It has been a some time now since I have enjoyed painting or drawing. The fact of this has made me very sad in a way that is hard to put into words. Then, about a month ago, my husband said “hey, they are teaching a scribal class on Monday and need help painting illuminated manuscripts, do you want to check it out?” So we did. I brought a few paints, an old brush, got instructions on how to go about it, and started painting. It was FUN! The first time I have had fun painting in 8 years.
So I grabbed a few to do at home, got some better paints and brushes and some calligraphy pens, and finished those as well. Then they asked me if I’d like to try my hand at doing an original. So I did some research, worked out the design, and wrote up the document’s text. The next daunting task was writing the calligraphy. Did I still know how? I did a few practice letters and realized that I was overthinking it. So I just jumped in and did it.
When I was in grade school, after we learned how to print, the teacher taught us how to do calligraphy. While I can’t remember much else from all those decades ago, for some reason that stuck with me and my hand “remembers”. Perhaps it’s like riding a bike?
I have a lot to learn to be good at this new hobby, but the process is proving to be very enjoyable!
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- Not too bad for not doing much calligraphy in over 30 years
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- Design and calligraphy by another, paint and illumination by me.
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- Design by another, painting done by me.
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- Design and calligraphy by another, painting by me.
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- Design by another, painting by me.
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- A small detail example of the first scroll I’ve designed.
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- Calligraphy by another, Red and blue squiggles by me.
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- So much to learn!
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- Another detail example from my first scroll