Tools and Techniques of Calligraphy

[Phamster92]

Man, you're a natural. I tried calligraphy once, and I failed miserably. Heck I even tried Chinese Calligraphy and my name ended up looking like a child's chicken scratch. This definitely takes skills and patience.

[pfraterdeus]

The pen's made from a turkey feather. It's a quill pen. You can see my video of how to cut a quill pen for more info on that process!

[dalen74]

I just love calligraphy.well,to say the truth,I love every single art that I try:origami,potery,calligraphy­...even sculpture!!!

[graveey]

@dalen74 haha i was just thinking the exact same before I read your comment. Ive gone from sculpting, to manga, to graffiti, and now calligraphy haha, guess were just easily entertained, or extremely gifted..... :)

[JilliCi0usx]

When you're writing.. is this a special pen or something?

[uriah614]

did that ink stone start dissapearing at 3:05 O.O wtf!!!!! i wanna know where he bought his magic kit woah!!!!!

[janellerobinson1]

Hi Peter, can you tell me what brand nibs you use, Speedball, William Mitchell..

Also have you heard of or used Pilot Parallel Pens, for when you have alot of writing to do. Also what is the best ink, Indian or Acrylic. Thanks Janelle from Australia!

[rubenfacadas2010]

cool

[ericbelify]

Frater, How do I take the next step?  I am good with letters, but I know nothing of paper or tools. I buy pens and paper from art-supply stores but have no knowledge of how they work together. How can I break out of the trial and error?

[patika88]

great! hope to see more of this!!! you are great!

[krys2looper]

başarılar sayfamada beklerim

[Famespeare]

I enjoyed this video tremendously! My calligraphy background consists wholly of using Parker cartridge pens with calligraphy nibs, and a couple of dip pens. Learning how and seeing how to make ink and do other techniques is very valuable for me, since I have little time to attend calligraphy societies or go to art school. Thanks!!!

[spineless93]

Dude its a Calligraphy Tutorial, its not something anyone can do.

[pfraterdeus]

Ink stones can be acquired from a variety of online sources.

google: "oriental Art Supplies"

:-)

[Exhume2Consume]

or you can always use a nice rock you've found.

[aishabryant]

This is very cool. Do you have a web page or is there a link to more of your tutorial?? I'd like to learn and practice before mailing out formal invitations... Thanks!

[dtolab]

what's this poder that you put on the paper and why?

[pfraterdeus]

I use a 'pounce bag' with Gum Sandarac, which creates a slightly gritty higher surface-tension dust, filling the spaces between the fibers in the paper surface. This helps to keep the ink from spreading into the fibers, and allows me to get a very fine edge and the sharpest possible 'hairline' from the quill.

Inkstones are available from any source which sells oriental art supplies. The cheaper ceramic ones are generally sufficient for our purposes, but fine slate and other stones are also used.

[Nina1348]

Great!! More of this will be most welcome!!!

As RlewisH said, is it possible to purchase inkstones?

[1rey4]

Ya Man!!!!!

[RLewisH]

where should i get ink stones?

[shrapnel360]

that is so awesome...I wish I could write like that

[kbblradio]

Absolutely love this video.

[RealUnreal]

Is the focus out to lunch or is it the nose in between my eyes?

[NeoQuello]

LOL...

[sebastianvalle]

More!

[xXBocephusXx]

Amazing! I hope for more!

[7218whatm]

I practice calligraphy but am still quite new to it - I use metal and find that it always scratches at a certain arc of the circle, frustrating! More would be nice - as commented earlier - more explanation of tools, common names, etc.

Inspirational, thanks

[nintendowns]

which style of calligraphy do you use? blackletter, copperplate, italic, or is it something else?

[PianoScience]

I like Italics, Blackletter, Versals, and copperplate.

[envirogeologist]

Peter - its cool as hell that you use a real quill. More commentary about the tools and techniques would be useful. Thanks for posting this.

[BeniLehelCal]

Buddy your grate I like what U`re doing!!Check Out My Videos!You`ll like it!

[nintendowns]

i hope i can take a class on this someday, it will be really nice to write in calligraphy, plus my normal handwriting will probably improve. nice job

[movinon5]

do you know of any classes? I'm looking for some as well!!!

[ClarinetDan]

Can something that looks that well be made with a cheaper felt-tipped calligraphy pen?

Or does it not suffice?

And also, what is the price range for these tools(including the ink stones and pads).

This art is absolutely beutiful. It would come in very handy for me.

[pfraterdeus]

No, unfortunately, the felt tip will never have the clarity and crispness of the quill. In fact even a metal pen, if it's as sharp as the quill, becomes like a razor edge and bites the surface too much! The ink stone and stick can be found online or in art supply stores for less than $20 probably. Of course you can also pay a lot more ;-)

[hellerZauberer]

@ClarinetDan You can also make your own ink stones! google it!

[GuillermoZS]

Thanks! Looking forward for more!

[justjoan12]

where do you buy all those?

[pfraterdeus]

Thanks for your kind comments!

I will try to get some more videos up in the coming winter months!

Write On!

P

[darkthronesin]

My calligraphy is mediocre at best, and watching your videos inspire me to become better, I strongly agree with hrmfaeryqueen, and I too ask for more!

[Sirmorles]

Gracias por compartir i tuoi conoscimenti

[hrmfaeryqueen]

Thank you so much for the instructional posts. I am a medieval illuminator and historical bookbinder. I always enjoy seeing traditional methods of calligraphy. Elegant and inspiring! MORE!

[pfraterdeus]

No expensive pens.

Just like photography, it's not the expensive camera but the practiced eye of the photographer which makes a good photo.

In calligraphy, the eye and hand work together to create rhythm and 'melody' in the writing.

The quill is the best pen you can use, but it also takes skill and craft to create!

[azavalia1]

Excellent. Thanks for sharing.

I like the fact that you dont need expensive pens and ink to achieve this beautiful result.

[rpazcoguin]

Is it just me or is there a lag between the video and the audio? ...Not that it really makes much of a difference; it's just an observation.

[pfraterdeus]

there is, you're not crazy ;-)

good observation!

[ScrappyCD206]

Incredible. I learned very much by watching how you write the words Tools and Techniques of Calligraphy. It's very beautiful. Very. I like what your videos, your ideas and what you're doing. Keep it up! :D

[plievano]

what about a tutorial for complte noobs!!! ill really apreacciate it ... im very interested on calygraphy but i suck!!! i will love some tips

[grinninggnome]

Thank you, videos like this really help those of us far away from the cities.

[pfraterdeus]

thanks for your comments!

I will have more time for this later in the fall. Summer's too short to be inside at the desk ;-)

[bribabytt]

Really enjoyed it; you don't often get to see the preparation of the materials. Please post more.

[yellowsub9]

hello, i was wondering if you could go over the basics, ink, nibs, how to put them together and load them...

thanks, i enjoyed your video

[EanZen]

Hi there! Quite a beautifull and expressive script you wrote. Was it sumi ink that you used for writting? I didn't know about gum sandarac, but I've started learning about calligraphy and old writting implements recently, so there's much I have yet to learn. So using gum sandarac would allow one to use even lighter paper without having the ink blurring? Sorry if I'm not using the right terms, English isn't my native language... Thanks!

[pfraterdeus]

Yes, it's sumi ink.

Sandarac can help with certain surfaces, but it won't fix a paper that's too rough. In fact, it's more important for paper that's too smooth, or for writing on vellum.

Thanks for your thoughts!

[pfraterdeus]

I'm writing with a quill pen cut from a turkey feather...

[pfraterdeus]

Gum Sandarac is a resin which helps to 'seal' the writing surface...