Learning Copperplate...

[smk]

Thanks to caliken's help, I 've made some progress and this is my lastest writing:

 

I like it very much. I think you are well on your way in developing your own style. I especially like the mixing of the scripts - I'll have to give that a try sometimes.

 

Keep 'em coming.

 

Salman

[smk]

Whoops - think I may have resized a little too much!

 

Ah - there it is. I was wondering where you have disappeared to. I know there's more where this came from - I'll be looking forward to it.

 

Salman

[smk]

Another practice session - trying my hand at the majuscules now.

 

Does this thing get harder for everybody as you go along? I suspect the eye sharpens more quickly than the hand and you start noticing things you weren't aware of before. I am becoming less and less satisfied with my efforts - which is not to say I'm giving up anytime soon :-)

 

 

Salman

[fuchsiaprincess]

Hi Salman,

 

That is a beautiful effort! I agree with you, we become much better critics as we progress

 

You have beautifully fine hairlines, and your majuscules are exquisite! If I had to critique, it would be the word 'jump'. Somehow, the spacing between the 'J' and 'u' seems to be wider.

 

Keep up the good work!

 

Warm regards,

Soki

[Wickwack]

Salman, That "W" is exquisite!

[caliken]

Does this thing get harder for everybody as you go along? I suspect the eye sharpens more quickly than the hand and you start noticing things you weren't aware of before. I am becoming less and less satisfied with my efforts.

 

Salman,

 

Don't be discouraged. You are producing fine work and your observation regarding 'the eye sharpening more quickly than the hand' is exactly right, and shows the progress you've made as your perception has increased.

 

I remember enthusing about the lettering of a particular calligrapher (who shall remain nameless) in print. Many years later, I realised that the lettering I had admired so much, was actually pretty poor and badly formed.

 

When you start out, everyone's lettering looks great, and then, as you say, the eye sharpens with practice and you become more discerning. This is vital because without this perception, you would never improve.

 

If you are becoming 'less and less satisfied' with your efforts, this is a good sign and an important part of the learning process. The more you practice and study, the less satisfied you become with your own work because you are seeing the subtleties of the lettering much more clearly. This is perfectly natural and this stage will pass quite quickly.

 

Keep up the good work!

 

Ken

[smk]

 

If I had to critique, it would be the word 'jump'. Somehow, the spacing between the 'J' and 'u' seems to be wider.

 

 

Thanks for the support Soki - its good to know someone's watching.

 

 

You are right about the spacing between the J and u isn't right - that and the spacing between the Q and u too, and the 'e' in 'The' doesn't come down all the way to the base line, and the swirl at the base of the 'T' is a bit too tight and....isn't this fun though - I would've been ecstatic with this a month ago but now I see a whole new level up ahead. I can't execute it yet but I can see it.

 

 

S.

 

 

Salman, That "W" is exquisite!

 

Thanks Wickwack - I got lucky with that one. I find the W one of the easier ones to draw - I start with the initial squiggle and then draw the two shaded lines. The join between the shaded strokes and the final strokes are done after. Its drawn more than written at this point - I'll have to work quite a bit more to get it like this by writing it. My struggle continues.

 

Thanks for the support.

 

Salman

[smk]

 

Salman,

 

Don't be discouraged. You are producing fine work and your observation regarding 'the eye sharpening more quickly than the hand' is exactly right, and shows the progress you've made as your perception has increased.

 

I remember enthusing about the lettering of a particular calligrapher (who shall remain nameless) in print. Many years later, I realised that the lettering I had admired so much, was actually pretty poor and badly formed.

 

When you start out, everyone's lettering looks great, and then, as you say, the eye sharpens with practice and you become more discerning. This is vital because without this perception, you would never improve.

 

If you are becoming 'less and less satisfied' with your efforts, this is a good sign and an important part of the learning process. The more you practice and study, the less satisfied you become with your own work because you are seeing the subtleties of the lettering much more clearly. This is perfectly natural and this stage will pass quite quickly.

 

Keep up the good work!

 

Ken

 

Ken - you know the perfect thing to say at the perfect time. Thank you for your continued support, it means a lot to me. I am looking forward to your book on the subject - I wish I had it now to help me along but I'll be glad to have it whenever it becomes available.

 

I recently received my copy of 'The Universal Penman' and you were absolutely right about it being mind blowing. I am enjoying the study of it and I'm sure it has contributed a lot to the 'sharpening of the eye'. My dissatisfaction with my perceived progress notwithstanding, I am happy I ordered it.

 

Thank you.

Salman

[CatBookMom]

SO pretty! OK, since someone mentioned it, the space between J and u is bigger, and between Q and u is different than the other words. But that is one stylin' Q! The other majuscules are pretty terrific, too, but Q is such a difficult letter to make pretty...

 

:clap1:

 

And you are oh so right about getting more critical as you learn more. A couple of days ago I had a very good writing practice; last night, not so much, too much forward slant. Etc.

 

Was it you who suggested to someone working on Copperplate that the 'o'-type letters needed to be made a tiny bit bigger for them to look proportionally correct? I think that may apply to cursive italic, too.

[smk]

SO pretty! OK, since someone mentioned it, the space between J and u is bigger, and between Q and u is different than the other words. But that is one stylin' Q! The other majuscules are pretty terrific, too, but Q is such a difficult letter to make pretty...

 

:clap1:

 

And you are oh so right about getting more critical as you learn more. A couple of days ago I had a very good writing practice; last night, not so much, too much forward slant. Etc.

 

Was it you who suggested to someone working on Copperplate that the 'o'-type letters needed to be made a tiny bit bigger for them to look proportionally correct? I think that may apply to cursive italic, too.

 

Thanks CatBookMom - I took the majuscules from Dr. Vitolo's lessons on iampeth.com. I like his system of building up the letters and it makes sense to me how he creates balance. I don't like the traditional Q and like this one much better - its just an O with a squiggle added but it works.

 

I believe it was nawybot who mentioned that making the rounded letters include the guide lines makes them proportionally correct - I make the mistake of wrapping up the rounded bottoms a bit early as is evident in the 'e' of the first 'The'. I agree - this would apply to other hands as well where the tops and/or bottoms of bowl letters are rounded.

 

Although this is a frustrating hand to learn I am having a lot of fun learning it - and I'm sure I'll be prouder of this one more than the others when I finally learn it.

 

Salman

[ru32day]

smk - how do you draw that little "blobby" bit on the top of the miniscule s? I think your s's look great and I'm having lots of trouble with mine

[smk]

smk - how do you draw that little "blobby" bit on the top of the miniscule s? I think your s's look great and I'm having lots of trouble with mine

 

Its drawn as a teardrop that is flat on the right side and rounded on the left. I extend the linking hairline about one third above the waist line then come down to the waist line with a little bit of pressure in a smart almost flicking motion. I find it easier if done quickly.

 

There's an alternate 's' in Dr. Vitolo's videos on iampeth.com that does not have this blob on the top that look really nice too. You might want to check that out and see if you like it.

 

Regards,

Salman

[smk]

I have recently receive my copy of The Universal Penman. I have been enjoying the superb examples of calligraphy in that book along with learning a few things about how different the writing style was in those days. Here are a few of the differences:

 

 

I found it interesting to practice these. Maybe we should do a project from one of the examples in TUP.

 

Salman

[fuchsiaprincess]

Hi Salman,

 

That would be great! Lovely writing as usual - thank you for sharing!

 

Warm regards,

Soki

[hlyuqi]

Thanks to caliken's help, I 've made some progress and this is my lastest writing:

 

Really, really nice, imho. Caliken has served you (and so many of the rest of us) well. You've got good thin strokes, which I think are the second-most important strokes in Copperplate, some nice increasing-decreasing shades, and the effect as a whole is elegant. I also like the contrast between your two hands.

 

Here's a tip I learned from Pat Blair. Make the ovals in your Copperplate miniscules based on o--like a, c, e, d, g--and "o" itself, of course--over-run the base and waist lines a little, so they are in fact a little bigger than the rules. If you don't cheat like that, those letters will look too small by comparison. And it's all about how it *looks*, right? Nothing else really matters. For instance, compare your very first "o" in the first "Hold," which overlaps the lines a little (it could go even a little bigger, imho), to your "o's" in "go," "snow," and "frozen," and the "d" in "die," which seem to me to be strictly between your rules. See?

 

Don't sweat the spelling. Who cares?

 

Also, get a LightPad if you can afford the $$$, and lose the guidelines! I just received an Artograph 9x12 and so far, so good. Very convenient.

 

 

I got it ,thank you very much.I will give it a try ! And I like this sentence"Don't sweat the spelling. Who cares?" Aha~

[hlyuqi]

Thanks to caliken's help, I 've made some progress and this is my lastest writing:

 

I like it very much. I think you are well on your way in developing your own style. I especially like the mixing of the scripts - I'll have to give that a try sometimes.

 

Keep 'em coming.

 

Salman

I also like your scripts,and I think you're learning fast.In fact I don't want to mix the scripts,I write them in that way beceuse I seldom look at the standard ones(for I have few teaching materials on me ) .I am planning to buy some books on Copperplate after the College Entrance Exams . I will come and see your update as long as I get time!

[Ghost Plane]

Who knew I was making my "f"s correctly all these years?! :blink: Only 25 letters to go...

[fuchsiaprincess]

Something from "The Universal Penman". The lack of practise shows - my lines are a tad wobbly :embarrassed_smile:

http://i1027.photobucket.com/albums/y331/fuchsiaprincess/10April2011.jpg

[smk]

Nicely done Soki. Your rendering has a lovely fluency to it that is very appealing.

 

I am still undecided as to which one I want to copy. I like your choice of ink too - nice shading.

 

Salman

[fuchsiaprincess]

Nicely done Soki. Your rendering has a lovely fluency to it that is very appealing.

 

I am still undecided as to which one I want to copy. I like your choice of ink too - nice shading.

 

Salman

 

Thank you, Salman! I had that same problem. Not particularly interested in copying some of the paragraphs

 

The ink is Diamine Calligraphy ink with 'Wild Orchid'. I really like it!

 

It is so obvious that one has to practise regularly though. I felt like a rookie all over again!

 

Warm regards,

Soki