Warmland Calligraphers newsletter

Newsletter Team Editor Assistant Editors

Linda Yaychuk Ria Lewis, Alane Lalonde

Photo Editors

Jane Taylor, Alane Lalonde

Proof Readers

Barbara Qualley, Denise Rothney

Regular Contributors

Gwyneth Evans, Lucy Hylkema, Pat Wheatley Charlotte Whiteley, Margaret Kells, Lenore Le May

Newsletter Issue #58 June 2014

Distribution

Regular monthly meetings

Cover Artists

are held on the Second Tuesday of each month from 9am to 12:00pm (no meeting in July and August) Exhibition Grounds Duncan, BC (Exceptions are December and June)

Muriel Heggie Front - Margaret Kells Back - Anne Berens

Executive Meetings are held on the First Tuesday of each month At Linda Yaychuk’s home from 9am to noon All members are welcome!

Inside this issue:

Playtime is held on the Fourth Tuesday of each month from 9am to 12am Cowichan Exhibition Grounds Duncan, BC

Membership in Warmland Calligraphers includes three newsletters. Annual membership dues are C$30 Canadian residents and US $30 for US/International Warmland Calligraphers of the Cowichan Valley (the Guild) is a non-profit group formed to facilitate the exchange of information between calligraphers, and to promote interest in and appreciation of calligraphy as an art form within the community. Membership is open to calligraphers at all levels of expertise as well as those with a love of beautiful writing.

Contents of this newsletter are copyrighted by the authors/ artists. Requests for permission to reprint any part must be made through the Editor. The views of contributors are not necessarily those of the Editor or of the Guild.

Members are invited to submit concise pieces for publication as well as to alert the Editor to conferences, papers, speeches and other matters of interest to our readers.

The Editor reserves the right to make editorial changes in material accepted for publication. These include such revisions or additions deemed necessary to ensure correctness of grammar and spelling, clarification of obscurities, brevity and conformity to the newsletter style.

Contact us at: P.O. Box 2, Duncan, B C, V9L 3X1 Canada http://members.shaw.ca/warmlandcalligraphers

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2

General Guild Information

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President’s Message / Front Cover Artist

4

Loft Show and Sale

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March Program

6-9

March Galleria

10

Tool Talk / Executive

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Upcoming Events

12 - 13

Kristen Doty - Ravishing Romans

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Words, Words, Words

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Exposé

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Jottings from the Library

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Sharing Calligraphy with Children

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April Program - Back Cover Artist

19-22

April Galleria

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Inside Back Cover

President’s Message by Lucy Hylkema

I want to start by saying thank you.

Thank you to the enthusiastic members and hard working Executive! Thank you for supporting workshops (big and small) thanks for opinions and artwork, for suggestions and participation.

There is a special thank you to the Executive who are stepping down, and those stepping up. Joyce Gammie has taught me a lot about what makes a good President. I am grateful for her steady hand, and very relieved that she stays on the Executive as Past President. Marilyn Lundstrom has been very enthusiastic about Playtime this year, and as she no longer has Past President duties, she will take on Playtime again for another year.

Muriel Heggie has stepped down as Treasurer after three years and endless hours of math and accounting. She once told me that it is a good thing to be creative with calligraphy, but not with numbers! Thank you Muriel for all your hard work on our behalf.

Eleanor Harris will be taking over as Treasurer, a job she has held before for many years, including our Island Magic year! I am very grateful she volunteered to take on this position again, especially since she knows what she is getting into! And I would also like to thank Trish Peebles for her hard work as our Secretary; no meeting can survive without a Secretary. She and Marilyn Silver shared the position and did an incredible job of keeping us all organized. Marilyn Silver passed away last Spring and is very much missed by everyone who knew her and her incredible spirit. The Secretary position has remained a shared position, and one of our newer members, Ruth Rutledge, has taken it on, along with Mary Nelson. Mary is an author of young adult novels, and Ruth is very involved in the Maple Bay Rowing Club, so I am glad they found time to volunteer for Warmland too. I want to say a special thank you to Ria Lewis for being willing to take on Vice President, my old job! I think we both had the same "deer in the headlights" look at our first Executive meeting!

And last, but definitely not least, I want to thank those who are continuing on in the Executive, who give our group the continuity and foundation that we build on. Barbara Qualley is our official webmaster and technical guru. She has also been generous with opening her and Stew's beautiful home to our Guild for our June and December potlucks. Denise Rothney has made organizing our meeting programmes look easy (and it is not !) and has encouraged many of us to contribute. Linda Yaychuk is our newsletter editor, and heads up a small army of contributors, photographers and proofreaders. She has made our newsletter a work of art, and helped bring it into the digital age (along with some help from Barbara).

Betty Locke and Marilyn Boechler organize our workshops, big and small, and the amount of planning that goes into this is remarkable. I cannot imagine trying to do this job without the expertise and enthusiasm that all these women bring to our executive.

I have watched Warmland Calligraphers grow for the last 19 years and I am honoured to find myself in the position of President. I am encouraged to see how many new members we have, and also how many of us now have a long history with this Guild. This is a special group and I am so happy to be part of it.

Front Cover Artist - Margaret Kells For the March Galleria we were tasked with lettering a quote from a children's classic.

This is the second of three verses of the poem "Sea Fever" by John Masefield. I was introduced to this poet in elementary school in England, and have always loved the poem because of the sense of freedom it generates within me.

I wished to illustrate the verse in a way which represents, for me, the mood of the piece. It is done on Arches Text Wove using watercolours, and a pointed brush (#4) for the text. The spray and foam were applied with white gouache and a sponge.

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The Loft Show

Submitted by Denise Rothney pictures can be shown off to best advantage, made the set up go smoothly. Judging from the comments left in our guest book, our show was once again well received by the public: “Terrific examples of amazing talent,” “inspiring,” “imaginative,” “thoroughly enjoyed your show!”

This lovely piece by Betty Locke is part of a series on the alphabet.

Thank you Denise Rothney for this beautiful poster. You made us proud.

Resources/Exhibitions on the website.

Warmland Calligraphers were proud to present our 16th annual exhibition and sale of our work at the Loft Gallery in Valley Vines to Wines in Mill Bay, from January 25th to February 27th. Seventeen artists contributed fifty-five pieces, including two unique lamps made by Charlotte Whiteley. Seven of these beautiful pieces of art were sold. As well, twenty people sent amazing Decorated Envelopes to Margaret Kells, who did an excellent job of mounting and displaying them for inclusion in the show. Thank you Marg.

This year’s show was coordinated by Trish Peebles, assisted by Denise Rothney, who also made the poster for the show and sale. With helping hands from many guild members, we were able to create an eye-catching and exciting exhibition. Having so many people with good ideas about how

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Joyce Gammie could have sold this piece four more times as the buyer wanted one for each of his grandchildren.

And finally, thank you to all those who contributed their pieces. From beginners to old hands, your hard work and incredible talent have helped make our show a success. We will look forward to the wonderful things you are already producing for next year’s show!

Thanks go out once again to Eleanor Harris for agreeing to accept our offerings and making sure our paperwork was in order, and to Betty and Duncan Locke for the title cards for our work. Betty’s beautiful calligraphy makes each picture just a little more special. Thanks to Barbara Qualley for sending out, several times, all the forms and information we needed to enter the show, and for once again photographing and uploading all our entries onto our website. A big job! You can see them by clicking on

Charlotte Whiteley created one of these lanterns a few years ago for a Galleria piece.

She uses dried fruit for some of the inserts. Her husband Martin makes the bases and wires them. They have become so popular that Charlotte now sells them on-line.

March Program "Creating a Compact Picture Album" was our program for March, presented

by Trish Peebles.

Submitted by V. Lenore Le May Perhaps when making a card, think of the person who will receive it and use colours they might like.

Another completed card by Trish for sister Terry.

I enjoyed this program and feel that this technique is something we all could use in the future for the special people in our lives.

Trish demonstrating how to create a compact picture album.

Trish showed an example of an album she made with family photos for a lovely personal birthday card.

The finished product is a 6"x6" album/card, tied shut with a ribbon.

Carolynn Dallaire chose complimentary colours of blue, beige and brown.

Trish decorated her example with a stamped image and other embellishments. It was so nice to see how she made her embellishments threedimensional. You are only limited by your imagination. After I brought my album home I thought of other things you could display in this way. You could use calligraphy, or make pockets to hold things like theatre tickets and other mementoes.

Quotes •

All of my hurts, my garden spade can heal.

Emerson

•

Nothing is so common as the desire to be individual.

Shakespeare

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Where words fail, music speaks.

Hans Christian Anderson

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Some people walk in the rain.

Others just get wet.

Roger Miller

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Every survival kit should include a sense of humour.

Unknown

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Bernard Shaw to Churchill “I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend if you have one.”

The card made for Trish’s sister, Edie.

What a wonderful little gift!

We used three sheets of card stock 12" x 12". Some of us used scrapbooking cardstock with patterns on both sides.

Using plain colours on both sides worked well too, or you could use a coordinating combination of both. I think you would also choose colours to show off photos or whatever you planned to place into your album.

A completed card folded out.

The tricky part was folding the cardstock correctly but when I finally mastered it, I realized the construction is quite simple and very unique.

Churchill in Response “Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second….if there is one.”

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March Galleria

Submitted by Alane Lalonde A quote from a classic children's book was this month's theme.

Our Galleria this month evoked memories of our childhood. From a Harry Potter classic, a lion and Winnie the Pooh, to Eeyore and a blue caterpillar too, this month's galleria did not disappoint. We were transported on an adventure in boats and walked through flower gardens wearing straw hats. We had wonderful children's poems and flowing watercolours. Our members used gesso, pencil, watercolours, gouache, chalk, pigma pen and a variety of papers and hands. This month's theme came alive with the imagination of our guild.

Ria Lewis Mixed Monoline

Barbara Qualley Caps

Joyce Gammie Versals

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Lenore Le May Mixed Monoline, Roman Caps

Brenda Hicks Italics

Pat Wheatley Roman Caps, Foundational

Carolynn Dallaire Pencil Caps, Italics

Betty Locke Roman Caps 7

Ruth Rutledge Pointed Brush

Shirley Johnson Black Letter

Pauline Thompson Weaver Hand

Judy Lowood Black Letter 8

Mieke van der Vliet

Anne Atkinson Mouse Romans

Marion Craig Italics, Foundational

Marilyn Boechler Foundational

Ida Marie Threadkell Stylized Copper Plate

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Tool Talk Submitted by Charlotte Whiteley and the water to get ink out from between the nib and the reservoir.

When you are done for the day,

This little gem was introduced to me

by Lenore Le May when I first joined the Guild. It is very handy for taking to workshops and Playtime sessions and it is very easy to make. I brought it to the Kristen Doty workshop and there was some interest there so I have decided to share it with you in this newsletter.

Find a good plastic container that has a secure fitting lid. This is very important! Choose a size at least 3 inches square or round and 2 inches deep.

Use wire cutters, tin snips or any

strong cutting tool to cut the bristle end off an old toothbrush.

Adhere the head of the toothbrush inside the plastic container using a hot glue gun. Mine has lasted over four years. If you have a good waterproof glue such as rubber cement that should work too.

To use just fill with water. You can clean up your nib by using the brush

empty the container of water and put the lid on. I wouldn’t leave water in the container for extended periods.

Now you can travel home after a lovely workshop and there will be no more spills or leaks all over your art work on the way home.

Our Executive 2014 - 2015

Front Row Left to Right: Joyce Gammie -Past President, Mary Nelson –Secretary, Lucy Hylkema –President, Denise Rothney –Second Vice President and Programs, Eleanor Harris –Treasurer Back Row Left to Right: Barbara Qualley –Web Master, Betty Locke –Workshops, Jane Taylor –Membership, Ruth Rutledge –Secretary, Linda Yaychuk –Newsletter Editor, Marilyn Boechler –Workshops, Ria Lewis –Vice President and Exhibitions, Pat Wheatley –Librarian

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Kristen Doty Workshop—Ravishing Romans Submitted by Ria Lewis to use a piece of paper as a hand guard.

First we started with a warm-up exercise, drawing loose circles using the whole arm. Kristen explained that she always does warm-up exercises before starting a project. The class continued with drawing circles in the squares on the provided graph paper and drawing lines every half-inch down the page. Kristen explained that drawing guidelines is a relaxing and almost meditative exercise to get ready to focus and slow down.

Kristen Doty

Seventeen calligraphers of all abilities signed up for Kristen Doty’s two-day workshop on Roman Capitals. The workshop was held at the Exhibition Grounds on April 28th and 29th, a most beautiful and inspiring setting.

Kristen hails from Chehalis, Washington and has thirty years experience in calligraphy and twenty years in painting. She started calligraphy in high school and immediately fell in love with the lettering craft.

The first handouts the class studied showed the Roman Capital forms of round, rectangular, narrow and wide.

D, O, G, C and Q are round; H, A, U, N, T, V, and Z are rectangular; L, F, E, B, P, R, S, K, X, Y, I and J are narrow; M and W are wide forms.

After having drawn half-inch lines on the graph paper, Kristen went meticulously through every letter of the alphabet paying special attention to form. After that, we started with sketching all the letters with pencil, followed by writing out words and sentences. Once everyone became comfortable with the letterforms, we progressed to using a Pigma pen. It became clear very quickly that the

letters could not be erased and ‘fixed’.

We had to slow down and be precise.

Kristen pointed out that much practice is needed with Roman Capitals to get a feeling for spacing. As words and sentences are written, the spacing becomes very important as the letters are not of equal size. The class continued practising with 3/8-inch lettering.

Spacing is very important in placing the letters as they vary in width.

Towards the end of day one, Kristen asked the class to take out a C-0 nib and practise tracing the letters with a dry nib at a thirty degree angle. She demonstrated lettering with nib and ink and asked the class to follow suit with 7/8-inch letters. This turned out to be quite a challenge for many, as we had become comfortable with pencil and Pigma pen. The C-0 nib was a more daunting tool to use with Roman Capitals.

To start with, she asked everyone in class to introduce themselves and indicate how many years they had been practising calligraphy. After she gave out personalized folders with several handouts, exemplars and bond and graph paper, Kristen asked the class to start with pencils and basic monolines. She encouraged everyone

Margaret Kells practising her Roman Caps

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Charlotte Whiteley

Day 2 Kristen handed out walnut ink in powder form and after adding some water, she asked the class to continue practising the alphabet using a C-1 nib. Kristen demonstrated, paying particular attention to spacing the letters in each word. This was followed by the class changing to a C-2 nib and practising the alphabet with 5/8-inch lines. Kristen spent much time with each individual class member, talking about form, spacing and angles.

with samples of different styles of serifs and she demonstrated how to add a serif to a letter by putting the nib at a zero degree angle, drawing a line across the post and filling in the space with the edge of the nib. Easier said than done for many of us.

Denise Rothney hard at work.

Kristen demonstrating how to add serifs to letters and words.

Following a lunch break, it was time to move to another challenge: serifs.

Kristen explained that serifs can be added after the letter or word has been formed. The class was given handouts

drawings and paintings. It was obvious that she enjoys plying her craft.

Lastly, Kristen showed us a few variations of Roman Capitals and in particular how to use the ‘on and off pressure’ technique. This can be done with pencil or ink and creates interesting forms.

From left to right at the top: Carolynn, Charlotte, Pat, Marilyn, Linda, Ida Marie, Gillian, Denise, Alane. At the bottom: Margaret, Ruth, Mieke, Anne, Kristen, Ria, Linda and Liz.

To give the class a break from the intense work, we were given a piece of Arches Text Wove paper. We were asked to draw a large, 1½-inch letter that we could then trace and transfer onto the Text Wove. We could fill the letter with watercolour or use it in any other creative way.

Too soon, time was up and we thanked and said goodbye to Kristen Doty. Now the ‘real’ work begins as we contemplate using Roman Capitals in our future projects.

During the afternoon, Kristen showed us some of her projects from her portfolio. We admired her letter forms,

After a thorough cleanup, a little bit of mischief making. The sign we left says, “What is this used for and where is the plug?”

Pauline Thompson

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Words, Words, Words In an issue of this newsletter a couple of years ago I wrote about the thrill of visiting the British Library in London and viewing the treasures magnificently displayed there – medieval illuminated manuscripts with their exquisite miniature paintings and fine calligraphy, historic maps, and letters from the famous, ranging from Queen Elizabeth I to John Lennon.

Nothing is better than the chance to spend an afternoon peering at the actual pages in their glass cases, and listening to recordings of a letter or poem being read by its author, with the manuscript right in front of you.

Submitted by Gwyneth Evans

But since trips to London don’t happen too often, the British Library has something new to offer for those of us who can’t get to visit it: on May 16, 2014 it unveiled its new website, featuring digital versions of 1,202 items.

It is now possible to go online to www.bl.uk and turn the pages of Leonardo da Vinci’s Notebook or King Henry’s the Eighth’s Psalter, enlarging details to enable a closer study of an image, or a beautifully-formed letter in the manuscript.

Gwyneth Evans

Photocopying or Scanning 3D Objects Submitted by Linda Yaychuk



Fit the box into the cut out rectangle making sure the bottom of the box lies flush with the flat white card stock.

Use tape to make sure all edges are closed and will not admit light during scanning.

Place three dimensional object on screen of printer and place box over it.

Scan or print in colour or black and white.

  

Finished scanner box should look like this

For scanning or photocopying three dimensional objects: Cut a piece of white card stock as large as the screen on your printer.

Create a box with a lid out of the white card stock.

Trace the base of the box onto the flat white card stock and cut it out.



Here is a lovely rock from my garden.

 

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This is a carved pewter condiment spoon.

Exposé

Submitted by Linda Yaychuk uses, Mary googled the names of children from the year 1066 A.D. Mary wanted Catla to be a healer-intraining so she has named and described many herbs and plants in her book and how they were used.

Mary has made us feel we are in the Norse time period by using situations, such as placing Catla in a circle of stones much like Stonehenge, and phrases such as a “short shadow meal” (lunch) to create atmosphere. It took Mary about two years to complete Catla and the Vikings as she was attending writing workshops and reading groups to learn more about the intricacies of writing.

Mary Elizabeth Nelson was born in Calgary, Alberta. She has two brothers, three sons and a daughter.

She has lived in Montreal and Winnipeg as well as Calgary.

Mary was seven years old when her father died and she lost her mother at age fourteen in the first commercial airline crash in Canadian history. She and her brothers were raised by her grandmother.

She received her Bachelor of Education and worked as a teacher and school librarian. No wonder some of her favourite pastimes are reading and writing.

Mary has just returned from a trip to Norway where she travelled through the fiords to the Russian border. She used this trip to do more research on the Vikings in preparation for her next book.

Another joy of Mary’s is reading and writing poetry. She attended a workshop given by Patrick Lane, a well-known poet. At the end of the workshop each participant gave him two poems they had written. He picked one from each of them and published an anthology. The first book was titled Spinning Spoons and was followed by three more books containing Mary’s poetry.

On Saturday mornings she likes to go to the Cowichan Center to watch screenings of live opera performances from the Met. Mary also likes to watch birds and play golf.

Clockwise from top left: Medieval England textbook, Catla and the Vikings and the poetry anthologies.

Two of her favourite authors are Alice Monroe and Sue Grafton.

Through a friend, Mary met Betty and Duncan Locke who persuaded her to join the Warmland Calligraphy Guild.

She thoroughly enjoys interacting with “such a nice group of people.”

When asked if there was something more that she would like to learn, Mary said that she felt there was still more she needed to know about writing. If you have read any of her works, I think you’ll agree that she is a quick learner.

Shortly after retiring from her teacher/ librarian job, a friend who worked for a publishing firm asked Mary to write a school textbook on medieval history.

She had to do a great deal of research so the task took her about two years to complete.

Mary's second book, Catla and the Vikings, is geared toward adolescent readers. It's about a young AngloSaxon girl who saves her village from bands of Vikings. To find the name 'Catla' and the other Norse names she

Mary frequently goes to Calgary to visit friends. She also goes to the Banff Center for the Arts where she stays while writing and meeting with other artists.

Mary with the published books that contain her works.

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Jottings from the Library

Submitted by Pat Wheatley

artistry is in the application as much as the finished work; it attracts much attention and embraces anyone who wants to try. It also does not last very long!!

A Russian calligrapher, Viatly Shapovalov, is interviewed by e-mail. He works on existing paintings creating extremely complex works. He must be a brilliant man. The issue wraps up with a “Study of Sacred Geometry,” which I confess, I did not read in detail. It’s all about symbolism!

For this issue of “Jottings” I took two particular books and looked intently at what they had to offer: Carrie Imai’s Dancin’ Pen and Scribe. I used one chapter from Scribe as there is such a wealth of information between its pages.

More of these later.

The February Bound & Lettered contains an article on Clifford Mansley who studied at the Zanerian College in 1946. He describes the meticulous mix of ink, the care of pens and the preparation of paper.

At that time ‘Engrossing’ was the term used for script making and lettering. His courses required ten hours of work daily.

It is not just the ancient scribes who gave their lives to the making of letters!! Also in this edition are articles as diverse as how to make a wearable book and how to avoid camera distortion. You can read about the work and rituals of Amity Parks, who is a first-time instructor at Legacies II, the Lettering Arts Conference in Dallas this year. There is an article on new tools and materials by Rachel Yallop, and an account on mat making and book making to round off the edition.

Letter Arts Review, Autumn 2013: I was a bit worried about this periodical but it eventually arrived in February. It contains a lovely editorial introduction about gravestones, a “how I did it” story of an inscription for Yale University, and an intriguing article on embossing using a fingernail! If anyone takes a trip to China they should participate in the art of Dishu.

It is public painting done on streets, pavements and walls. Because of the large size of the works, the whole body is used in the art and special tools are created. The

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Thank you to Langley, Edmonton, Edmonds/Washington, Guelph, Fairbank/ Victoria, Kelowna and Calgary/Bow Valley for issues of their newsletters. We are all such an inspiration for one another!

It was a joy to look in depth at Carrie Imai’s book Dancin’ Pen. The tool she used for her particular dancin’ style is the automatic pen, which comes in many widths. Toothpaste, gum arabic, 1500 grit sandpaper and leather are used by Carrie for pen preparation. Specific positioning of the fingers is advised. The index finger does not grip the pen, but steadies the front of it; the middle finger holds the pen with the thumb, and the ring finger supports the back so that it does not rock.

Either side of the pen may be used. She advises practising without ink, playing with manipulation. Do not twist the wrist – all the action comes from the thumb and middle finger.

Carrie says that if ink does not flow well, always blame the pen! Go back and do more pen preparation! Be meticulous about pen holding and the detailed process of stroke making. I think it is worthwhile to follow her step-by-step instructions.

This book, along with the DVD, devotes itself to Carrie’s special alphabet and the way she creates it.

Points to note: manipulation of the pen is a natural extension of calligraphy; it is much easier to learn lettering with a big pen, and, be the boss of your pen! It was a delight to take Carrie’s class a few years ago – this book exudes her joy in what she does!

I then picked up Scribe by John Stevens.

Because I had just taken Betty Locke’s class using the edged brush, I zeroed in on the chapter ‘Brush Sensibilities.’ This

book is wonderful, but you need to digest it slowly in small meals.

Of any letterform, Stevens advocates learning the Roman alphabet – and learning it using a brush. He says brush writing is a great way of exploring the structure of a letter. He began his artistic life as a sign painter, and the broad brush was his first tool, but now he also uses a hybrid (a combination) and a pointed brush. He says the brush gives the ability to explore, altering weight in a free way.

Moving from thick to thin with the brush is not as automatic as it is with a broad nib pen. One is actively involved with shaping letters. There is so much in this one chapter. I want to include some of John Stevens’ words of wisdom: Start with the Roman form.

Set achievable targets.

When looking at someone else’s work, find inspiration for yourself.

Get to know yourself better from today’s efforts.

Bring your own life’s passion, skill and knowledge to your calligraphy practice.

Stevens tells us that form, rhythm and movement are always present in any form of calligraphy- it’s all about living letters.

Any letter is a symbol in space, and when any stroke has been made it has also displaced space on a page creating a totally new space. Interesting thoughts!

I will be diving into another chapter of Scribe in the future.

Don’t forget to take home a couple of newsletters, however old, when you make your choice of library books. There is always something of interest to learn from them.

Sharing Calligraphy With Children Submitted by Lucy Hylkema of excitement and anticipation.

Here are the happy faces of the children whose poems were calligraphed and illustrated by some of our members.

What do you get when you mix twenty children, fifteen calligraphers and poetry? You get twenty very happy children and a school wall full of "Kindness". These Grade One children had a poetry assignment on kindness, and fifteen of our calligraphers took on the challenge of creating a calligraphic piece based on a child's poem. The poems were collected from the children a week before the March meeting, and the calligraphers had until the April meeting to complete their pieces. The suggestion was for bright, easily read pieces that had the child's name featured prominently, and would fit into a standard sized frame….and you can see how beautifully they turned out, and how delighted the children were with them. Because the children got their poems back quickly (about six weeks after they had finished writing them) there was a real feeling

Linda Yaychuk donated a number of frames (and an incredibly handy framing tool) so that these pieces could be presented to the children as a finished product. The teacher was so impressed that she and her husband sneaked into the school over the weekend to hang the pictures on the wall! The pictures were then taken down to be wrapped by the children for Mother's Day presents, making even more people happy.

These poems are important to the children, not just because of the fancy frames, but because they get to see

• •

Some of the children are quite curious about who did their poem, and the teacher has invited us in for a short "thank you" tea. I am looking forward to seeing everyone together in the same place. They are an energetic group of children and many of our calligraphers are retired teachers, so I think it will be a good mix.

Because of privacy we won't be naming the children who participated, but I would like to thank the following calligraphers (in no particular order) who contributed pieces: Marilyn Boechler, Ruth Rutledge, Pat Wheatley, Carolynn Dallaire, Linda Lax, Lenore Le May, Margaret Kells, Pauline Thompson, Betty Locke, Linda Yaychuk, Charlotte Whiteley, Susan Miller, Joyce Gammie and Ria Lewis.

The pieces were on display in the school.

their words celebrated and given importance. Some of the children are not yet able to write on their own and this shows them what is possible. For calligraphers it is a chance to just have fun and connect with a young child.

Calligraphy Tips • •

For beginner calligraphers, it is a comfortable assignment that is going to be appreciated; no need for wild techniques or challenging pen angles!

Submitted by Linda Yaychuk

Try using a cover paper of contrasting colour. It will help you to focus.

If you are heavy handed (better known as the death grip), hold your loading brush or a pencil upside down and press on the edge of the paper as you write. This will lighten up you writing hand and make the edges of you letters less rough.

Spraying paper with hair spray or fixative will make it less absorbent and give sharper pen strokes. You may need more than one coat.

Always wet a paint brush before using any kind of medium.

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April Program

Submitted by V. Lenore Le May We brought our tablets and laptops and Barb showed us how to navigate

offered by the Guild, including registration forms for those who are interested. We are fortunate to have such a competent "Web Master" in our group.

Jane Taylor using her iPad during Barbara’s instructions.

Barbara Qualley presented our April Program. She is our talented "Web Master" who has set up our Warmland Calligraphy website and keeps it going and up-to-date.

through this informative site. In particular, we looked at how to access the many resources available on our site, such as former newsletters, exhibitions, exemplars and our Policy Manual. There is also a link to upcoming workshops and classes

Ruth Rutledge using an iPhone.

Back Cover Artist - Anne Berens

My husband and I had a thirty-seven foot sailboat, “Lavinia”, for twentyfive years. When we lived in Toronto we sailed the boat on the East Coast.

Our favourite trip was to Newfoundland, sailing with boats from yacht clubs in the Toronto area.

sailed Lavinia down and explored the inland waterways for four years. Then, when we moved to Vancouver Island we had Lavinia shipped to us on the deck of a ship that only carries yachts.

It took three weeks to go through the Panama Canal and arrive in downtown Vancouver. With the boat later moored in Cowichan Bay, we explored the Gulf Islands for several more years.

We were aboard Lavinia for three months; May, June and July. When we moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, we

Many of my happiest memories are of sailing and simply “messing about in boats”!

I chose the quotation from The Wind and the Willows because I really enjoy being around boats.

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April Galleria Submitted by Alane Lalonde A black and white piece done with a pointed pen was this month's theme.

This month's theme was indeed a challenge. Using only black and white, it is amazing what a variety of work ensued.

Contributors used Moon Palace Sumi and Higgin's Eternal ink along with black and white gouache on a variety of white and black papers. Some used gesso creating artistic and attractive pieces. An assortment of hands was used including Copperplate, Foundational, “Curlz� alphabet, Weaver writing and Romans.

Barbara Qualley Hand taught by Heather Lee

Charlotte Whiteley

Mieke van der Vliet Weaver

Betty Locke 19

Lenore Le May

Pat Wheatley Roman

Ruth Rutledge 20

Margaret Kells Marilyn Boechler

Curlz Alphabet

Copper Plate

Anne Atkinson Joyce Gammie Casual Pointed Pen

Denise Rothney

Judy Lowood Weaver Writing

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Vida Newington Manic

Judi Hopewell

Debbie Craig Versals

Marion Craig 22

Ria Lewis Pointed Pen with copperplate.

Look for Marilyn Boechler’s beautiful piece in the May Galleria of the next newsletter

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