Playful Letters

Description

You look at the work of other calligraphers and admire the liveliness and expressiveness of their letterforms, but aren’t sure how to get it into yours.That’s what this workshop is about. It gives you the tools to make expressive letterforms, but better yet it gives you permission to PLAY! But this is serious play that will open up new doors and potentials to your letterforms. We manipulate, jiggle and twist our pens. You are guided through a number of directed exercises to help you “learn” to play. You will risk, drop your guard, make a mess, have a great time and surprise yourself with some of the liveliest and best lettering you’ve ever done!

Supplies

• Automatic pen – size #3A (1/4”) or #4A (3/8”) or Pilot Parallel Pen – blue lid (6.0 mm) or green lid (3.8 mm). Pen manipulation is easier with a bigger pen. If you are less experienced, I would recommend you use a Parallel Pen.
• Other pens – your choice (i.e. Brause, Mitchell, folded, pointed, quills, bamboo, felt or suede pens) in various sizes
• Pelikan 4001 ink or Bister ink (any color) or walnut ink
• Watercolor set (prefer Prang), or tube watercolor and palette
• Layout bond paper pad (11” x 14” size is best, but smaller is fine) – Strathmore or Canson Sketch or Drawing pads would be ok; Canson “The Biggie Sketch Pad” for good, cheap practice paper – holds good fine lines
• Few sheets of grid paper
• Few sheets of tracing paper
• Few pieces better papers (about 10 x 12” pieces), (Fabriano Ingres, Arches WC, Canson Mi-Tientes, Arches Text Wove) – scraps are fine – the more paper, the more possibility for experimentation
• Mixing brush, water pot & rag or paper towels
• Scissors & X-acto knife)
• Glue stick
• An adventurous spirit and a mind open to new ideas
• Any and all tools you love, tools you hate, tools you had to have but haven’t ever used, tools you don’t know how to use

Carrie Imai

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carriedesigns.com