Another week of Calligraphy Corner is upon us! I am very excited to see you back here to learn more about calligraphy and decorative handwriting strategies. Today, we will be diving into how to take some different calligraphy skills to the next level. Let’s begin!
- Find the Correct Hand Positioning
Fig. 1. Postman’s Knock. How to Hold a Calligraphy Pen.
Before you do anything else, finding and perfecting the correct hand position to hold your pen is going to be one of the more important steps in increasing the quality of your calligraphy. Many people might assume that the way you hold a calligraphy utensil is the same as you would hold a regular pen or pencil, but that is incorrect. The pen should not be held in any sort of death grip – it is better to leave the hand relaxed to allow for a greater flow of movement. It should also rest in the curve of your hand between your thumb and index finger. In this way, the pen is not held perpendicular to the page. Ideally, your fingers should not have much movement because the goal is to allow the arm to control the lines drawn on the page. The role of the fingers is more so to control the ink flow in the nib instead.
2. Understand the Structure of Calligraphy Lines
Once you have your pen grip down, gaining an understanding about the structure of this art form is something that I myself have found incredibly helpful in improving my calligraphy. When I say “structure”, I refer to the balance of invisible guidelines between letters to either keep things uniform or establish a general flow to a word.
Fig. 2. Faber-Castell. How to Learn Basic Calligraphy Techniques.
As you can see in the above image, calligraphy is based in a set of symmetrical and well-proportioned standards. To review, the baseline is the bottom line on which every letter is based. The main body of the letter rests on this line. An ascender (part of the letter going above x-line) or descender (part of the letter going below the base line) can exist, but all letters will for the most part sit on this line in a basic traditional style. In contrast to the base line is the cap line. This line dictates the topmost height of a capitalized letter. There is also the slant line. This may be best explained by asking you to imagine the slant of an italicized font on Google Docs or Microsoft Word. Calligraphy styles generally follow the same slant or angle to which letters are to be tilted throughout a piece of writing. Finally, the x-line is the line for which letters without an ascender will be limited. This would be like the top of the circle portion of a “b” or the top of an “r”.
3. Experiment with Different Pens and Tools
Fig. 3. Postman’s Knock. Calligraphy Pen Comparisions.
I’ve made mention of this in previous posts, but I truly think one of the best things you can do to improve your calligraphy is to find what works for you! There are so many different types of pens, tools, and avenues to learn calligraphic techniques out there. You can try faux calligraphy with a brush pen or jump onto Adobe Illustrator to create your own digital patterns. You can head to YouTube to watch a variety of tutorials or buy a couple of instruction books at your local bookseller. If a refillable fountain pen does not work for you, try a dip pen! The skies are the limit for what you can find. I am a big believer in everyone having their niche that they have very strong skills in. Practicing and adjustment are the names of the game here.
4. Seek Advice From Professionals
Finally, following professional calligraphers and trying to gain insight into their processes would be a good move to enhance your mark-making. Dozens of professionals keep blogs across the internet and provide free instructions and tutorials for the benefit of aspiring calligraphers. YouTube is also an easy place to go to find advanced techniques in any subject of art. Some of my favorite blogs and sites are as follows:
Molly Suber Thorpe’s Calligraphy Blog
I’m so glad to have another week of Calligraphy Corner in the books! Thank you for reading. See you next time!
This is a fascinating post! I have always seen clips of calligraphy online and been amazed by the perfection of every letter and stroke of the pen. It seems that when I try to write even just neatly, it only makes my handwriting worse. Seeing the thought process behind what appears to be such a creative and free-flowing form of art makes it even more interesting to watch and much more manageable to try. Great post!