Looking for a freelance calligrapher?
See our list here.
Founding Documents and more:
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The scribes who lettered the Declaration
of Independence and the US Constitution. -
Brody Neuenschwander demonstrates how this country's founding documents were lettered.
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1967 film The Art of Hermann Zapf on the purpose and techniques of calligraphy.
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Lecture by Julian Waters tracing the development of Calligraphy, Lettering and Typeface Design. [The Power of Writing at top by Julian Waters.]
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Ewan Clayton explores how the design of letterforms has evolved over time and across the world.
Washington Calligraphers Guild Projects:
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The Graceful Envelope Contest: WCG sponsors this popular annual competition of envelope art, now in its 29th year.
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Meet Our WCG Members: Calligraphic achievements of some of our professional and amateur members, including the White House calligraphers.
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CalligraFest, our fall calligraphy fair, was held on Saturdays nine times between 1999 and 2010 in Northern Virginia.
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Baby Elephant Walk: WCG's entry was selected to be among the 200 hand-painted donkey and elephant statues on display in every part of Washington DC in 2002. Our elephant took viewers on a walk through Washington's sites, whose names were lettered in a variety of styles and colors by three members.
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WCG hosted Letterforum 2006, the 26th international gathering of lettering artists, at James Madison U, Harrisonburg, VA. Previously, WCG produced Letterforums in 1988 at Marymount in VA and in 1995 at St. Mary's College MD.
Letterforum logo by Julian Waters.
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Below: WCG produced a video about the Guild in 2006:
Calligraphy Supplies:
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Paper & Ink Arts Calligraphy supply shop serving calligraphers worldwide online.
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John Neal Books In addition to a large selection of calligraphy books and supplies, he publishes Letter Arts Review magazine, is selling back issues of Bound & Lettered on bookbinding and papercraft and compiles lists of Guilds, calligraphy classes and conferences and retreats.
Conferences, Workshops & Classes:
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2024 International Calligraphy Conference, "Roman Holiday," June 22-29 at St. Ambrose University, Davenport, Iowa, hosted by the Chicago Calligraphy Collective. Can't get there? Attend online!
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75th Annual IAMPETH Conference July 1-6 in San Antonio (next year: July 7-12, 2025 in Norfolk, Virginia).
Learning Calligraphy:
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Foundations of Calligraphy by Sheila Waters features exemplar alphabets and instruction for broad-pen lettering.
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The Speedball Textbook 25th ed.
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PDF of 10 different calligraphy hands using both broad-edged and pointed pens.
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Calligraphic and digital resources from blackletter artist Tamer Ghoneim.
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The Postman's Knock: blog and tutorials by Lindsey Bugbee.
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CalligraScape: lessons on calligraphic styles
Manuscript Resources:
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Before the introduction of printing to Europe, all books were written by hand. These British Library videos explain how quills, ink, pigments and vellum were prepared and how gold-leaf miniatures were created.
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Another video on how early books were created.
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Seven Things to Look for in Medieval Manuscripts, from medievalists.net.
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Donald Jackson and team lettered and
illuminated The Saint John's Bible. -
The Aberdeen Bestiary: the story behind
a Medieval manuscript. -
Digital images from The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, MD.
How-To Guides:
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What I Wish They Taught Me about Copyright in Art School from the US Library of Congress.
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Fair Use Checklist from Cornell U. Library.
