Calligraphy on Calfskin #2

Posted on May 23, 2023 by Holly

And this my friend is the companion piece to MERCY, in my last blog post. It is The Man in the Arena, a famous speech that Theodore Roosevelt gave April 23 at the Sorbonne in Paris, 1910. Whether you agree with Roosevelt’s politics or not, his speech is an inspiration. In my mind, it’s about getting into the battle of life rather than sitting on the sideline. Making an impact for good in your country. To me, it is incredibly relevant in today’s world. (In the image below, you can see how I mount the calfskin for framing. These skins move with the humidity, so the threads are mounted like little springs that help to stabilize the skin in differing humidity.)

This design was created from approximately one third of the skin (the other two thirds used on the MERCY piece in my previous Blog post). To prepare the skin there are special grades of sandpaper used to smooth the surface and to remove oils. Then you pumice the surface and brush off the residue. Look closely as the images and see if you can see the beautiful texture of the skin.

Although you see the layout for my MERCY piece (above), The Man in the Arena calligraphy was lettered on the right (blank) side of the calfskin. It’s always nerve wrecking to cut these large expensive skins as I never want to make a mistake in measurement…but all worked out well!

Here you can see the famous title. My client requested that the design be straightforward, legible and not too fancy. As a lettering artist, I try to make it interesting. by using a unique style for the title and adding flourishes to give it flair. In my mind, the flourishes show the movement of a ‘man in the arena’ and they highlight the two nouns. I had a different lettering style on the line “It is not the critic who counts” and didn’t like it, so with my handy electric eraser I was able to remove the ink. Then I lightly sanded the area and put in the new line (Italic). Calfskin is so wonderful if you need to make a correction. Better than paper.

Gold leaf never shows well when you scan or photography from head on. I typically have to photograph at an angle to catch the glint of the gold. To tie the two designs together, I used the same Bookhand style for the main body, the same crimson color and gold leaf, but changed the titling style. This lovely lettering style was in an old Speedball textbook, but some of our modern scribes have updated it so that it’s better than ever – see the newest Speedball text book.

And here are the two finished designs together. I framed them with a black carved frame, linen top mat, crimson accent mat and a black beaded wood fillet in the inside window of the mat. Note, that calfskin never lies completely flat, but that is the beauty of it.

Calligraphy on Calfskin with Gold Leaf

Posted on May 16, 2023 by Holly

About a year ago, I completed this special project. 2021 to early 2022. It was a gift and the recipient had not yet graduated from law school. His kindly friend and wife recognized the great potential that this young man has and so wanted to gift him with some very special words to hang in his law office. The theme is about MERCY. He chose the real deal, calfskin, which is a delight to work on, although you need to know how to prepare it. This skin was purchased from Pergamena, NY. Read below to learn more about this very special project.

First, a close up of the capital letter. My client was a dental surgeon, not an artist, so in his mind, he was imagining black and white. His wife talked him into a little crimson. After the word MERCY was hand lettered, I felt it was much too plain, so we discussed putting some illumination and decoration in the counter spaces of the M. My handmade gesso is always painted on first. That is the light pink stuff that you see inside of the M below. The leaf is laid on the left, just laid on the right, but not yet cleaned up. Typically, I lay the 23.75k gold leaf first, but it was an afterthought on this project. I teach a workshop on laying gold leaf, if you are interested…contact me.

The thought of MERCY for a lawyer or a judge is surely one to be considered. I thought of Les Miserables while I was creating this. Remember how the priest gave the silver candlesticks to the thief Jean Valjean and it changed his heart? The entire piece contains a reminder at the top to ‘Remember who you are and what you stand for’ (i.e. a decent, fair and just man), a scripture from the Sermon on the Mount, the main body – a memorable speech from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and 3 more Bible verses about Mercy towards the bottom. My client wanted legible and traditional, so I used a Lombardic style at the top and a more modern Bookhand for the body, plus Italic for the small red phrases at the top.

Above is the completed project. Below is the client presenting it to the younger recipient. Notice that this large piece (about 4′ tall, 3′ wide) was placed in an Airfloat Systems box. You can ship frames in these foam lined boxes or just present the art and hold on to the protective box for a future move. This was the largest piece of calfskin that I have worked on to date, so I was able to create both projects out of one. Visit my next blog to see the companion piece.

A Coat of Arms on Calfskin with Gold Leaf

Posted on November 19, 2022 by Holly

Sometimes, I am not able to show what I’m working on for awhile, because the project is being gifted to someone. Now, I can share this project with you. In November of 2021, I had a wonderful visit from Father Nathan and Father Philip, both from Mt. Angel Abbey, Oregon. Father Nathan oversees the art acquisitions at the Abbey. Father Philip oversees the guest house, but is also a calligraphy instructor. Needless to say, we all had a great time getting to know each other! They came to hire me to create 2 Coat of Arms. One to hang at Mt. Angel Abbey and the other to be gifted (July 2022) to Westminster Abbey, British Columbia, which was founded by some Brothers/monks from Mt. Angel, back in 1939.

Above and below. These broadsides were created on genuine calfskin (aka vellum) with genuine 23.75 gold leaf, gold powder plus watercolor and gouache. They are about 3′ tall and about 2′ wide (from memory, not exact). In this first picture above, I have already sketched the design on tracing paper and transferred it to the hydrated and stretched/mounted calfskin. The dark pink color is gesso, made from the Italian Cennini recipe made right here in my studio. (If you would like to join a future workshop, sign up on my eNewsletter or email me.) There is quite a process to laying the loose leaf gold. As you can see, I lay down the gold before I paint the color. One of my agate burnishers, used to polish and shine the gold, is also visible in these first two pictures.

In the picture above, you will note that I have laid the gold leaf (beat to 1/300,000 of an inch in thickness) on the decorated letters and ‘In Gratitude’ meant to emphasize their appreciation.

The pictures above and below show the staples that I use to mount the skins to the board. I learned long ago to stretch the skins on a wooden frame, but I didn’t like it when my hand went off the side of the artwork and if the frame sat up too high, so I decided to hydrate the skins and staple them to a board. If they are put in humidity for an hour or so and then stapled, they will stretch as tight as the skin on my banjo….or ‘tight as a drum’ as the expression goes. If I don’t do this, I run the risk of my lines of lettering being a bit ‘wavy’ due to the cockling of the skin.

This photo was actually taken from the left side. I rotated it right so that you could see the art upright. It shows the finished art and calligraphy along side my watercolor mixing florets. I followed the already established designs that had been created for the respective Abbey shields, but added some shading for dimension as well as the Veil & Crozier. The crozier also spelled crosier, I learned is carried by the Abbot at Mt. Angel as a symbol of “The Good Shepherd” and his ecclesiastical office. The veil on each shield is symbolic of the sacramental veil.

Below, a close up of one of the decorated letters. The raised gold is obvious and the gold powder lies flat in contrast. (it is liquified so I could paint it on gives a nice contrast inside the W.)

I love the subtle texture in this skin. It was one large one, that I cut down for these 2 documents.

Above you will see how I mount calfskin. Note that calfskin will not lie flat, but can be held taught with the eyelets and threads. I teach this method in my revised Lettering on Vellum workshop. (It is not in the pre-recorded workshop from 2021. This one mainly covers preparing the skin and lettering on it). BELOW: the two hand created images, framed and read for delivery. They have a carved outer frame and an off-white linen mat with a black wood filet. If you visit Mt. Angel Abbey, Oregon, you will be able to see one of them hanging in one of their meeting rooms.

A Calligraphy Manuscript from Luke 6

Posted on February 4, 2022 by Holly

A little bit about the process….whether you are a client or a calligrapher, this will give you a peek.

Above, is the finished piece for my client. It is a verse that I read and meditated on throughout the project. In our then 2021 world, that was/is so very split, it was a challenge to mull over. How can I live this out? Love your enemies? Do good? Be merciful? Forgive? Could you imagine what the world would be like if we followed this?

Back to the artwork. Below…is my pencil sketch on tracing paper where I also indicate to the client, the color placement. The final pencil image was transferred onto the D’Arches HP 140 lb paper. You can improve the lines on the final. Just outline the vine. A light table makes it quite easy to transfer…(I have an extra light box that I’m trying to give to an artist or calligrapher…send me an email and I’ll send you a picture of it.)

On the final, first, I lay the gesso (base) for the gold leaf. It has a flesh tone, or pinkish color depending on how you tint it. I make my gesso from the original Ceninni recipe, guided by Jerry Tresser’s insights. It is like plaster, and can be repaired as you are working with it. Carved, shaped or sanded, it is more forgiving than some gold leaf bases, but they all have their place. I prefer this for my more formal work.

Next the gold leaf gets laid. I teach a workshop in which you can learn the Ceninni method, but I also teach a second workshop where the bases are pre-made, so a little easier to work with. All those little flecks of gold? You can save them if you wish and grind them into gold powder. It takes a lot of flecks. I save mine over the years.

Below, I’m still in the rough and the lettering hasn’t been retouched with all of the little details, but you can get the basic idea.

As you can see below, the color goes on after the gold. There is a lot of layering to the color and it takes time. I like to do my lettering first, then do the color work. If I made a big mistake with my lettering, I would not like to have put all of the time into the border work.

I often have clients who want reproductions of the original. A graphic design quality scanner, Photoshop and a great archival printer does the trick. Below is the very large wide format printer that a photographer uses to print my larger designs and family trees. The Epson must be about 6′ wide or more. He didn’t want his picture out there, but my colleague is very good at what he does and I appreciate his assistance.

I had two large reproductions made and hand painted the gold areas with gold gouache. The original has the shiny gold on the bottom right D’Arches HP. I hope that this was helpful to you in someway. May God bless you and thank you for stopping by my blog!

How to make GLAIR for Calligraphers, Illuminators, Artists

Posted on October 25, 2021 by Holly

Until the 14th century, manuscript miniatures were painted mainly using glair, made from egg white. It was used as a glossing or waterproofing agent in the paints. In my calligraphy studio, I use glair to reconstitute Cennini Gesso, to dilute Liquid Gesso (J. Tresser’s), and as a binder for gouache or powdered pigment.

RECIPE:

Crack eggs (4), strain off white by toggling yoke between shell halves leaving whites in mixing bowl
Put yolks in a separate bowl, set aside for some other use.
Beat egg whites to stiff peaks – like a merengue.
Tip mixing bowl on its side and let drip into another bowl overnight – (or let it settle in original bowl).
Pitch foam and reserve liquid.
After about 12 hours, strain (get rid of unwanted stringiness.)
It can be used 2 ways. Try both!
1. Full Strength
2. Dilute with glair/water > 50/50

8. Save capped for 1-2+ yrs (stays clear). Date the container. Restrain after it sits for awhile

TIPS: • Stinky if stored room temperature. That’s okay. Traditionally called ‘la putrido’.

• Preserve in refrigerator or out. (lasts longer in the frig).

• For certain gilding purposes, glair must be aged. As glair ages, it becomes an adhesive.

• Glair becomes waterproof in 24 hours

I get an 8 cup Pyrex measuring container and tilt my Kitchen Aid mixing bowl on it’s side. Allow it to sit there overnight. It will ‘weep’ into the glass bowl. That is your glair.

ADD GLAIR TO:

Titanium Dioxide Liquid Gesso – 1-2 drops should do it, but you can thin liquid gesso with glair to the consistency needed. Fresh glair is fine.

Cennini Gesso – Holly’s measurement to reconstitute powder > 1/8 tsp powdered gesso to 15 drops glair. 6-9 month (aged) glair is best for this recipe.

Dried Pigment or Gouache– Add 1-2 drops full strength or diluted to dry pigment or gouache. Clove oil or honey can be added to make colors richer/shinier.

**Glair, a natural product can be added to a variety of art mediums