Custom SCA scroll, based on a 15th Century Italian Bible
It’s been almost two years now since I first started doing artwork based on medieval and renaissance art, specifically illuminated documents from the period. While I have dabbled a little in early period (12th & 13th century), my primary focus has been on the works from the Italian Renaissance (15th and 16th century), as the painting style most closely matches my interest and artistic focus on miniature and portrait painting.
The process for creating one of these scrolls is very similar to how I do portrait painting.
Step 1: Figure out a source, or sources, of inspiration. For this project I selected a page from the Bible of Borso d’Este.
Step 2: Layout the design on paper in pencil. I use a thin layout paper at 11×14 for this task.
Step 3: Trace the design, using a lightboard, onto the final paper in fine archival ink. On this project I used Pergamenata that I purchased from John Neal Bookseller
Step 4: Tape the Pergamenata to a board to reduce buckling.
Step 5: Add in the calligraphy. For this scroll I used a variation on the Gothic script to match the original source.
Step 6: Paint, using Gouache and Metallic Watercolor.
Step 7: Using a mixture of black and gold ink, and a crowquill nib, I added the freehand “squiggles”.
Total time from start to finish: 14 hours.
