callig-suppl-msg - 10/15/99 Discussions of calligraphy supplies for beginners and the more advanced. Vender reviews. NOTE: See also the files: calligraphy-msg, inks-msg, gold-leaf-msg, iwandpc-msg, mailng-scrols-msg, quills-msg, sealing-wax-msg, parchment-msg, pasteboard-msg. ************************************************************************ NOTICE - This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday. This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter. The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors. Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s). Thank you, Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous Stefan at florilegium.org ************************************************************************ From: joshua at paul.rutgers.edu (Joshua Mittleman) Date: 21 Nov 89 16:47:01 GMT Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J. Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Greetings unto the good folk of the Rialto. Mistress Rayah Blackstar has compiled a list of mailorder sources for scribes. These catalogs featurebooks, supplies, etc. I have added a few catalogs to the list and updated George Braziller's address. When you get the catalogs, check the prices carefully. I have seen books go for $45 in one catalog, andthen $24 in another. Another good source for books can be your local library's weekend book sale (getthere early) or the end of year inventory clearance sale at the mall B. Dalton or Waldenbooks. Often theyspecial order books for people that don't ever pick the books up. These books get dumped (after a while)onto the cheap table. Center for the Calligraphic Arts PO Box 8005 Wichita, KS 67208 Journal-bimonthly magazine. Research article on Calligraphy or related arts in each issue.Subscriptions $15 a year US and Canada (US currency). Back issues available. Barnes & Noble 126 Fifth Ave New York, NY 10011 Receive color catalogs of current books published. Just send in name and address and request forcatalog. Will find occasional books that you can use in it. Updates always sent. The Scholar's Bookshelf 51 Everett Dr Princeton Jct. NJ 08550 Oh, these catalogs are a dream find. They have the books of hours and illumination you want. It's aheavy duty source for scribal art books and other related arts. Sales and updates sent forever once youorder (and you will). Prices range from $5 to $5000, we're talking really heavy sources here. Everyone I have ever told and given a catalog of this place to has said terrible things to me and then gleefully thrust their latest purchase under my nose to see. John Neal, Bookseller 1833 Spring Garden St. Greensboro, NC 27403 Another dream staple of every scribe. Catalog is $2.50 on newsprint and worth every penny. Books onevery scribal topic WITH commentaries. HONEST commentaries, not just to sell you the book. Supplies,paper. Also has a lettering arts club that sends you the catalog and you receive reduced membership priceson certain items ($7.50 US, Canada and others $8.50 for membership. "Canadian and English customers maysend checks in their currency--please figure exchange at current rate.") Super on delivery on items, even send you quick notice if out of stock. Edward R. Hamilton Bookseller Falls Village, CT 06031-5000 Sigh. They deliver in record time. They have a newspaper catalog WITH THOUSANDS OF BOOKS.Want something to read for the next 8 days? And make yourself a list that goes on and on and on to buy.Write them and ask for a catalog. Cash or check only. Which is why the prices ARE LOW. Not a lot ofthe illumination books of hours, but you want research in all categories? They've got it. EXCELLENT PRICES. I keep trying to cross off all the items on my list and they keep sending me catalogs with new items. Pendragon PO Box 25036 Woodbury, MN 55125 Gold Leaf? Vellum? Quills? Penknives? Pendragon has it all. They will also give you help if you havequestions about what to use! Excellent and one of the only sources by mailorder that I've uncovered forthose hard to find "period" materials. Catalog. Again, excellent response by mail if out of stock. New York Central Supply 62 Third Ave. New York, NY 10003 Ask for papers, they have them. Vellum, sheepskin etc. Higher prices than other catalogs that I've listed. Thames and Hudson 500 Fifth Ave New York, NY 10110 Send a name and a postcard to this address said the note on the side of the bookcover and we willsend you news and forthcoming publications. DO IT. Beautiful books. Three of them are the most lovely ofsources I constantly use for illumination & calligraphy. Hardcover. Expensive. But send for it anyway, theyare not all expensive...just the perfect ones. George Braziller Inc. 60 Madison Ave New York, NY 10010 This is the publisher. You can get the books from any of the other sources that I have listed, andsometimes cheaper there, as you pay full publisher price ordering direct. BOOKS ARE FOR THE BUDGET MINDED SCRIBE. These have full color paperbacks at reasonable prices-average $12 for a full paperback ofcolor photographed manuscripts. Excellent. Get a list from them. Strand Book Store 828 Broadway New York, NY 10003 They bill themselves as the Largest Used Book Store in the World, and having been there, I believeit. The catalog lists new acquisitions and specials, but if you write and ask for something special, they'llcheck for you. Catalog has many types of books as well as art books, but check it out. All major creditcards. Norman Levine's Editions Boiceville, NY 12412 Another big used book store. They list many types of books with brief descriptions in teeny print. 64pages of books. All are hard cover, all are original editions or the better reprints. They also have booksnot listed in their catalog, so if you know what you want you might be able to write and ask for it. They won't however, reserve a book pending receipt of your check. Dover Publications 31 East 2nd St. Mineola, NY 11501 They are the ones who are putting out Marc Drogin's book _Medieval Calligraphy, its design andtechnique_ the bible of scribes in the SCA. It is due in their bookstore at 180 Varick St, New York, NYafter November 17, 1989, so it will probably be available by mail now too. Ask for their catalogs ofPictorial Archive books (art which can be reproduced freely in your local newsletters too!), Art Instructionbooks, Art books in general, and I think they even have a catalog of the 50 or so catalogs they put out!Cheap books, these are usually reprints of sources that went out of print a while ago. These sources are all mailorder. I have a hobby of finding out mailorder catalogs in mundane life.These that I have listed for scribes I have been using for about 5 years, and passing them onto your pocketbook. Mine is empty, but the art flourishes. Write to them all, and be oh so sorry... they have such lovely things you've been looking for. Originally compiled by Mistress Rayah Blackstar reprinted and added to by Lady Fionnghuala Siobhan nic an Chlerich From: lee at sq.sq.com (Liam R. E. Quin) Date: 20 Nov 89 23:36:52 GMT Organization: Unixsys (UK) Ltd valid!limey!lynn at SUN.COM (Lynn Meyer) writes: >David Herron (David le casse) writes: >> could someone post a bibliography of useful and/or useless books on >> doing calligraphy and/or illumination? (the useless books so we'll >> know what to avoid) Sorry if some or all of these have already been posted -- I didn't see any earlier articles. The best source I have found for calligraphy, illumination, wrting, lettering and inscribing (stone-carving) was written just after the turn of the century, and is still very much in print. It is Edward Johnston Writing And Illuminating And Lettering Johnston designed the lettering that was until recently used in the London Unbderground, but, more importantly, played a major part in the revival in Britain of Calligraphy and Illumination as art forms. The book contains many plates and illustrations, instructions on making quill pens, on grinding Chinese Stick Ink (OK, I know it's not complex), on preparing vellum and parchment (expensive!), on gilding (illuminating with gold leaf), and many, many other topics. One of his pupils, Graily Hewitt (I don't think I have spelt that correctly) also pubilshed books, which I still see from time to time. This book is probably a `must' for people interested in mediaevel culture and in calligraphy, as well as for those wanting to learn. Note that his style looks a little dated now, as people would generally use a larger x-height and simpler serifs in calligraphic writing, but otherwise (and this is a very small point) the work still stands. Lee -- Liam R. Quin, Unixsys (UK) Ltd [note: not an employee of "sq" - a visitor!] lee at sq.com (Whilst visiting Canada from England) lee at anduk.co.uk (Upon my return to England at Christmas) From: FRENCHBC at CTRVX1.VANDERBILT.EDU Date: 8 Jan 90 18:30:00 GMT Organization: Society for Creative Anachronism Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From Cait Gordon, greetings yet again . . . Below are listed some addresses of books and materials for scribes. If you don't already get these catalogs, get them. This list was provided for me by Mistress Rayah Blackstar, and now I'm passing them on, with her comments. ************************************************************************* BOOKS Center for the Calligraphic Arts PO Box 8005 Wichita, KS 67208 Journal, bi-monthly magazine. Research article on calligraphy or related arts in each issue. Subscriptions $15 a year US and Canada (US funds). Back issues available. Barnes & Noble 126 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10011 Free color book catalog. Send name and address on a postcard; will find occasional books that you can use. Updates always sent. The Scholar's Bookshelf 51 Everett Drive Princeton Junction, NJ 08550 Oh, these catalogs are a dream find! They have Books of Hours and all sorts of books of illumination that you could want. It's a heavy-duty source for scribal art books and related arts. Sales and updates sent forever after first order (and you will order!). Prices range from five to five thousand dollars -- we're talking really heavy sources here. Everyone I have ever told and given a catalog of this place has said terrible verbal things to me and then gleefully thrust their latest purchase under my nose for me to see. Edward R. Hamilton, Bookseller Falls Village, CT 06031-5000 Sigh. They deliver in record time. They have a newspaper catalog with THOUSANDS OF BOOKS. Want somethi ng to read for the next eight days ? Make yourself a list that goes on and on and on to buy. Write them and ask for a catalog. Cash or check ONLY -- which is why prices are LOW. Not a lot of illumination books of hours, but you want research in all catagories? They've got it. EXCELLENT PRICES. I keep trying to cross off all the items on my list and they keep sending me catalogs with new items . . . Thames and Hudson 500 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10110 Send postcard for free catalog. DO IT. Beautiful books. Three of them are the most lovely sources I constantly use for illumination and calligraphy (Note: They have a good paperback repro of the Book of Kells that is a must-buy for all Celtic illuminators -Cait.) Most are hardcover, expensive. But send for it anyway. Not all are expensive . . . just the perfect ones. George Braziller, Inc. One Park Avenue New York, NY 10016 This is the publisher. You can get many of their books from other sources, and sometimes cheaper as you pay full publisher price ordering direct. BOOKS FOR THE BUDGET-MINDED SCRIBE. These have full color paperbacks at reasonable prices -- average twelve dollars for a full-color paperback of color photographed manuscripts. Excellent. Get a list from them. SUPPLIES AND BOOKS PENDRAGON PO BOX 25036 WOODBURY, MN 55125 Gold leaf? Vellum? Quills? Dry pigments? Penknives? Pendragon has it all! They will also give you help if you have questions about what to use (phone (612) 739-9093). Excellent, and one of the only sources by mail order I have uncovered for those hard-to-find 'period' materials. Excellent response by mail if out of stock. (GET THIS CATALOG . . . but your budget will not love you for it -Cait). John Neal, Bookseller 1833 Spring Garden Street Greensboro, NC 27403 Another dream staple of every scribe. Catalog is $2.50 US funds on newsprint and worth every penny. Books on every scribal topic. Supplies, paper. Also a lettering arts club that sends you the catalog and you receive reduced membership-prices on certain items (membership $7.50 US, $8.50 Canada and others, US funds). Super on delivery time and notice if out of stock. New York Central Supply 62 Third Street New York, NY Good papers. Higher prices than other catalogs listed. ***************************************************************************** ...Lady Caitrin Gordon, Barony of Glaedenfeld, Meridies From: DICKSNR%QUCDN.BITNET at MITVMA.MIT.EDU ("Ross M. Dickson") Date: 13 Feb 90 03:57:00 GMT Organization: Society for Creative Anachronism Newsgroups: rec.org.sca /* A preliminary note from Angus: Sarra couldn't decide whether to make */ /* this a personal letter to Ciaran or a general posting, and left to me */ /* as owner of the account the decision whether or not to post. I hope */ /* some of you find some of it to be of general interest. */ Unto the Rialto, does Sarra Graeham, Midrealm scribe, send greetings: Milord Ciaran gently requests: > Unto the subject of scribing: > Anyone who could give me a list of books for beginning scribes would be > greatly appreciated. A list of necessary tools would be welcome, too. I posted a brief list of books a few months ago, as did other people, but that is a long time in Rialto generations (can you imagine a forum with a turnover rate that makes the SCA generation look like the lifetime of the gods? ;-), so here's a short recap. The *BEST* book for a beginning scribe is, "Medieval Calligraphy: Its History and Technique," by Marc Drogin. It is available in hardcover from Allanheld and Schram in most large libraries, and there is a recent edi- tion in paperback from Dover Books. It has everything you need to know about medieval calligraphy, spanning the years from about 300 - 1450 AD, with careful instruction on how to form each of the letters, pictures of the actual manuscripts he worked from, and an entertaining and informative history of script. There is also an extensive bibliography. Unfortunately, Drogin doesn't deal with illumination at all. If you are interested in Celtic (often called "Insular") illumination, the best book for you to get is a book by George Bain, called "Celtic Art: The Methods of Construction," again from Dover Publications. This book is the compi- lation of six pamplets written for British schoolchildren in the 1940(?)'s by the artist who first unravelled just what it was the Celts were *doing* (I've often wondered myself :-), and the level is good for a beginner. Other than that, I suggest you look at books of actual manuscripts, to get a feeling for what is possible. George Braziller publishes a series of paperback colour picture books on period manuscripts covering most periods and places of illumination. These books tend to picture only the fanciest of manuscripts, so try not to get lost in the detail while you are still beginning, but try to get an overview instead. With respect to tools and materials, you will need a pen and ink. I re- commend that you start with a dip pen. Try Speedball C-series nibs, size 3 or 4, with a purchased holder; the nibs cost less than a dollar apiece. A fountain pen is fine, but more expensive, and most ink made for foun- tain pens is not suitable for scrolls. For ink, I use Pelikan Fount India, a permanent black ink that can also be used in fountain pens, but other scribes swear by India ink, which CANNOT be used in fountain pens, and must not be allowed to dry in a nib. Avoid the Sheaffer inks, as they are not permanent. Plain bond paper with a liner underneath can be used for practice, but for actual scrolls you want to look for 100% cotton rag watercolour paper. Arches or Fabriano are two good brands, and you want 90 or 140 weight paper. Ask at your local art supply store, where the staff should be able to help with anything I recommend. Avoid, avoid, avoid the stuff they sell as calligraphy "parchment" paper, as it is treated with sulfuric acid to get that mottled effect, and the acid will rise up and eat your scroll. (I do not jest; ask some of the Carolin- gian folk hereabouts about what is happening to their charter and some of their valued early documents on this paper.) For illumination, you need brushes, paint, and gold. When looking for brushes, you want them fairly small, from size 2 or 3 for large areas down to size 000 or smaller for detail, in what is called a "teardrop" shape. Buy whatever you can afford (don't let the salespeople bully you), and be prepared to experiment until you find ones you like. For paint, try watercolour paints or gouaches in tubes. Both must be mixed with water, but the gouache gives a more opaque and matte effect. Start with a small tube each of Lamp Black, Chinese or Zinc White, Cadmium Red Medium, Cadmium Yellow Light, (French) Ultramarine Blue, and Viridian for green. You can mix or buy other colours as necessary. Gold gouache can be bought which looks quite nice, but I think the nicest gold colour is to be got from Windsor Newton gold ink. Both of these golds are painted on; gold leafing is an expert technique. I should note, however, that the Celts didn't use gold in their artwork. Most illumination consists of filling in colour between the black lines you've drawn, so your first efforts with illumination should be rather like painting in a glorified colouring book, perhaps overpainting with white lines to make designs on otherwise rather flat colour. If you need more help with techniques than I've given here, or want to actually do scrolls for the Middle Kingdom, you live fairly close to Master Ranthulfr, who is the deputy Signet for Michigan. Other scribes who wish to do like- wise should contact the person who is listed in their Kingdom newsletter as Kingdom Clerk of the Signet, or just Signet, and they should be able to provide support, or even direct you to someone in your area who knows what's going on. Be patient, though; they are by definition busy people. Hope this helps (and wasn't unutterably boring to everyone else). Sarra Graeham, Ealdormere Signet | Heather Fraser Canton of Greyfells, Midrealm | Kingston, Ontario, CANADA From: amanda at mermaid.intercon.com (Amanda Walker) Date: 15 Feb 90 17:14:41 GMT Organization: InterCon Systems Corporation, Sterling, VA FRENCHBC at CTRVX1.VANDERBILT.EDU writes: > Several scribes (including myself) swear by the > Rotring Art Pen: This is the best fountain pen I have found. You can also get a "cartridge converter" which you can fill with Pelikan Fount India, giving you a much blacker stroke than you get with normal cartidge ink. > 2. Paint > A cheapo set like Pentel is good for practice. Not for scrolls, but for > practice. Once you've gotten the hang of using a brush, though, a "sampler pack" of designer's gouache is well worth it. Cheap watercolors are simply not designed to lay down a flat layer of color; gouache's working characteristics are much nicer. Also, even though it's more expensive that transparent watercolor, one tuube will last you a long time. -- Amanda Walker From: FRENCHBC at CTRVX1.VANDERBILT.EDU Date: 14 Feb 90 18:18:00 GMT A few more additions to Sarra Graeham's excellent piece for beginning scribes: 1. Calligraphy pens For those of you (like me) who are too chicken to deal with dip pens or have other reasons not to use them, fountain pens might be an answer. HOWEVER... there are good pens and bad pens. Stay away from the Schaeffer and Osmiroid models. The nib steel is too soft and will round out (thus giving you uneven letters . . . Speedball nibs will do the same thing if you don't replace them often). Plus, the ink is badly inferior: it's not fade-resistent and in the case of osmiroids, the ink will turn shiny and uneven and all-round funny-looking with time. Several scribes (including myself) swear by the Rotring Art Pen: the nib can be sharpened nicely, and the ink is good and relatively fade-resistent. However, this is NOT the cheap way out. Each pen costs about $10 - $15, and you must buy a new pen for each size and style nib you want. (I use fountain pens because I have bad arthritis in my hands and find that a fountain pen gets me through my work quicker, but dip pens and a good ink like Higgins Eternal or Pelikan Fount is superior. Good nibs are also Hiro, Brause and Rexell). NOTE ON FOUNTAIN PENS: Don't let anyone else use your pens -- this goes for dip pens as well. A nib becomes "accustomed" to your hand and wears the way you write. It's like Archie Bunker's chair; if you let someone else use it, it'll change the way it works. 2. Paint A cheapo set like Pentel is good for practice. Not for scrolls, but for practice. 3. Other motley junk An art box or a tackle box is great for a portable kit. Some things I keep in my kit: a sharp knife, a small covered cup for water, 3x5 cards (good disposable paint palettes), a small ruler, a compass (the holes are period), and of course lots of pencils and erasers. Don't use the little red erasers on the ends of the pencils -- they're usually too hard and can stain the paper. Get a kneaded eraser or the white Staedler-Mars plastic erasers, which don't leave as many eraser droppings. And use plain ol' #2 pencils: some softer or harder art pencils can be tough to erase. I use a good fine mechanical pencil, myself. I hate blunt pencils. Another thing that is indespensible is a T-square, preferably two: one for drawing, one for inking. I like the clear plastic ones for drawing, but if I am doing inking, a cork- backed metal T-square keeps the ink from getting on the ruler and smearing your work. I also heartily agree that the single best way to become acquainted with the world of illumination is to look at illuminated manuscripts. If you have access to a major university library, you'll probably have lots and lots of books. Look at illumination from a variety of different times and lands and find one that suits your style. If you like your work to be free and unrestrained, don't pick Celtic. However, if you like drafting, Celtic might be just the ticket (although it takes FOREVER). Some libraries might even have real manuscripts in special collections -- a golden opportunity that should NOT be passed up! ...Cait Caitrin Gordon/Glaedenfeld/Meridies From: mjc at cs.cmu.edu (Monica Cellio) Date: 25 Mar 91 20:34:02 GMT Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon For scrolls, I work on fairly heavy weight paper from companies I've heard of. More specifically, I have recently used Arches (140 lb), which comes in 22 x 30 inch sheets for about $4, and a bristol board (100 (110?) lb) by Strathmore, which comes in tablets. (A 20-sheet tablet of 11 x 14 is about $6, so this is clearly the more economical path for new scribes to follow.) I wouldn't recommend anything lighter than about 90lbs; it'll be too flimsy and your paints may well make the paper curl. (The weight is a standard measure in the printing industry for what a certain amount of a type of paper weighs. I don't know what that amount is (a ream of 11x17 sheets would be about right, I think, but I don't know if that's it). Xerox paper is 20lb.) If this isn't enough information, or you just want a better idea of what's out there, try to find an art store with friendly clerks and ask for help. Don't let them give you "watercolor paper" or anything that's really a canvas; you want paper. They probably have a wallfull of drawers of loose sheets of paper, and you can poke through that for something you like. Hot and cold press refer to the texture of a surface. Hot press paper is smooth, while cold press is somewhat rough. (You can remember this by thinking about what applying an iron to a sheet of rough paper would do to it, other than burn it.) Which you work on is stictly a matter of personal preference; ask a group of scribes and you'll get at least as many opinions about which is better as you have scribes. :-) (Me? Hot press; the ink seems to do a better job of staying where I put it rather than heading for the nearest "gully". Also, technical pens seem to prefer smoother surfaces.) Ellisif Flakkingskvinne Subject: pigments_ Date: 4 Feb 92 From: cat at piggy.fgs.slb.COM ("Catherine M. Helm") Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Organization: The Internet An excellent source for all kinds of good stuff (raw gum arabic, raw gum ammoniac, pigments, vellum, inks, etc) is: Pendragon P.O. Box 327, Afton, MN 55001 (612)-436-2046 (This poster has no affliation with the above business) Pendragon, incidentally, is the only source I know of for gum ammoniac, since my Bay area supplier went out of business. Twcs Subject: Re: pigments Date: 5 Feb 92 From: aiden at NCoast.ORG (Steven Otlowski) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Organization: North Coast Public Access *NIX, Cleveland, OH This is a list of suppliers of period pigmenst - have fun. Auldhaefen Associates - * non-profit source of pigments 741 Montana Ave. * and many other neat things Akron OH 44314-3036 +1 216 745 9380 voice +1 216 753 8791 bbs 10AM to 10PM Pendragon 612/436-2046 * callig. & Illum. Supplies PO Box 327 fax: 612/436-2048 * carries Gum Sandarac Afton MN 55001 Master John the Artificer 412/362-0421 * period pigments John R. Rose 250 Emerson Street Pittsburgh PA 15206 Guild of Limners 603/654-2949 period pigments Baroness Megan Linda Anfuso RD 1 Box 134-B Forest Road Wilton NH 03086 Aiden Elfeadur - -- Steve Otlowski aiden at ncoast.org From: johnston at mayo.edu (Sean L. Johnston) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: A question on scrolls Date: 14 Jul 1993 16:01:25 GMT Organization: Mayo Foundation Regarding paper commonly used for scrolls, the best commercially available is 100% rag, acid free, flat (as opposed to plate) paper (in my experience, the plate finish does not absorb the ink as quickly, so the strokes are not as crisp). I prefer Bristol as a company, but am currently using Canson due to the paucity of good art supply stores in Rochester, MN. I have experimented with many different kinds of paper available through similar types of stores. The most important characteristic that you can find in a paper is that it absorbs ink quickly without bleeding into neighboring fibers. My suggestion is obtaining a small sample of the paper you are interested in experimenting with and seeing how well it holds ink. Acid free paper is commonly used and prescribed because the ink will "never" fade, as opposed to acid containing paper, where the ink might brown in fifty or so years. The paper tends also to deteriorate. Sorry I can't comment on the actual making of the paper, for I haven't delved into that science as of yet. By the way, can anyone suggest a good brand of partially see-through vellum? Most of the book calligraphy/illumination I have in my reference books have a faint image of the text on the following page leaking through on the photograph, and I'd like to experiment with that type of paper. Balin of Canterbury, Western Northshield Minister of Arts, Principality of the Northshield, Middle Kingdom From: cav at bnr.ca (Rick Cavasin) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Finding a supplier for ammonia gum - used in medieval ink Date: 22 Aug 1996 17:00:17 GMT Organization: Bell-Northern Research Ltd. The gabriel guild sells gum ammoniac, along with other supplies for people doing period calligraphy and illumination: The Gabriel Guild 6 North Pearl St. Suite 404E Port Chester, NY 10573 Pendragon's current address is: Pendragon P.O. Box 1995 Arlington Hts, IL 60006 1-800-775-7367 708-870-9988 Cheers, Rick/Balderik Date: Mon, 18 Aug 1997 22:54:10 -0400 From: Margo Lynn Hablutzel To: A&S List Subject: source for pigment This from Mistress Aidan, C&I Laurel from Calontir now living in Al-Barran in the Outlands: --------------- Forwarded Message --------------- I just got a great catalog in the mail--chock full of "real" pigments, in quantities from 100g to 1 kilo of ground pigments, at impressive prices. It is the Sinopia Pigments and Materials catalog, Fall 97. They also have a website (duh) at http://www.sinopia.com. This outfit apparently specializes in sales to people who do art restoration (!) and frescoes, thus the large quantity. They also sell brushes and various equipment. Just thought I'd pass this on to any interested illuminator types.... Ms. Aidan From: "austrechild at sympatico.ca" Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Cheap Callig Pens Date: Sat, 30 Nov 1996 13:33:16 -0800 For thinking-about-maybe-trying-calligraphy folks, Zellers (Canada) has a *$10 calligraphy set* of three nibs, cartridge pen and instructional pamphlet. I can't attest to the quality of it, but for those without an art store handy, it's certainly a cheap way to find out how you like calligraphy. (Wal-Mart USA is supposedly running a similar deal, but don't quote me!) Scribamus, Austrechild Date: Thu, 18 Dec 1997 11:16:51 -0600 From: Dennis and/or Dory Grace To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu Subject: Re: begining illumination >Could someone direct me to begining supplies for illumination? >And easier MMS to emulate. >Philippa Hi Philippa, Aquilanne in Ansteorra here. If you were in Austin, TX, I could tell you which stores to go to to buy what you need. Not knowing where you are, however, I'll just assume that you know where your nearest art supply store or craft shop is (if not, look in the yellow pages). If you're just getting started, all you really need are some good gouaches, pencil, kneadable eraser, a good paper, a ruler, ink, and ruling pen of some sort (I use either a rapidograph or a crowquill). Windsor Newton gouache is my favorite. They have a pretty high colorfastness overall, are consistent in quality, and are nice to work with. Get some tubes of your basic colors and a little portable palette with a lid to put them in. I like using mechanical pencils as opposed to regular ones since I don't have to sharpen them. You can get them in as fine a lead as a .3 mm. Koh-i-Noor makes a nice one called a Rapidomatic. Let me sing the praises of the kneadable eraser. It's the most versatile eraser you can buy. You can pull and knead it (hence the name) to clean it and shape it. It doesn't crumble like the vast majority of other erasers on the market, and it's extremely kind to the surface of your paper while still erasing very effectively. They're also good for pulling on and pummeling when you have artist's block or your cat steps in your ink. Good paper means some sort of nice quality, smooth, paper with a decent archival quality. My favorite is Arches 90# HotPress Watercolor paper. It's a soft, warm white and has a nice, smooth surface; but not so smooth that every correction will glare out. It's also heavy enough to handle x-acto knife corrections (that's where you gently scrape a mistake off the surface of the paper using a very sharp blade and lots and lots of patience). After penciling in my design, I like to ink it in and erase pencil marks. I usually use a plain black ink (I like the way it "pops" the color) from either a rapidograph pen or something similar, or I'll use an ink in a crowquill (fine dip) pen or a mapping nib. A warm or light brown ink was also used in period for outlining designs, and is very nice to use, too. Make sure that the inks you use for outlining are *waterproof*. If they're not, they'll bleed into your paint as you paint your designs. As to "easy" manuscripts to copy, my suggestion is to look at as many examples of illumination from every period, and pick what *you* personally find the most visually appealing. Ease and simplicity are subjective. Regardless of perceived complexity, you'll be happier working on something you like the look of. If you find you like Dutch manuscript painting, you don't have to recreate an entire page of it right off, you can recreate elements until you get the hand of the forms you're dealing with. Try to find a scribe local to you to coach you through your first attempt or two. Let me suggest my favorite book for referring new calligraphers and illuminators to. It's "Illumination for Calligraphers; the complete guide for the ambitions calligrapher" by Marie Lynskey; Harper Collins Pub.; ISBN 0-7225-2105-7. This is *the* best overall book I've ever seen for addressing both calligraphy basics (she shows 5 or 6 basic historic hands) and illumination basics based on historical manuscript illuminations. I still refer to it occassionally after all these years. Part of her background says: "Marie Lynskey studied heraldry, calligraphy, and illumination at the Reigate School of Art and Design..." so where most books on this sort of thing are primarily contemporary design based, she's coming from the same stylistic sources we're after. The book is also **very** reader-freindly--lots of very useful information in a very readable format. Enough plugging. Get the book, it's good. Good luck with your new avocation. Illumination is wonderful fun. Also, I got this nifty link the other day: >http://www.erols.com/versals/ This woman makes her own paints according to medieval methods and does illuminations. Check it out; she does some very nice work, and you can see where some pieces she has displayed are recreations of just elements of larger illuminations. be well Aquilanne Date: Thu, 18 Dec 1997 12:24:17 -0600 From: Jen Rosen To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu Subject: Re: begining illumination At 11:16 AM 12/18/97 -0600, Dennis and/or Dory Grace wrote: >>Could someone direct me to begining supplies for illumination? >>And easier MMS to emulate. >>Philippa >Hi Philippa, Aquilanne in Ansteorra here. Aquilanne, you offer some excellent advice. I'll add my own 2 cents in here. >good gouaches >pencil >kneadable eraser >a good paper >a ruler, >ink >and ruling pen of some sort (I use either a rapidograph or a crowquill). I'd also add a bunch of those little plastic paint trays (6 wells per tray) to mix colors in. Gouache can be reconstituted when it's dry, so if you make a color you like, you can reuse it. I like these trays because they're small, and they give me lots of room to mix. Another valuable tool to add to the list is an eraser brush. You can find these in the drafting section. It's a large, soft brush used to bruch the eraser crumbs off your drawing. THis is a good habit to get into early! Using your hand to brush crumbs away can only lead to smears and disaster, and I have had a crisis from blowing them away (don't spit on the gouache, Jen!) Also, you should have an exacto knife for scraping. The last thing I think should be added is a thin cotton glove. These are available as photograper supplies. Cut the tips of the fingers off. I wear this on my callig hand, and I have almost never used a blocking sheet since. It keeps sweat and oil off of your paper, making your work easier and keeping the calligraphy area clean. Again, this is a great habit to get into early. >I like using mechanical pencils as opposed to regular ones since I don't >have to sharpen them. You can get them in as fine a lead as a .3 mm. >Koh-i-Noor makes a nice one called a Rapidomatic. I'd further add that you'd like to have 2 softnesses available -- one hard (2h is nice) and one soft (b or 2b). It's good to have the variety, especially if you're doing complicated layout. >Good paper means some sort of nice quality, smooth, paper with a decent >archival quality. My favorite is Arches 90# HotPress Watercolor paper. It's >a soft, warm white and has a nice, smooth surface; but not so smooth that >every correction will glare out. It's also heavy enough to handle x-acto >knife corrections (that's where you gently scrape a mistake off the surface >of the paper using a very sharp blade and lots and lots of patience). Bristol board (smooth) is great too. What ever you do, please do not use bumpy type watercolor paper (cold press)! This will make you the enemy of calligraphers who work with your blanks! Many kinds of paper are okay for illumination, but calligraphy goes best on smooth paper with a bit of tooth, like the ones mentioned above. >As to "easy" manuscripts to copy, my suggestion is to look at as many >examples of illumination from every period, and pick what *you* personally >find the most visually appealing. Ease and simplicity are subjective. >Regardless of perceived complexity, you'll be happier working on something >you like the look of. If you find you like Dutch manuscript painting, you >don't have to recreate an entire page of it right off, you can recreate >elements until you get the hand of the forms you're dealing with. Try to >find a scribe local to you to coach you through your first attempt or two. I'd also like to recommend _copying_. To learn the visual language of an illumination style, copy a ms page as your design. This may not mean tracing, but sometimes tracing elements can be helpful too, to get the full flavor of a design. As you become more comfortable with a style, you will be able to create your own designs in the flavor of that style. Good luck, and have fun! ________________ Lady Gianetta Andreini da Vicenza Jen Rosen jrosen at zwell.com Per fess gules and azure fretty, in chief in fess three popinjays Or Date: Thu, 18 Dec 1997 19:27:22 -0500 From: "Helen Schultz" To: Subject: Re: begining illumination Greetings Philippa, What both Aquilanne in Ansteorra and Gianetta Andreini da Vincenza in the Middle said is true. Good advice all around. May I add a thing or two, please. As a Laurel in calligraphy and illumination (C&I), I have my own preferences. Let me say right now __each person works with whatever tools work best for them__, but sometimes they don't always know about some others that make life a little easier for the person doing C&I (or even just one or the other). I find using a mechanical pencil which I can sharpen much better than the set .03 so called mechanical pencils by Pentel...they are ALWAYS blunt, and sometimes you want a very fine line during your drafting process. Also, for lining, I really like to use the Linex Liner rather than the Ames Liner (this is a wonderful little plastic lining tool with several lines of holes set in a line and a wheel that allows you to change how far apart those holes line up). It is rather difficult to describe here, but not difficult to use. The Linex is nicer because it can use both inches and millimeters (so much more diversity) and they have a longer set of holes to use -- nearly double the number on the Ames. Colors of gouache I would recommend are: primary red, primary blue, primary yellow, ivory black, and permanent white for mixing (these colors will mix into almost any color of the spectrum you might desire). If you are unsure of mixing, I recommend: spectrum red, cobalt blue pale hue, ultramarine, mistletoe green, purple lake, cadmium red deep, cadmium green, and whatever other colors you find interesting. Those colors are fairly close to most of the ones used in period. To view some manuscripts of various periods, go to this web page: http://www.georgetown.edu/labyrinth/subjects/mss/mss.htm It has links to many more manuscript sites. Happy surfing and Buchkunstmaleri (German for book art work). Meisterin Katarina Helene von Schoenborn Middle Kingdom Date: Fri, 19 Dec 1997 21:40:50 EST From: LRSTCS To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu Subject: Egg Tempera, etc. Thanks folks for the info, The gum amoniac sources and instructions were just what I needed! Here's the mail order sources with the better prices I mentioned: Art Supply Warehouse (ASW) 1-800-995-6778, 1-929-878-5077 web site - haven't looked at it yet- www.aswexpress.com. They have guaches, paints and paper. If you have a Michaels near you, you can get the papers and some brushes that the other scribes mentioned on sale, and they usually have a 40-50% off coupon in the Sunday paper for one item. Buy the most expensive brushes you can afford, they work better. To the beginner Illuminator, the mail order sources offer starter sets with your basic colors of 8-10 tubes which is much cheaper than bying them seperate. Found that out the hard way. Egg Tempera in the tube: [see the paint-msg file] Magge Date: Fri, 19 Dec 1997 21:35:33 -0800 From: Brett and Karen Williams To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu Subject: Re: begining illumination Meisterin Katarina (Helen Schultz) writes amongst other things: > > Colors of gouache I would recommend are: primary red, primary blue, > primary yellow, ivory black, and permanent white for mixing (these colors > will mix into almost any color of the spectrum you might desire). If you > are unsure of mixing, I recommend: spectrum red, cobalt blue pale hue, > ultramarine, mistletoe green, purple lake, cadmium red deep, cadmium green, > and whatever other colors you find interesting. Those colors are fairly > close to most of the ones used in period. As a professional artist's daughter, an artist who has made his living by his brush and (mostly) watercolors for the last forty years, I would like to add something to Mistress Katarina's good advice. Windsor and Newton gouache paints are of excellent quality. However, there is a set of physical/environmental characteristics that are actively working against any illuminator's work. I'm offering a suggestion on how to judge light-fast paint. Your enemy is Light. It comes in two flavors, natural (sun) and fluorescent. I was in the Getty Museum-- the *new* one, on the Sunday afternoon immediately after Thanksgiving. My five-year-old escort didn't allow me much time to gawk at the manuscripts, however, I would like to point out that each and every page on display was individually lit, within a dark room. We're talking a pitch black room here. On the back of the Windsor & Newton tube, both for gouache and watercolor, is a letter rating. Examine those letters carefully. Anything rated an A or better is going to be the most light-fast pigment. There is a lovely pink rated somewhere around F or G, if memory serves. It is extremely light fugitive. Try to stick within the range of A, AA, AAA-- and if you can't get around it, the B ratings. You'll find that most of the primary spectrum is either A or B. It's the more obscure tints that have the fugitive ratings-- again, IIRC, most yellows are in the B category. Those fugitive colors will fade on exposure to light, noble cousins. If you are willing to invest in quality pigments-- and especially invest your valuable time in a work that will be hung on an individual's wall for a long time to come, make sure it will last. I can even offer a suggestion for an experiment: Make a card consisting of labeled blocks of your favorite and primary colors. Cover up all but a strip of that paint, and expose this to a window of sunlight for a month. Each successive month, for the next six months, move the covering back until a last strip is due to be uncovered. The lack of color in the first set of strips will astound you. The sun will have bleached it amazingly. And the 'higher' the letter rating on the paint, the less likely the color will have survived its exposure. ciorstan (who invested heavily in a set of sable watercolor brushes and has never regretted it for a moment) Date: Sat, 20 Dec 1997 16:42:35 -0500 From: "Helen Schultz" To: Subject: Re: beginning illumination Sorry for the delay Bianca, but I had some ear and sinus surgery on Friday and have just now felt like sitting down at the computer. About papers. The two least expensive to use are Arches 90# (which usually comes in sheets large enough to quarter or cut into 8's) and Bristol Board (which usually comes in pads of various sizes). These two papers are usually acid free and are heavy enough to withstand a lot of handling. You probably want to stay away from really thin papers, and most definitely away from the "calligraphy parchment" sold in pads near the calligraphy pens...not the best paper -- really. I hope you will find this of service. KHvS Edited by Mark S. 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