Calligraphic Fugue and Geometric Construct #1

Festina Lente

Latin translation: Make haste slowly. Those are words we could all live by, but do we?

Experiments with Gothic

Only Love Can Break Your Heart

Stick Drawings

These may have been influenced by reading about Sol LeWitt recently. They are not nearly as formulaic as his wall drawings, but there is some similarity in the process. The one was done with a bamboo stick and the other with a common toothpick. I like the surprising results that come from just dipping and marking spontaneously. My goal, if you can call it that, was to create an overall uniform pattern with variety and interest coming from the marks themselves. And I had nothing to say at the time!

Current Work – October 2010

1985 Textured Alphabet

Looking for something black and white to post, I came across this alphabet done on textured Arches paper, about 8 by 20 inches.

Callidoodle

This is doodled on a 4 by 6 inch envelope. Done recently but not very recently. Maybe 6 months ago. The numerals stand out nicely and the overall chaos has an underlying order to it. At least that's what I like to think.

Free Experimentation

Here's another find from just looking around my studio. It was in a folder and must be, oh, twenty-five years old. It caught my attention, having all but forgotten that I did this. It's not saying anything so don't try too hard to decipher it.

The Overlooked M

Somehow I overlooked this M from the series I posted recently. This was done with markers and an acrylic medium, trying to get an interesting look from just one drawn letter. It has a certain quality that I like, although it's hard to articulate exactly why I like it.

More Gothic

I guess this is becoming part of the "Gothic series," even though I never planned for that. I wouldn't say that this explores any new ground, but it was fun executing it. The forms themselves are quite decorative and are copied from an old writing book from the 1900s.

Roman M's

Here are two recently drawn Roman letters.  All three were part of an exercise, self-imposed, to just draw the letter and try to get it right. I didn't use double pencils as I learned when I was a student of calligraphy. It seemed more challenging this way.

Ruling Pen Madness

These two experimental pieces were done using a ruling pen, the kind used for drawing fine lines in a mechanical drawing done by hand. By holding the pen sideways you can get varying thicknesses. I wasn't hoping for anyone to be able to read what these are, but you can make out the beginning line of a well-known Dylan song in one of them. I think of them as two more experiments with black and white. I feel that they both have their merits as such.

Regard/Regardless

This is from the colorful, calligraphic doodle series. Possibly done sometime in 2009. Can't say that I remember much about it except that I used the multi-colored pencil for some of the doodling. There's a quote for the new year sent to me by a friend. It's by John Greenleaf Whittier and what it says is:

No longer forward, nor behind

I look in hope or fear

But, grateful, take the good I find

The best of now and here.

I find many such quotations annoying at best, but this one hit me as something to aspire to. The best of now and here is all we really have to work with. Still a big challenge.

Copperplate Practice

Back around 1980 I was trying to get better at copperplate, the elaborate script written with a pointed pen. I came across this practice sheet that looked interesting. This is the negative version of the sheet I lettered. It looks more dramatic in this version.

Three Gothic Alphabets

These were done with water soluble markers made by Zig. Lately I've experimented by applying a layer of Modge Podge, a kind of acrylic matte medium. The one alphabet that was not modified is older but these were all done within the last 6 months. There is something about the ornate quality of gothic alphabets that I find appealing. I like the unpredictable watercolor effect that is produced by the matte medium. I also find it interesting that all three alphabets are quite different, and yet seem definitely related. Hmmm. Just like families.