Italic ligatures

[RayMan]

Thank you for your insights Ken. I'm in the very early stages of learning cursive italic. I'm having a difficult time with "e". The style shown by Tom Gourdie slows me down excessively. It just seems so impractical. There must be a better way (at least a way that is better for me). I'm glad to read your comment regarding the existence of different ligature styles.

RayMan,

 

There are three basic ways of writing the italic minuscule 'e'

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd289/caliken_2007/ABC4.jpg

 

I usually favour style C over A as it maintains the parallel ligatures. B is the fastest to write, but producing a good shape is a little more difficult as the first part of the letter is a pushed stroke. I occasionally use A, but not very often.

 

Thank you Ken! Alternatives B and C help a lot.

 

[Randal6393]

To chime in with my 2 cent's worth, this link leads to a website that features a short tutorial on Italic handwriting based on the Cataneo manuscript. I forget the name of the gentleman that posted the site and could not find it in a quick search. At any rate, he has several pages of his hand and a few bits of Cataneo's work. His discussions on writing a semi-formal Italic are clear and easy.

 

Enjoy,

[caliken]

To chime in with my 2 cent's worth, this link leads to a website that features a short tutorial on Italic handwriting based on the Cataneo manuscript. I forget the name of the gentleman that posted the site and could not find it in a quick search. At any rate, he has several pages of his hand and a few bits of Cataneo's work. His discussions on writing a semi-formal Italic are clear and easy.

 

Enjoy,

To the best of my knowledge, James Pickering never posted an actual copy of Cataneo's work. All the exemplars written on his site, are in his own hand.

Edited March 1, 2009 by caliken

[KateGladstone]

Why not go by the rule in the first-ever book on Italic handwriting: Arrighi's LA OPERINA in 1522 advised: "To join or not to join, I leave up to you." (I can look up the original Italian if anyone needs this.)

 

To put this into practice, I advise trying out all possible letter-combos -- "aa" through "zz" -- over a half-hour a day for a week (e.g., "aa" through "ez" on Sunday, "fa" through "kz" on Monday, or some such schedule) to come to see and feel which types/locations of joins you can or cannot legibly, rapidly, and COMFORTABLY make in your own Italic. Try it!

[James Pickering]

Here is a copy of work by Bennardino Cataneo dated 1545. In this astonishing tour-de-force the minuscules are only 2mm high!

From time to time, I have received praise for my lettering and it's very easy to get carried away, and start believing it. Every time I go back and look at this tiny piece of italic writing, I am overwhelmed with wonder, and come straight back down to earth!

 

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd289/caliken_2007/Cataneoforposting.jpg

Thank you for posting this, Ken. I have wanted to do that myself but was concerned about copyright -- I only have book sources available (the Harvard book and Atkin's "Masterpieces of the Italic Letter") -- no snippets or loose exemplars. As you can guess I hold Cataneo's Chancery hands in the highest regard -- sheer excellence. Several years ago I found a "windfall" stash of seven of the Harvard Cataneo Manuscript books on sale -- brand new copies -- which I gobbled up. We held an italic handwriting competition here and I donated three of those books as prizes for the adjudged top three winners. I often wonder what became of those books and if they still inspire the recipients.

 

James

 

[James Pickering]

To chime in with my 2 cent's worth, this link leads to a website that features a short tutorial on Italic handwriting based on the Cataneo manuscript. I forget the name of the gentleman that posted the site and could not find it in a quick search. At any rate, he has several pages of his hand and a few bits of Cataneo's work. His discussions on writing a semi-formal Italic are clear and easy.

 

Enjoy,

To the best of my knowledge, James Pickering never posted an actual copy of Cataneo's work. All the exemplars written on his site, are in his own hand.

Yes, that is correct. I have just finished revising and updating my site -- link in signature block -- and have included a brief Cataneo biography on the Directory page and information relating to the Harvard book (and Cataneo Manuscript) on the Introduction page.

 

James

 

[caliken]

Why not go by the rule in the first-ever book on Italic handwriting: Arrighi's LA OPERINA in 1522 advised: "To join or not to join, I leave up to you." (I can look up the original Italian if anyone needs this.)

 

To put this into practice, I advise trying out all possible letter-combos -- "aa" through "zz" -- over a half-hour a day for a week (e.g., "aa" through "ez" on Sunday, "fa" through "kz" on Monday, or some such schedule) to come to see and feel which types/locations of joins you can or cannot legibly, rapidly, and COMFORTABLY make in your own Italic. Try it!

I wasn't aware of this Arrighi quotation - thanks for posting, Kate.

 

[caliken]

I often wonder what became of those books and if they still inspire the recipients.

I recently bought my copy of this book, which is totally inspirational. I am sure the recipients of your copies treasure theirs.

 

Incidentally, have you noticed that, in his introduction, Stephen Harvard spells the name 'Bernardino' whereas in exemplar 5 Cataneo clearly gives his name as 'Bennardino'!

 

Ken

Edited March 12, 2009 by caliken

[James Pickering]

I often wonder what became of those books and if they still inspire the recipients.

I recently bought my copy of this book, which is totally inspirational. I am sure the recipients of your copies treasure theirs.

 

Incidentally, have you noticed that, in his introduction, Stephen Harvard spells the name 'Bernardino' whereas in exemplar 5 Cataneo clearly gives his name

 

as 'Bennardino'!

 

Ken

Yes, Ken, I have noticed that. On page seven Harvard notes that Cataneo's full name appears on the rolls of the University of Siena, at various times, as Bernardino Catonei, Bernardus Chatanei and Bernardino Catarino. Cataneo does sign himself Bennardino Cataneo on Exemplars 1, 5 and 20. I do not know why Harvard uses the anglicanised version (some others do likewise in various references) -- Atkins uses the Exemplar signature form. I wrestled with which form to use myself -- I have used both from time to time -- but decided to use Harvard's due to reference familiarity. I think I shall revert to Cataneo's signature form.

 

James

[KateGladstone]

Those who'd like to see the Arrighi advice I mentioned

can see the page containing it (the original page, with an English translation by Gunnlaugur Briem)

at this page of Briem's on-line copy of LA OPERINA --

 

http://briem.ismennt.is/4/4.4/4.4.3.book/4.4.3.25.page15.htm

 

The book (with Briem's translation/comments/etc.) inhabits an OPERINA subsite -- here: http://briem.ismennt.is/4/4.4/index.htm -- of Briem's main handwriting site here: http://briem.ismennt.is

 

 

Why not go by the rule in the first-ever book on Italic handwriting: Arrighi's LA OPERINA in 1522 advised: "To join or not to join, I leave up to you." (I can look up the original Italian if anyone needs this.)

 

To put this into practice, I advise trying out all possible letter-combos -- "aa" through "zz" -- over a half-hour a day for a week (e.g., "aa" through "ez" on Sunday, "fa" through "kz" on Monday, or some such schedule) to come to see and feel which types/locations of joins you can or cannot legibly, rapidly, and COMFORTABLY make in your own Italic. Try it!

I wasn't aware of this Arrighi quotation - thanks for posting, Kate.

 

[James Pickering]

Here is a copy of work by Bennardino Cataneo dated 1545. In this astonishing tour-de-force the minuscules are only 2mm high!

From time to time, I have received praise for my lettering and it's very easy to get carried away, and start believing it. Every time I go back and look at this tiny piece of italic writing, I am overwhelmed with wonder, and come straight back down to earth!

 

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd289/caliken_2007/Cataneoforposting.jpg

Thank you for posting this, Ken. I have wanted to do that myself but was concerned about copyright -- I only have book sources available (the Harvard book and Atkin's "Masterpieces of the Italic Letter") -- no snippets or loose exemplars. As you can guess I hold Cataneo's Chancery hands in the highest regard -- sheer excellence. Several years ago I found a "windfall" stash of seven of the Harvard Cataneo Manuscript books on sale -- brand new copies -- which I gobbled up. We held an italic handwriting competition here and I donated three of those books as prizes for the adjudged top three winners. I often wonder what became of those books and if they still inspire the recipients.

 

James

 

Lorraine Douglas includes this facsimile of a Cataneo Exemplar in a blog entry -- clicking on the image produces a great enlargement of the letterforms.

 

James

[caliken]

Truly wonderful lettering! For those not familiar with this work, it's worth re-mentioning that the minuscule height is only 2mm!

Thanks for posting, James.

 

Ken

 

[wykpenguin]

Are they handwritten or are they printed. It seems impossible to write with a nib so fine.

[caliken]

Are they handwritten or are they printed. It seems impossible to write with a nib so fine.

They were handwritten on vellum.