John Stevens | Fall 2022| September 25th – 30th John Stevens

“It ain’t what you think” | Brush,Pen, & Design

From my career of teaching and from people’s posts on social media, I keenly realize the importance of design. I actually receive many requests to teach a design class and I am glad that people realize the value of it. We practice so much. Exemplars and performance. Tools and techniques. Design and problem-solving gets underrated. 

There are several essential distinctions about Design: often being confused with layout. Calligraphy students think of layout as just fitting it all in the space somehow. They often overlook or are not aware of understanding relationships.
We want variety and we want unity. This is the Yin-Yang we have to get.

In this class, I plan to address that topic, not solely that topic only but rather by following a thread of several workshops I have taught. 

We will work during the week on several aspects:

Intuition: (every creation cannot be the result of a formula or just rules) So, how do you trust or strengthen your ability to make judgments in art and Design?

Spontaneity: This is related to the intuition above. To do the “freedom” part of “disciplined freedom” does not only mean moving the pen faster.

Problem Solving: Learning to see and figure out relationships or how to improve relationships between elements. An accomplished person makes a mark (or a letter) and then decides where the next one goes? There seems to be a wide variety of abilities and confidence in this area. Can it be taught?

Play & Invention: Necessary for all creation and to keep ourselves engaged. A creative investment. Many tools and approaches will be addressed.

Hard Lettering skills are The Discipline part of Disciplined-Freedom. We will not just be floating with blurred lines in this class; there will be solid lettering practice or writing. Calligraphy demands practice.

Principles and critiques: Short lectures and demos to support during the week. The great thing about a live class over an extended time is real-time feedback.Design principles and basic Visual Literacy will be discussed.

Time: Ample time to work & practice on the topics of the day under the instructor’s supervision and be immersed in a collaborative work environment. 

To sum up: Learning, practicing, designing, and sharing. 

Make good letters and arrange them well—E.J.

Joke Boudens Class May 2022

Joke Boudens (Rescheduled) Spring
Sunday, May 1st to Friday, May 6th 2022

CONCERTINA BOOK PROJECT

In this workshop, we make our own concertina book with a minimum of 3 pages. The course of this week consists of two parts: the first part deals with variations on the Carolingian, using a pigment liner. Caroline minuscule was used in the Holy Roman Empire between approximately 800 and 1200 and appeared under the influence of  Charlemagne. In the second part of this workshop, we will work on filling a concertina book of 3 pages, combining images and lettering. A beautiful layout is decisive in this workshop. I’ll hand you over tips and tricks to obtain a well balanced layout throughout the whole book. Theme can be anything: a trip, a hobby, a cookery book, a country or city you visited, nature, your child or grandchild … Collect and bring as many information as you can about your chosen theme: texts, poems, dates, images to use in a collage… If you are able to make your own illustrations in gouache, watercolor, color pencil, graphite… you are of course very welcome to do so.

This workshop is suitable for intermediate and advanced students because It’s a welcome bonus to combine different hands (uncial, roman capitals, gothic …) in your book. In that case, you can bring your calligraphy material. Nevertheless, beginners are welcome and are invited to take this class as an accelerated class on Carolingian hand.

Fall | October 10/23 - 10/28, 2022| Artists Retreat

Please come and share your beautiful lines in the beautiful hills at Cheerio

During the same week is the Artist Retreat time More about Artists Retreats