Spencerian Lettering (Harvest Crittenden: 2.5 day)
Skill Level: All
Spencerian Lettering, Our American Heritage: This workshop is designed to explore the beautiful lettering style of Spencerian Script, the only lettering style that is uniquesly American. Designed by Platt Roger Spencer in the 1800’s, we will explore the gracefulness of nature’s forms that inspired Mr. Spencer. We will take a look at the handwriting of the time, at how the lettering of Spencer and his contemporaries literally changed the face of American life.
The workshop will include the study of the lower case, the upper case, simple off-hand flourishing and using simple letterforms as borders. It is designed for all levels. Experience with an oblique pen holder is not necessary.
On my trip to the Spencer family grave in Ohio I spent a blustery afternoon collecting walnuts. These walnuts have been brewed and turned into Walnut ink, the same ink that Mr. Spencer often used. Each student will receive a recipe for brewing your own walnut ink.
Supply List: An oblique penholder if right-handed and straight if left-handed; Nikko G or Principal nibs for beginners; Gillott 303 for more advanced students; ONE bottle of ink (McCaffrey’s, Higgins Eternal, or Moon Palace Sumi); mechanical pencil (.5 is best); colored pencils if you have them; practice paper (Kodak Bright White 24 lb is good).
Supply Fee: $6 per student to cover complete model booklet, transparency for lettering envelopes, packet of 20 nibs for the class to try, several inks to try, walnut ink from Spencer Family plot, and a few little surprises.
About the instructor: Harvest Crittenden has been a professional lettering artist for more than 30 years. She specializes in Sacred Art work – calligraphy and illustration illuminating words that inspire and support our ever-changing world. Crittenden has studied illumination and lettering in the United States and Italy and has served on the faculties of numerous regional, national, and international conferences. She also teaches for the St. Michael Institute of Sacred Arts, The Religious Sisters of Mercy, Hollanders School of Book and Paper Arts, and offers workshops internationally. She is a past winner of the Marjorie Pavelich Calligraphy Grant, and past president of The Michigan Association of Calligraphers. In 2010 she was inducted as a Master Penman by IAMPETH. Her work can be seen in museums, galleries, and private collections throughout the United States and Europe, and in numerous publications. Her website is http://www.acornarts.org
