CREATING IN CIRCLES

"Being an artist is not for wimps," a friend recently said.

 One of the best lessons I've learned from doing creative work: stepping away from the work helps give my mind a chance to change directions and look at the problem in a new way.

I Zoomed Letters of Joy this past weekend. Letters of Joy (what a perfect title) is a one-day calligraphy conference in Edmonton, Washington, that I first attended six years ago. I picked the conference the first time because it lasted one day, which gave me a chance to spend time in Seattle for a long weekend. I drove from Seattle to Edmonton to a community college for the event sponsored by the Write On Calligraphy guild. I took three short classes that didn't require great calligraphic skills so that I could get back into lettering after a long hiatus. I met interesting people, signed up for decorated envelope exchanges, and shopped at the art supplies store set up in the meeting hall. The event inspired me to continue to pursue my love of hand lettering and calligraphy and I returned for several years. Last year's conference was canceled, but this year the organizers placed everything on Zoom.

I signed up for a workshop with Laura Norton, who demonstrated how to produce finished pencil lettering with various shapes. She suggested meditative exercises that helped us to understand how to make the lettering she uses. We spent time drawing inch-long lines using various weights of pencils while using different degrees of pressure so that the lines became thicker and thinner as we drew. Laura then encouraged us to draw large shapes such as circles, teardrops, or squares and to fill these shapes with quotes we liked, using lettering based on the thick and thin lines we had been practicing.

I immediately chose a circle as the outside framework, making it as tough on myself as possible. I thought of the signs of life, which I had first encountered in Japan and which I read about in a book by Angeles Arrien. I wanted to make a piece about the universal symbols that appear in every culture: the circle, square, triangle, spiral, and cross. I tried several different versions, never satisfied with the results. I walked away.

This morning I woke up and realized that the format, both the circle and the light pencil, didn't work for the philosophical weight of the five signs. For the symbols, I needed a more abstract design that shows the importance of the five signs themselves. I'm still working on that piece. 

I decided to use the pencil lettering for other more light-hearted sayings: 

 Good tips from Laura about working in circles or spirals: turn the page after each letter. That way the next letter seems to be on a straight line and the angles of the letters don't become distorted. Also, since this is pencil, using a piece of paper under your drawing hand keeps you from smearing the marks, something I always forget to do, much to my consternation.

To see Laura Norton's work:

https://www.lettersaloft.com/about

To learn about Write On Calligraphers, one of many calligraphy guilds in the U.S., look here:

http://writeoncalligraphers.org

And if you are interested in learning how to use a Bent Nib, take Randall Hasson's class offered through Write On Calligraphers or at Sandia Workshops. He's a terrific teacher.

https://sandiaworkshops.art/hasson-bent-nib/