Letterform Analysis: The Fundamental Oval

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Letterform Analysis: The Fundamental Oval By Dr. Joseph M. Vitolo© http://www.zanerian.com In this installment I would like to examine the influence of the fundamental oval shape on letterforms that would appear to have little in common with ovals. An example of such a letter is the lower case 'p'. However, before I discuss these concepts I would like to talk about how to apply these concepts to your practice sessions. The first thing a serious student of the art, in this case Engrosser's script, should do is to identify exemplars worthy of diligent study. Please be very careful when making a choice. Now it’s time to mention Vitolo’s ‘Rule of Penmanship’ that states, “If you choose to study mediocre letterforms the best level of proficiency you can expect to achieve is mediocre script.” As always, my first recommendation is The Zanerian Manual (see inset comments). Once your exemplar is selected, the practice session should proceed with a goal in mind. I firmly believe that ‘Goal Oriented’ practice is a sure fire method of improving. I would suggest you pick a single letter to study and apply the concepts I have been/will be discussing to that letterform. After studying the letter in detail, close your eyes and try to visualize the letter in your mind's eye picturing your hand executing the stroke. Please refer to Bob's article on visualization in the last issue. Then proceed to execute the strokes with your pen. Once you have several letters formed, pick the best letter and use the concepts I've discussed to critique the form. Identify areas to improve and repeat the process. Your letterforms will improve drastically.

Now let us move on to the letterform analysis and the letter 'p' (Figure 1A). This letter is unique due to the straight shaded stroke. While it is true that an oval has no influence on the straight shaded stroke, it will have an effect on the overall symmetry of the letter. Let us break the 'p' down into its component strokes. This letter is composed of three separate portions: 1) a hairline connector, 2) straight shaded stroke and 3) a hairline-shade-hairline (Figure 1B, C and D respectively). The first stroke is the lead in hairline connector


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