The Calligraphy Podcast

Get ready to flourish! In this episode, we chat with Schin Loong, calligrapher and artist at Open Ink Stand about all things flourishing. Schin is known for her Madarasz-inspired writing and flourishing and is the author of Calligraphic Drawing. In this episode, we talk about the freedom flourishing gives and how to approach this calligraphic discipline in a digestible way – one stroke at a time! Follow Schin at @openinkstand on Instagram or check out her website, https://www.openinkstand.com.

It's summertime, which means folks are making time for calligaphy. Maybe you're headed to a calligraphy class or conference or are on a vacation and are bringing your pens along for some "me" time with pen and ink. You could also be enjoying a quiet weekend at home and are putting time aside for calligraphy. Whether you're on a plane, in a car, on a walk, or at your desk, we hope you'll have an open mind today as we talk about how to stay teachable and get the most from classes.

The smell of sandalwood fills the air. A gentle scraping sound is heard from the other room. Everything turns black. No, the world isn't ending. We're just over here grinding our own sumi ink! In this immersive episode, we talk about the various forms of sumi ink and walk you through an audio demonstration as Christen grinds her own sumi ink on an inkstone. While she grinds enough ink for a small painting or calligraphy piece, Christen and Ajab have a little "ink chat" and share about some of their favorite inks, their first inks and the other joys of writing. Supplies: Moon Palace Sumi Ink: https://www.paperinkarts.com/moonpa.html Black ink stone: https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/shakyo-ken-ink-stone Black ink stick: https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/akanegimo-ink-stick-30210 Color ink sticks: https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/japanese-color-ink-sticks Porcelain ink stone: https://www.johnnealbooks.com/product/suzuri-ink-stone Sources: https://www.britannica.com/art/suiboku-ga#:~:text=suiboku%2Dga%2C%20also%20called%20Sumi,in%20the%20mid%2D14th%20century. https://www.sumi-e.it/en/what-is-sumi-e/ https://www.shine.cn/feature/art-culture/1903231709/#:~:text=The%20earliest%20human%2Dmade%20inksticks,Qin%20administrator%20in%20Hubei%20Province.

For us (Ajab and Christen), calligraphy started out as a hobby. We know from experience, once calligraphy enters your life, it's hard to shake it! While both of us now work as professional calligraphers, we know how important it is to maintain that spirit of curosity, practice and joy in writing. In this episode, we talk about how calligraphy might play a role for hobbyists and professionals alike. We hope it inspires you to find new ways to practice and play with your script. Follow us on Instagram at @thecalligraphypodcast Listen and Subscribe: iTunes Spotify Google Play Stitcher

Get ready for an all new season of The Calligraphy Podcast. Starting May 15, we will release one episode per month. Subscribe on your favorite podcast app and follow us on Instagram @thecalligraphypodcast.

From the large tips on the Tombow dual pens to small point of a Pentel Brush Sign Pen, we're talking all things brush calligraphy. Detailed show notes to come.

Today, we welcome special gust Chantelle Hoffman of Bespoke Strokes. Chantelle shares about how she made the decision to step back from her calligraphy business for a season and what brought her back. You can follow Chantelle on Instagram at @bespokestrokes or visit her website, bespokestrokes.com.

Ever wonder what it's like to go to a calligraphy conference? In this episode we share clips from the 2019 IAMPETH conference and tell you all about what you can expect from a week with fellow pen and ink lovers.

In this episode, we talk about: Recommended in this episode: Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield

Nina is a calligraphy teacher and artist renowned for her Live sessions on Instagram and her incredible attention to detail. In this heartfelt chat, we talk about: Follow Nina on Instagram here.

One of the biggest streams of income for calligraphers is wedding envelope jobs. In this episode we talk about: Your homework—time yourself! How long does it take you to write an envelope in calligraphy? Tell us your time for a traditional envelope or a modern style envelope.

We bring Mr. Fox of Fox & Quills on the show to answer all these questions, and lots more! New ink announcements: Fox & Quills Check out Fox & Quills' ink collection. Codex Sinaiticus Bible Sign-up for summer workshops: Christen's Summer of Script Intro to Copperplate Michael Sull's Spencerian Saga by Washington Calligrapher's Guild

In this episode: Plus, Christen asks a bold question and Ajab shares her vulnerabilities. Books recommended: Think Again by Adam GrantTurning Pro by Steven PressfieldThe One Thing by Gary Keller

In the last episode of season 2, we recap the past year of the podcast, share some BIG news and end with two rounds of rapid fire questions. Thanks to all of our wonderful listeners for your support these last few years. We will be taking a few months off to enjoy the holidays and plan for season 3, coming spring 2021.

At one point or another, we all get asked to create a commissioned piece for a client. In this episode, we break down all the steps from inquiry to delivery and share how we handle projects like this. Watch Martina Flor's Adobe Max presentation – Christen mentioned it when discussing sketches.

*Disclaimer: This episode is not legal advice. We share about copyrights, the public domain and plagiarism in this episode. Consult a legal professional if you have questions about this topic.* In this episode, we talk about plagiarism, copyrights and the public domain. We hope our heart behind this episode comes through–we want to honor and respect fellow artists and those we learn from. An article we liked about the public domain and copyrights: https://lifehacker.com/these-1924-copyrighted-works-enter-the-public-domain-in-1839612665 A good resources about the public domain: https://copyright.cornell.edu/publicdomain The difference between copying and learning: https://might-could.com/essays/inspiration-vs-imitation-how-to-copy-as-an-artist/

In today's episode, we interview Sarah Richardson of Sarah Script. Sarah specializes in Copperplate and Engrosser's Script, in fact, she wrote the book on it! We talk with Sarah about her book and how she overcomes self doubt. Check out Sarah's Instagram Visit Sarah's Website Sign up for Sarah's Classically Copperplate class Buy Sarah's book, Copperplate Calligraphy from A to Z Sign up for Christen's Holiday class

While the coronavirus has us holed up at home, the calligraphy community has adapted and taken to the internet to provide a plethora of online classes. This episode is all about how to plan for and teach a calligraphy workshop online. If you're not a teacher, this episode will put into perspective all the hard work teachers put in to make classes accessible to students across the world.

We use the famous words of Brian Walker, shared by Heather Held, to format today's episode. We talk about resources to study from, tools to practice with, and asked our listeners to reflect on their own experiences and offer up advice to new broad edge calligraphers. Below are the resources we mentioned: Books: Websites: Tools: Pilot parallel penSpeedball nibsAutomatic pensMitchell nibs:Carpenter pencilsBrause nibsPapers:Cotton Comp, Bond Layout, Gilbert Bond

In part one of our broad edge series, we talk about the basics of broad edge calligraphy–tools, how to get an x height, how it relates to and differs from pointed pen, and more.