Here's an example of calligraphy being used today. Queen Elizabeth is celebrating her 60th year on the throne. Heraldic artist Neil Bromley has created a family tree of the royal line of succession since 1066. Read all about it here:
http://www.scribblers.co.uk/blog/2012/05/royal-line-of-succession/?utm_source=May+2012+Newsletter&utm_campaign=Diamond+Jubilee+via+CC&utm_medium=email
Showing posts with label gilding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gilding. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
March 7, 2011 - Beverly Hills Adult School Uncial Class #7
Beverly Hills Adult School Uncial Class #7: Today DeAnn demonstrated gilding for the beginners. Students continued working on their illuminated manuscript projects.
For inspiration, take a look at Trini's work in progress:
Recipe for adhesive for flat gilding
1/3 part Sobo glue
2/3 part Water
Make in small jar
Add a tiny amount of red or orange watercolor to tint it lightly so that you can see where you’ve painted the glue. Red or orange color will enhance the gold color.
Demonstration of Illuminating a Decorative initial capital letter:
(see Gilding Notes for detailed instructions on Gilding)
Trace pattern (initial capital) onto Pergamenata paper.
Paint glue (adhesive for gold leaf, recipe: 2/3 Sobo glue, 1/3 water) onto initial capital with pointed brush (e.g. size 0 or 1). Try to paint on a smooth layer (you’ll be painting 3 layers). Let dry, then paint another layer. Cover the pencil outline.
Rinse brush frequently; don’t let the glue dry on the brush. TIP: Don’t let the brush sit in the water, the tip will be ruined.
Once the gold leaf adhesive is dry, you’re ready to apply the gold leaf. To prepare, clean a “gold only” pair of scissors with silk; you don’t want any sizing on the scissors or else the gold will stick to them. Cut the sheet of gold leaf to the estimated size of the initial cap.
Make sure to wipe off any lipstick or chapstick on your lips. Breathe on the glue so that it absorbs some moisture. Then place the gold leaf on it and press gently all around. Press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely covered with the gold leaf.
Remove the backing paper carefully so that you can save any gold that sticks to the paper.
Place a piece of glassine (acid-free, non-stick paper; the Post Office envelopes for stamps are glass-ine) over the gold leaf and press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely covered with gold leaf. Then brush excess gold off with a soft brush; brush in the direction of the lines, not across them.
Burnish the gold leaf (several types of burnishers in different shapes & sizes: e.g. Grifhold, Agate).
Clean up the edges with an X-acto knife with the #16 blade. (TIP: Every calligrapher should have the #11 blade and #16 blade.) Scrape toward you to clean the edges of excess gold.
Cleaned and burnished gilded initial capital:
Paint background of the gold decorative capital with gouache (choose a color that will make the gold stand-out; e.g. yellow is not a good choice.)
Once you’re done painting, outline the gold decorative capital with the Micron Pigma 005 pen.
Example of painting a decorative leaf half in a color and half in that color's tint. Then DeAnn added decorative cross-hatching, lines, and dots. This is called "diapering."
For inspiration, take a look at Trini's work in progress:
Recipe for adhesive for flat gilding
1/3 part Sobo glue
2/3 part Water
Make in small jar
Add a tiny amount of red or orange watercolor to tint it lightly so that you can see where you’ve painted the glue. Red or orange color will enhance the gold color.
Demonstration of Illuminating a Decorative initial capital letter:
(see Gilding Notes for detailed instructions on Gilding)
Trace pattern (initial capital) onto Pergamenata paper.
Paint glue (adhesive for gold leaf, recipe: 2/3 Sobo glue, 1/3 water) onto initial capital with pointed brush (e.g. size 0 or 1). Try to paint on a smooth layer (you’ll be painting 3 layers). Let dry, then paint another layer. Cover the pencil outline.
Rinse brush frequently; don’t let the glue dry on the brush. TIP: Don’t let the brush sit in the water, the tip will be ruined.
Once the gold leaf adhesive is dry, you’re ready to apply the gold leaf. To prepare, clean a “gold only” pair of scissors with silk; you don’t want any sizing on the scissors or else the gold will stick to them. Cut the sheet of gold leaf to the estimated size of the initial cap.
Make sure to wipe off any lipstick or chapstick on your lips. Breathe on the glue so that it absorbs some moisture. Then place the gold leaf on it and press gently all around. Press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely covered with the gold leaf.
Remove the backing paper carefully so that you can save any gold that sticks to the paper.
Place a piece of glassine (acid-free, non-stick paper; the Post Office envelopes for stamps are glass-ine) over the gold leaf and press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely covered with gold leaf. Then brush excess gold off with a soft brush; brush in the direction of the lines, not across them.
Burnish the gold leaf (several types of burnishers in different shapes & sizes: e.g. Grifhold, Agate).
Clean up the edges with an X-acto knife with the #16 blade. (TIP: Every calligrapher should have the #11 blade and #16 blade.) Scrape toward you to clean the edges of excess gold.
Cleaned and burnished gilded initial capital:
Paint background of the gold decorative capital with gouache (choose a color that will make the gold stand-out; e.g. yellow is not a good choice.)
Once you’re done painting, outline the gold decorative capital with the Micron Pigma 005 pen.
Example of painting a decorative leaf half in a color and half in that color's tint. Then DeAnn added decorative cross-hatching, lines, and dots. This is called "diapering."
Monday, October 18, 2010
Illumination Instructions and Materials List
Illuminated Manuscript Project Sequence by DeAnn Singh
Materials:
Text: poem, song lyrics, excerpt from long piece, about 50 - 100 words
Template
Exemplars for Versals and Lombardic
Pergamenata paper
1 1/2 mm Brause nib
Black ink or gouache
Watercolor pointed brush, size 00 and 1, synthetic or sable. I like Winsor & Newton Series 7. Utrecht makes nice brushes also. Get equivalent size to W/N.
Gouache in 3 colors plus zinc white or permanent white.
Gilding supplies (provided in class) include: gold leaf, adhesive, burnishers
Pigma Micron 005 pen
X-Acto knife with #16 blade
Pencil with 2H lead
Illuminated Manuscript Project Steps:
It’s about a 5-hour project. Do one step at a time and don’t get overwhelmed.
Design Piece and choose text (poem, song lyrics, excerpt from long piece)
Write words – figure out how many will work. Cut & Paste words and illumination. TIP: use re-movable Scotch Tape (with blue plaid)
Trace Decorated Capital that is the first letter of your text and any other decorative elements.
Trace onto the pergamenata paper with a 2H or harder lead. It won’t smudge as much (DeAnn has some for sale).
Get all prepared.
On the original (i.e. Pergamenata paper using the project template)
Trace Design
Draw the first few words in Lombardic and Romans (follow project template)
Write Text in black ink with 1 1/2 mm Brause nib
Gild (see Gilding Notes)
Paint versals & decorated capital design & any decorative capitals within the text
Text: It should be about 50 – 60 words and can be from scriptures, classic poetry, or just pretty poetry that you like. Even if the poem or original text is too long, you can choose an excerpt for your project. For the Gothic template, about 75 words will fit into the text area.
Project Template: the waist-base lines which you’ll write on are highlighted so that they’ll be clearly visible even under the pergamenata paper to be used for the project. Use the 1 1/2 mm Brause nib with black ink for the body. You will be drawing & painting in the initial decorative capital and the first four lines.
TIP: Look at Books or online for Ideas. Many books about illuminated manuscripts and decorative capital letters will be available in class for you to look at and trace/photograph.
When looking at books and other sources for ideas, consider:
Color Schemes – e.g. Red-Blue-Green; usually 3 colors & their tints.
Style - i.e. Flemish, Celtic, Leaves, white vine
Trace Letters or Designs – you can Xerox the decorative capital bigger or smaller to the desired size needed for the project
Use digital camera to take pictures of manuscript pages, letters and decorations that you like. You can download these to your computer and resize as needed.
Don’t get overwhelmed – as Eleanor Roosevelt said, “You must do the thing you think you cannot do!” Work on one step at a time.
TIP: whenever you feel overwhelmed, practice your text.
Recipe for adhesive for flat gilding
2/3 part Sobo glue
1/3 part Water
Make in small jar
Add a tiny amount of red or orange watercolor to tint it lightly so that you can see where you’ve painted the glue. Red or orange color will enhance the gold color.
Demonstration of Illuminating a Decorative initial capital letter:
(see Gilding Notes for detailed instructions on Gilding) The handouts were the sample initial capital (an “S”), a piece of pergamenata paper and a piece of palette paper to work on, as well as samples of Lombardic & Versals.
Illuminating a letter:
Choose 3 colors (one of the greens) and zinc white. Gouache, an opaque watercolor, is used for the paint. Place a dab of each color on the palette paper; even if it dries, you can reconstitute it with water.
Trace pattern (initial capital) onto Pergamenata paper. A pencil that you can use for outlining is the Staedtler lead holder, which is a mechanical drafting pencil. Its sharpener has both a sharp & dull setting and also a pad to brush off the excess graphite after sharpening. Use 2H lead.
Paint glue (adhesive for gold leaf, recipe: 2/3 Sobo glue, 1/3 water) onto initial capital with pointed brush (e.g. size 0 or 1). Try to paint on a smooth layer (you’ll be painting 3 layers). Let dry, then paint another layer. Cover the pencil outline.
Rinse brush frequently; don’t let the glue dry on the brush. TIP: Don’t let the brush sit in the water, the tip will be ruined.
For the colors, put permanent white next to each color. Add the tiniest bit of color, then a drop of water, to mix a tint. (TIP: have 2 water containers, one for dirty, one for clean. Always rinse brush in the dirty container first, then rinse in the clean container).
Don’t paint any of the decorative elements around the “S” yet (you don’t want the gold to stick to the painted areas). You can start painting the decorative elements elsewhere.
Paint each leaf half of one color, half in that color’s tint. Maker sure the first color is dry before painting on the other half.
Once all the leaves are painted & dry, “diaper” them with permanent white gouache. With a small pointed brush (e.g. size 0/0), decorate each leaf with lines, cross-hatching, or dots.
Once the gold leaf adhesive is dry, you’re ready to apply the gold leaf. To prepare, clean a “gold only” pair of scissors with silk – you don’t want any sizing on the scissors or else the gold will stick to them. Cut the sheet of gold leaf to the estimated size of the initial cap.
Breathe on the glue so that it absorbs some moisture. Then place the gold leaf on it and press gently all around. Press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely covered with the gold leaf.
Remove the backing paper carefully so that you can save any gold that sticks to the paper.
Place a piece of glassine (acid-free, non-stick paper; the Post Office envelopes for stamps are glass-ine) over the gold leaf and press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely.
Burnish the gold leaf (several types of burnishers in different shapes & sizes: e.g. Griffold, Agate).
Clean up the edges with an X-acto knife with the #16 blade. (TIP: Every calligrapher should have the #11 blade and #16 blade.) Scrape toward you to clean the edges of excess gold.
Paint background of the gold “S” with gouache (choose a color that will make the gold “pop”; e.g. yellow is not a good choice.)
Once you’re done painting, outline the gold “S” with the Micron Pigma 005 pen.
Outline each leaf in black with a Pigma Micron 005 pen.
Paint the stems with the small pointed brush in green, then again right next to that stroke with the green tint.
REMEMBER: with illumination, you can never be too garish!
TIP for drawing a leaf (i.e. a pointy ivy leaf like the ones in the illuminated manuscripts): draw a square. Then draw half-circles on each side. Erase the straight lines of the half-circles & you’re left with a leaf-shape.
Demonstration of painting Versals: Versals are drawn letters. Draw them for the first 2 lines of the proj-ect. Use the Versals handout that DeAnn Xeroxed to the correct size (1/2-inch x-height) to trace them. Paint them in the gouache colors that you’re using in your decorated capital with a very pointy brush.
Tip to decorate the background of your Decorated Capital: Use “diapering” so that you don’t have large areas of just one paint color. Diapering is cross-hatching, or drawing swirling vines, or painting small circles or dots, to fill a solid-color space.
If you feel the margins are too “empty,” fill it with filigree – ovals and figure-eights with a pointed brush, or use a Copperplate nib for really thin lines. Just fill the Copperplate nib with the gouache and draw the filigree lines.
To prevent your block of text from looking like the writing had been written by 3 different people, DeAnn’s advice is: schedule time when you’ll have no distractions because writing takes concentration. Then take the time to set-up your area correctly and have everything you’ll use readily at hand. Write for 20 minutes to warm-up, then write on the pergamenata paper. If you can’t finish writing all the text for your project in one sitting, warm-up for about 20 minutes before continuing the next time.
Materials:
Text: poem, song lyrics, excerpt from long piece, about 50 - 100 words
Template
Exemplars for Versals and Lombardic
Pergamenata paper
1 1/2 mm Brause nib
Black ink or gouache
Watercolor pointed brush, size 00 and 1, synthetic or sable. I like Winsor & Newton Series 7. Utrecht makes nice brushes also. Get equivalent size to W/N.
Gouache in 3 colors plus zinc white or permanent white.
Gilding supplies (provided in class) include: gold leaf, adhesive, burnishers
Pigma Micron 005 pen
X-Acto knife with #16 blade
Pencil with 2H lead
Illuminated Manuscript Project Steps:
It’s about a 5-hour project. Do one step at a time and don’t get overwhelmed.
Design Piece and choose text (poem, song lyrics, excerpt from long piece)
Write words – figure out how many will work. Cut & Paste words and illumination. TIP: use re-movable Scotch Tape (with blue plaid)
Trace Decorated Capital that is the first letter of your text and any other decorative elements.
Trace onto the pergamenata paper with a 2H or harder lead. It won’t smudge as much (DeAnn has some for sale).
Get all prepared.
On the original (i.e. Pergamenata paper using the project template)
Trace Design
Draw the first few words in Lombardic and Romans (follow project template)
Write Text in black ink with 1 1/2 mm Brause nib
Gild (see Gilding Notes)
Paint versals & decorated capital design & any decorative capitals within the text
Text: It should be about 50 – 60 words and can be from scriptures, classic poetry, or just pretty poetry that you like. Even if the poem or original text is too long, you can choose an excerpt for your project. For the Gothic template, about 75 words will fit into the text area.
 |
| template |
Project Template: the waist-base lines which you’ll write on are highlighted so that they’ll be clearly visible even under the pergamenata paper to be used for the project. Use the 1 1/2 mm Brause nib with black ink for the body. You will be drawing & painting in the initial decorative capital and the first four lines.
TIP: Look at Books or online for Ideas. Many books about illuminated manuscripts and decorative capital letters will be available in class for you to look at and trace/photograph.
When looking at books and other sources for ideas, consider:
Color Schemes – e.g. Red-Blue-Green; usually 3 colors & their tints.
Style - i.e. Flemish, Celtic, Leaves, white vine
Trace Letters or Designs – you can Xerox the decorative capital bigger or smaller to the desired size needed for the project
Use digital camera to take pictures of manuscript pages, letters and decorations that you like. You can download these to your computer and resize as needed.
Don’t get overwhelmed – as Eleanor Roosevelt said, “You must do the thing you think you cannot do!” Work on one step at a time.
TIP: whenever you feel overwhelmed, practice your text.
Recipe for adhesive for flat gilding
2/3 part Sobo glue
1/3 part Water
Make in small jar
Add a tiny amount of red or orange watercolor to tint it lightly so that you can see where you’ve painted the glue. Red or orange color will enhance the gold color.
Demonstration of Illuminating a Decorative initial capital letter:
(see Gilding Notes for detailed instructions on Gilding) The handouts were the sample initial capital (an “S”), a piece of pergamenata paper and a piece of palette paper to work on, as well as samples of Lombardic & Versals.
Illuminating a letter:
Choose 3 colors (one of the greens) and zinc white. Gouache, an opaque watercolor, is used for the paint. Place a dab of each color on the palette paper; even if it dries, you can reconstitute it with water.
Trace pattern (initial capital) onto Pergamenata paper. A pencil that you can use for outlining is the Staedtler lead holder, which is a mechanical drafting pencil. Its sharpener has both a sharp & dull setting and also a pad to brush off the excess graphite after sharpening. Use 2H lead.
Paint glue (adhesive for gold leaf, recipe: 2/3 Sobo glue, 1/3 water) onto initial capital with pointed brush (e.g. size 0 or 1). Try to paint on a smooth layer (you’ll be painting 3 layers). Let dry, then paint another layer. Cover the pencil outline.
Rinse brush frequently; don’t let the glue dry on the brush. TIP: Don’t let the brush sit in the water, the tip will be ruined.
For the colors, put permanent white next to each color. Add the tiniest bit of color, then a drop of water, to mix a tint. (TIP: have 2 water containers, one for dirty, one for clean. Always rinse brush in the dirty container first, then rinse in the clean container).
Don’t paint any of the decorative elements around the “S” yet (you don’t want the gold to stick to the painted areas). You can start painting the decorative elements elsewhere.
Paint each leaf half of one color, half in that color’s tint. Maker sure the first color is dry before painting on the other half.
Once all the leaves are painted & dry, “diaper” them with permanent white gouache. With a small pointed brush (e.g. size 0/0), decorate each leaf with lines, cross-hatching, or dots.
Once the gold leaf adhesive is dry, you’re ready to apply the gold leaf. To prepare, clean a “gold only” pair of scissors with silk – you don’t want any sizing on the scissors or else the gold will stick to them. Cut the sheet of gold leaf to the estimated size of the initial cap.
Breathe on the glue so that it absorbs some moisture. Then place the gold leaf on it and press gently all around. Press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely covered with the gold leaf.
Remove the backing paper carefully so that you can save any gold that sticks to the paper.
Place a piece of glassine (acid-free, non-stick paper; the Post Office envelopes for stamps are glass-ine) over the gold leaf and press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely.
Burnish the gold leaf (several types of burnishers in different shapes & sizes: e.g. Griffold, Agate).
Clean up the edges with an X-acto knife with the #16 blade. (TIP: Every calligrapher should have the #11 blade and #16 blade.) Scrape toward you to clean the edges of excess gold.
Paint background of the gold “S” with gouache (choose a color that will make the gold “pop”; e.g. yellow is not a good choice.)
Once you’re done painting, outline the gold “S” with the Micron Pigma 005 pen.
Outline each leaf in black with a Pigma Micron 005 pen.
Paint the stems with the small pointed brush in green, then again right next to that stroke with the green tint.
REMEMBER: with illumination, you can never be too garish!
TIP for drawing a leaf (i.e. a pointy ivy leaf like the ones in the illuminated manuscripts): draw a square. Then draw half-circles on each side. Erase the straight lines of the half-circles & you’re left with a leaf-shape.
Demonstration of painting Versals: Versals are drawn letters. Draw them for the first 2 lines of the proj-ect. Use the Versals handout that DeAnn Xeroxed to the correct size (1/2-inch x-height) to trace them. Paint them in the gouache colors that you’re using in your decorated capital with a very pointy brush.
Tip to decorate the background of your Decorated Capital: Use “diapering” so that you don’t have large areas of just one paint color. Diapering is cross-hatching, or drawing swirling vines, or painting small circles or dots, to fill a solid-color space.
If you feel the margins are too “empty,” fill it with filigree – ovals and figure-eights with a pointed brush, or use a Copperplate nib for really thin lines. Just fill the Copperplate nib with the gouache and draw the filigree lines.
To prevent your block of text from looking like the writing had been written by 3 different people, DeAnn’s advice is: schedule time when you’ll have no distractions because writing takes concentration. Then take the time to set-up your area correctly and have everything you’ll use readily at hand. Write for 20 minutes to warm-up, then write on the pergamenata paper. If you can’t finish writing all the text for your project in one sitting, warm-up for about 20 minutes before continuing the next time.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
October 11, 2010 - Beverly Hills Adult School Fraktur Class #5
NOTE: more photos are coming - thanks for your patience!
Beverly Hills Adult School Fraktur Class #5: DeAnn went over the illuminated manuscript project and explained the different elements involved. The 2 main handouts were a sheet of Lombardic capitals and a sheet of Versals (Roman) capitals. She also passed out her Gilding Notes and various examples of decorative capitals to the beginners.
Illuminated Manuscript Project Template explanation: The decorative capital, which is the first letter of your text, goes into the 2 x 2 inch square. The title of your text (whether it’s a poem, excerpt, or song lyrics) will not appear in your piece; nor will the author’s name. The text will continue without spacing or punctuation on the four lines to the right of the decorative capital.
The first two lines (x-height = ½ inch) are the Lombardic capitals. Intermediates can put decorative elements in the first line and have only one line of Lombardics if they want. The next two lines (x-height = 3/8 inch) are the Roman Versals. Then the rest of the text will be written in Fraktur below at an x-height of 1/4 inch with the 1 ½ mm Brause nib.
Ink on pergamanatta: Students have had difficulty using Higgins Eternal on the pergamenata. It may be easier to use sumi, watercolor, or gouache (more on gouache below).
Materials you will need for the Illuminated Manuscript Project:
1. Round watercolor brush with pointed tip; e.g. Winsor Newton Series 7 in size 0 and in size 1 (2 brushes). Because these are expensive brushes, you may prefer to get a version that Utrecht or Dick Blick makes, which will work just as well for this project.
2. Gouache = opaque watercolors. You will need Permanent White and a few other colors of your choice. DeAnn will provide some in class, but if you prefer a certain palette of colors, she may not have all the colors you want to use.
3. Palette for your gouache. This can be a small 6-well plastic palette or one that comes with a cover. Even if the gouache dries, you can reconstitute it with water and it works fine.
4. Micron Pigma 005 Pen in black. This is a very fine tip permanent black ink marker.
5. Pencil with 2H lead (can be a sketch or mechanical pencil; or a 2mm Lead Holder if you have one). A #2 pencil has HB lead. You’ll need one with harder lead for this project so your lines won’t smudge.
6. Pergamenata paper – DeAnn will provide this.
The 1 1/2 mm Brause nib and black ink will be used for writing the text in the Illuminated Manuscript Project. Once you’ve moved down to writing with the 1 1/2 mm nib, practice writing out your text on thin paper (e.g. Cotton Comp from Borden & Riley) placed on top of the template so you can see the guide-lines through it. This way, you won’t have to line the paper each time.
Bring your digital camera so that you can take pictures of illuminated manuscript examples that you like. DeAnn will bring many books on illuminated manuscripts and decorative letters. You can download the photos you take to your computer and resize them as needed to use in your illuminated manuscript project. Search on the web for illuminated manuscript examples; start getting an idea of what type of decorative capital you might be interested in using.
DeAnn showed us samples of gilding and real vellum. For the class project, we’ll be using a mixture of Sobo glue and water to adhere the gold to the pergamenata.
HOMEWORK: Definitely find the text you want to use for the project; practice writing it. If you’re comfortable with the 2 ½ mm Brause nib, then go down to the 1 ½ mm Brause nib, which will be the size used for the project. However, if you’re still practicing at 5mm, then go down to the 2 1/2 mm. Don’t skip a size – if you’ve been writing with the 5 mm, then go down to the 2 ½ mm (x-height = ½ inch, 4 boxes).
Beverly Hills Adult School Fraktur Class #5: DeAnn went over the illuminated manuscript project and explained the different elements involved. The 2 main handouts were a sheet of Lombardic capitals and a sheet of Versals (Roman) capitals. She also passed out her Gilding Notes and various examples of decorative capitals to the beginners.
Illuminated Manuscript Project Template explanation: The decorative capital, which is the first letter of your text, goes into the 2 x 2 inch square. The title of your text (whether it’s a poem, excerpt, or song lyrics) will not appear in your piece; nor will the author’s name. The text will continue without spacing or punctuation on the four lines to the right of the decorative capital.
The first two lines (x-height = ½ inch) are the Lombardic capitals. Intermediates can put decorative elements in the first line and have only one line of Lombardics if they want. The next two lines (x-height = 3/8 inch) are the Roman Versals. Then the rest of the text will be written in Fraktur below at an x-height of 1/4 inch with the 1 ½ mm Brause nib.
Ink on pergamanatta: Students have had difficulty using Higgins Eternal on the pergamenata. It may be easier to use sumi, watercolor, or gouache (more on gouache below).
 |
| Example of Illuminated Manuscript project from Gothic Textura semester. |
Materials you will need for the Illuminated Manuscript Project:
1. Round watercolor brush with pointed tip; e.g. Winsor Newton Series 7 in size 0 and in size 1 (2 brushes). Because these are expensive brushes, you may prefer to get a version that Utrecht or Dick Blick makes, which will work just as well for this project.
2. Gouache = opaque watercolors. You will need Permanent White and a few other colors of your choice. DeAnn will provide some in class, but if you prefer a certain palette of colors, she may not have all the colors you want to use.
3. Palette for your gouache. This can be a small 6-well plastic palette or one that comes with a cover. Even if the gouache dries, you can reconstitute it with water and it works fine.
4. Micron Pigma 005 Pen in black. This is a very fine tip permanent black ink marker.
5. Pencil with 2H lead (can be a sketch or mechanical pencil; or a 2mm Lead Holder if you have one). A #2 pencil has HB lead. You’ll need one with harder lead for this project so your lines won’t smudge.
6. Pergamenata paper – DeAnn will provide this.
The 1 1/2 mm Brause nib and black ink will be used for writing the text in the Illuminated Manuscript Project. Once you’ve moved down to writing with the 1 1/2 mm nib, practice writing out your text on thin paper (e.g. Cotton Comp from Borden & Riley) placed on top of the template so you can see the guide-lines through it. This way, you won’t have to line the paper each time.
Bring your digital camera so that you can take pictures of illuminated manuscript examples that you like. DeAnn will bring many books on illuminated manuscripts and decorative letters. You can download the photos you take to your computer and resize them as needed to use in your illuminated manuscript project. Search on the web for illuminated manuscript examples; start getting an idea of what type of decorative capital you might be interested in using.
DeAnn showed us samples of gilding and real vellum. For the class project, we’ll be using a mixture of Sobo glue and water to adhere the gold to the pergamenata.
HOMEWORK: Definitely find the text you want to use for the project; practice writing it. If you’re comfortable with the 2 ½ mm Brause nib, then go down to the 1 ½ mm Brause nib, which will be the size used for the project. However, if you’re still practicing at 5mm, then go down to the 2 1/2 mm. Don’t skip a size – if you’ve been writing with the 5 mm, then go down to the 2 ½ mm (x-height = ½ inch, 4 boxes).
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Hand out for gilding instructions
Gilding Notes
class by De Ann Singh
There are a number of methods of applying gold leaf to your artwork. There is raised gold that is on a ground of “gesso” and shines more brilliantly than anything else. This is the method that seems you have to be a “chemist” to accomplish. I remember wearing a respirator and big rubber gloves and using a muller to grind a batch of gesso and thinking, “ Gee,when I started calligraphy all I wanted to do was address pretty envelopes!!!!” I felt like a mad scientist at the time. I haven’t made a batch of gesso since, and I think that’s been 17 years ago. Having said that, nothing compares to raised, burnished gold on a gesso base.
Another method is considered “flat” gold. A traditional material to use is gum ammoniac. This is called the adhesive. You need to apply some kind of adhesive to the paper in which to stick the gold. I gave up this method after straining sticky gum ammoniac through a nylon stocking after heating it in the microwave. (I don’t think this is the historic way of preparing this adhesive). There are many acrylic based liquids that serve as adhesive for flat gilding.
The liquid that I have had the best success with and is very easy to use is a mixture of Sobo glue and water. Sobo is a white craft glue that is PVA or poly vinyl acetate. I will describe the procedure of gilding using this adhesive.
Mix 2 parts Sobo glue with 1 part water.
Add 1 drop red watercolor or gouache (the red is added to make the glue show up on the paper after it dries).
Carefully paint the areas that you want the gold to stick to with the mixture described above.
Paint 3 thin coats of glue on desired area. Let the glue dry between coats or the paper will wrinkle. Try not to get “brush strokes” in the glue, you want the surface to be as smooth as possible.
Clean your scissors and burnisher with silk (so gold won’t stick to them).
Cut piece of 23k patent gold to the size needed. (Easy Leaf 6001 Santa Monica Bl. LA CA 90038, Hollywood)
Remove your lipstick.
Breathe hot air onto the area you painted (very similar to fogging up your glasses to clean them).
Place the gold very carefully face down on the desired area.
Press down gently all over the surface of the adhesive, don’t rub at this point.
Pull the gold up very gently. Save big pieces and any salvageable pieces of gold for other areas. Don’t obsess over saving every bit, though.
Place a piece of glassine (the paper that stamps come in from the post office) over the gold and gently burnish down the edges and surface with a dog tooth agate burnisher. Other spoon shape burnishers work but don’t use metal directly on the gold leaf. Look at the gold through the glassine. It will help to see any defects, cracks and tears in the gold. If there are, put some more gold right over the top of the defect and burnish it down. Gold will stick to gold. You may need to breathe on it again before you apply the patch.
Use a soft brush to brush away the excess gold, moving in the direction of the design, try not to pull the gold away from the edges.
Use a #16 blade x-acto knife to clean up the edges. Do this by pulling the blade along the right side of the design and scrape the gold and glue so that it has a clean line. Do this around all the gold. It helps to pull the blade toward yourself.
When you are all finished, do the final burnishing.If you use the agate burnisher you can burnish directly onto the gold. If you use a metal one, place the glassine between the gold and the burnisher. Rub over the whole design and watch it polish up to a very nice shine.
This method gives a very respectable gilded surface and can be used with a moments notice and only takes a little while to complete.
Happy Gilding!!!!!!
Singh 2001
Gilding Notes Beverly Hills Nov. 9, 2009
November 9, 2009
Beverly Hills Adult School Class #8: Today DeAnn had us make some adhesive and put gold leaf on the “S” from last week’s example.
Recipe for adhesive for flat gilding
2/3 part Sobo glue
1/3 part Water
Make in small jar
Add a tiny amount of red or orange watercolor to tint it lightly so that you can see where you’ve painted the glue. Red or orange color will enhance the gold color.
Steps to illuminate the sample “S”:
1. Make adhesive
2. Paint the “S” or the Background
3. Use the #1 brush to paint the glue onto the “S”
4. Paint 3 VERY thin layers. Try to keep them smooth. Cover the pencil line.
5. Rinse brush frequently (reminder: 2 containers of water, one for dirty, one for clean).
6. Prepare gold leaf: if desired, cut into a smaller piece with “gold only” scissors that have been cleaned with silk.
7. Breathe on the adhesive to rehydrate, then place the gold leaf on it. Press gently but don’t rub; rubbing may break the gold.
8. Remove excess gold with a soft brush.
9. Burnish gold with burnisher over glassine. However, if you’re using an agate burnisher, you can burnish directly on the gold leaf.
10. Clean edges by scraping with an X-acto with the #16 blade.
11. Paint background of the gold “S” with gouache (choose a color that will make the gold “pop”; e.g. yellow is not a good choice.)
12. Once you’re done painting, outline the gold “S” with the Micron Pigma 005 pen.
HOMEWORK: Continue working on your project and also the sample “S” illumination.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Nov. 2, 2009 Bev Hills
November 2, 2009
Beverly Hills Adult School Class #7: Today DeAnn demonstrated illuminating and had the class traced an initial capital and paint it.
The handouts were the sample initial capital (an “S”), a piece of pergamanata paper and a piece of and palette paper to work on, two Lombardic samples.
Illuminating a letter:
1. Choose 3 colors (include one of the greens) and zinc white. Gouache, an opaque watercolor, is used for the paint. Place a dab of each color on the palette paper; even if it dries, you can reconstitute it with water.
2. Trace pattern (initial capital) onto Pergamanata paper. A pencil that you can use for outlining is the Staedtler lead holder, which is a mechanical drafting pencil. Its sharpener has both a sharp & dull setting and also a pad to brush off the excess graphite after sharpening. Use 2H.
3. Paint glue (adhesive for gold leaf, recipe: 2/3 Sobo glue, 1/3 water, touch of red watercolor) onto initial capital with pointed brush (e.g. size 0 or 1). Try to paint on a smooth layer (you’ll be painting 3 layers). Let dry, then paint another layer.
4. For the colors, put zinc white next to each color. Add the tiniest bit of color, then a drop of water, to mix a tint. (TIP: have 2 water containers, one for dirty, one for clean. Always rinse brush in the dirty container first, then rinse in the clean container).
5. Paint each leaf half of one color, half in that color’s tint. Make sure the first color is dry before painting on the other half. (Don’t paint the leaves around the capital “S” yet – paint that after the gold leaf is applied).
6. Once all the leaves are painted & dry, “diaper” them with permanent white gouache. With a small pointed brush (e.g. size 0 or 00), decorate each leaf with lines, cross-hatching, or dots.
7. Once the gold leaf adhesive is dry, you’re ready to apply the gold leaf. To prepare, clean a “gold only” pair of scissors with silk – you don’t want any sizing on the scissors or else the gold will stick to them. Cut the sheet of gold leaf to the estimated size of the initial cap.
8. Breathe on the glue so that it absorbs some moisture. Then place the gold leaf on it and press gently all around. Press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely covered with the gold leaf.
9. Remove the backing paper carefully so that you can save any gold that sticks to the paper.
10. Place a piece of glassine (acid-free, non-stick paper; the Post Office envelopes for stamps are glassine) over the gold leaf and press the outlines, making sure the sides (the glue will be slightly raised) are also completely
11. Burnish the gold leaf (several types of burnishers in different shapes & sizes: e.g. Griffold, Agate).
12. Clean up the edges with an X-acto knife with the #16 blade. (TIP: Every calligrapher should have the #11 blade and #16 blade.) Scrape toward you to clean the edges of excess gold.
13. Outline each leaf in black with a Pigma Micron 005 pen.
14. Paint the stems with the small pointed brush in green, then again right next to that stroke with the green tint.
REMEMBER: with illumination, you can never be too garish!
Next week: DeAnn will have the gold leaf and the adhesive for students to purchase.
HOMEWORK: Practice writing your project text with 1 1/2 mm Brause nib (use project template for lines). Begin blocking out project on pregamanata.
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