Scott doll she had as a child. She used the MacLean’s method of writing. Betty thought that the sketch of the doll could have been darker, but Marilyn thought that it was fine as is.
Betty loved Anne Berens doll. Childhood memories were evoked for Anne, as her mother made the lovely dress for her doll.
Betty loved this piece done by Pat Wheatley using stick figure ballerinas. The writing is so nicely done and very powerful at the top, using quiet verses. There are many little nuances. Muriel Heggie did this piece after taking the Gwen Weaver and Heather Victoria Held workshops. Betty says that it is absolutely beautiful. Muriel’s designs are mouthwatering and done very carefully and beautifully.
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Betty enjoyed reading the text on Marion Craig’s piece and the feeling that it brought forth. Betty says that in the puzzle image itself of the cars are almost cartoon-like. Betty commented on the fact that she could magically disappear into this puzzle on a rainy day.
Betty loved this piece by Shirley Johnson and complimented the nice looking hand. “B” nib letters are harder to do than Shirley thought because the letters are on a curve. A suggestion Betty made is to use your Speedball Handbook, take a letter style and emulate it.
Betty comments that this piece by Lenore Le May takes you away on a magical comfortable carpet and is beautifully done. Colours are well coordinated. This is a lovely example of the Gwen Weaver hand.
Betty says that you can feel the roller skating in this piece by Ria Lewis and the image shows fun and excitement. Betty’s suggestion was to move the ‘R’ in closer.
Betty describes that Marilyn Lundstrom has this all wrapped up. Marilyn had her own playhouse that was built by her Dad. Her piece looks as if it is filled full of love and warmth. Marilyn speckled over the leaves with a toothbrush. Marilyn said she had to use a light box for doing this piece.
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For Betty Locke’s piece she used subtle cut-outs to create simple pleasant models and combines them very nicely with her poem about paper dolls.
Betty commented on the care that Charlotte Whiteley used in her galleria piece with such beautiful sentiments. This piece says it all right down to the clothes pins, Betty said that it was absolutely lovely. Charlotte use to design clothes for paper dolls and told us it brings back many memories. The writing was done with beautiful Bookhand and bouncing letters.
Betty says that this is a beautiful piece done by Leslie Healy. The Gwen Weaver hand looks nice on the black paper with the white paws. It looks lovely.
Betty loved this little Haiku piece done by Judy Lowood. You can see the shadows in the art work. Adding the word “red� into the poem is a very nice transition.
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November Program Submitted by Lucy Hylkema The November program was taught by Betty Locke who gave us a lesson on Bouncing Letters. As always, Betty’s class was lively, giggly, and full of information…very, very full of information, not all of which I can fit into this article. Luckily, Betty had included an exemplar to help everyone remember what they had been taught.
According to Betty, a Bouncing Letter is not exactly a “proper” letter, but there are rules. Quite a few rules actually. To start with you do need to corral your letters somewhat, and each letter, when seen on its own, should
be calligraphically correct. There is a foreign word, “Gestalt,” that means seeing the work as a whole, and this is an important part of bouncing.
make it work (this is what you learn in our gallerias). When you are “youngerly” it is helpful to have some rules, especially if you are going to bounce.
When you are creating a word or piece of text, the letters need to “juggle” up and down, as well as “tilt,” but not too much or too little… and some letters already have diagonals in them and do not need more tilting. Other letters (like a bookhand ‘g’) just cry out for tilting, bouncing, and curving. Then there are different calligraphy hands, some of which mix well together, some not so much. And don't forget that you can use both majuscule and miniscule letters…and serifs too.
A very attentive audience
Marilyn practising bouncing letters
Feeling a little overwhelmed? This is where the “gestalt” comes in, and also a word I think Betty made up, “youngerly” (actually I am positive she made it up). When you are “elderly” in calligraphic years you can look at a piece and know if it is working. If you are elderly and skilled, you can look at a piece and know how to
Betty summed up the rules in a very simple, and easily remembered phrase, “Does it look playful and bouncy in a pleasing way?” If it doesn't, this would be the time to get out her exemplar, and review some of the rules, check your angles, your bottom and top lines, letter sizes, and pen widths…and then remind yourself that this should be fun!
Back Cover Artist Leslie Healy In light of all the tragic things that have happened in this past year, one thing remains: we will always have heroes no matter the cost. Not super heroes but ordinary people who make a difference and make this world a good place to be. After the incredible loss in December, I was inspired to remind us all that good will ultimately triumph over evil. The secondary message; "Believe there is Good in the World", is highlighted in gold... "BE THE GOOD"
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WARMLAND CALLIGRAPHERS OF THE COWICHAN VALLEY
ISSUE #54, January 2013