Friends of Calligraphy offers classes and workshops
that meet the needs of those beginning calligraphy as well as those who are ready for more advanced techniques. FOC workshops are open to current FOC members. Basic calligraphy classes at Fort Mason are open to the public. They are sponsored by FOC, and taught by FOC members. Also listed below are classes by FOC members who teach in and around the San Francisco Bay Area. They are not sponsored by FOC, but are listed here as a courtesy to our members. Please contact individual instructors for details.

FRIENDS OF CALLIGRAPHY WORKSHOPS

FOC has scheduled several future workshops. They will be posted as soon as flyers are available.

FRIENDS OF CALLIGRAPHY Fort Mason Classes

Open to the public, these classes are meant for beginners and for scribes who wish to continue improving their skills. Basic supplies required by each student include: black ink such as Higgins Eternal, all sizes of Brause pen nibs, one or two pen holders, pencil and eraser, 18 or 24 inch metal ruler, notebook, cotton rag, a small water jar. There may be additional supplies specified by each instructor and are listed after each class description in the Fort Mason brochure. (Download pdf brochure for 2022)

Calligraphy supplies, especially Brause pen nibs, can be difficult to find. Call or visit your local art supply stores, such as Arch, Dick Blick and Flax. If they don’t have what you need, contact the calligraphy mail order vendors:

John Neal Bookseller, 1-800-369-9598 • www.johnnealbooks.com/
or
Paper & Ink Arts, 1-800-736-7772 • www.paperinkarts.com

Please register for any class at least six weeks in advance. Class size is limited to 16. You will be notified by the Fort Mason Class Registrar if you have a place in the class or are on the wait list. Payment of tuition is necessary to hold your place on a wait list. If you need to withdraw, a full refund will be issued 14 days before the class begins. Otherwise the tuition fee is forfeited unless a wait-listed student can take your place.

If you would like to add special instructions to your order, please send them to Katie Leavens via email.

Classes will be held at:

Online via Zoom
Fort Mason
2 Marina Blvd, San Francisco, CA 94123
Free parking outside the gate and metered parking within.

Rustics
Judy Detrick, instructor
This is an online class via Zoom
Seven Saturday afternoons • 1:00—2:30 pm PST
January 8, 15, 22, 29, February 5, 12, 19
$120 FOC members / $135 non-members

Select one:

This all capital alphabet was one of the earliest known hands used to write Latin. Written on scrolls and walls, in thin monoline as well as a heavy broad edge, it has been in continual use since ancient times, and is a welcome addition to the calligrapher’s repertoire. You will learn historical and modern expressions of this versatile alphabet, and will find it is capable of many variations.
All levels of lettering experience are welcome.

Supplies: Basic Supplies, plus a 14"x17" pad of layout bond paper, and a T-square.

Judy Detrick taught calligraphy and graphic design at College of the Redwoods on the Mendocino coast for more than 25 years. Her work can be found in several anthologies of calligraphy and graphic design, and she is represented in the Harrison Collection of Calligraphy and Lettering at the San Francisco Public Library. She is the author of Simply Calligraphy, A Beginner’s Guide to Elegant Writing.

Fraktur
Raoul Martinez, instructor
Fort Mason
Seven Tuesday evenings • 6:30—9:00 pm PST/PDT
March 8, 15, 22, 29, April 5, 12, 19
$185 FOC members / $205 non-members

Select one:

Fraktur, the elegant daughter of blackletter, conjures up images of the court of Maximilian I and tattoo artwork with her contrast of subtle curves and straight lines. Learn the script of Bocskay, Neudörffer and more modern calligraphers such as Rudolf Koch. You will fall under the charm of its long vertical strokes and hypnotic texture..
All levels of lettering experience are welcome.

Supplies: 3 & 4 mm Brause pen nibs, 2 or more straight pen holders, metal ruler, 9×12" pad of marker layout paper, black ink, dinky dips or similar capped inkwells, squirt bottles for distilled water, artist’s tape, slant board (any stiff, smooth board minimum 18×20"), and paper towels.

Raoul Martinez had an informal exposure to calligraphy while he was in college. In 2009, his interest was rekindled by the Kalligraphia exhibit. He started taking classes offered by Atelier Gargoyle and Friends of Calligraphy, where he fell in love with Fraktur. Raoul’s artwork has been shown at the San Francisco Public Library, the Oakland Asian Cultural Center, Filoli, the Presentation Center and the Sebastopol Center for the Arts, and has been published in the Speedball Textbook. For examples of his work see CalligraphybyRaoul.com.

Italic
Meredith Klein, instructor
Fort Mason
Seven Tuesday evenings • 6:30—9:00 pm PDT
July 26, August 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, September 6
$185 FOC members / $205 non-members

Select one:

Arising from Humanist cursive writing during the Italian Renaissance, italic has come down through the centuries as one of our most versatile calligraphy hands. This elegant, graceful and practical script can be used for nearly anything: poems, envelopes, certificates, signs—the list is endless. In this class, you will learn the minuscule and majuscule alphabets, focusing on the letterforms, rhythm and spacing.We will also cover layout and ways to create variations.
All levels of lettering experience are welcome.

Supplies: Basic Supplies, plus a 14"x17" pad of layout bond paper, a protractor, a drawing board, and an 18" or 24" T-square. An 18" C-Thru ruler may be substituted for the metal ruler.

Meredith Klein first learned italic from books; since then, she has had many distinguished teachers. She has taught calligraphy in the Fort Mason program since 2016, been a guest instructor at Janice Braun’s History of the Book class at Mills College, and taught for other guilds as well as privately. Her work has been published in Alphabet and Bound & Lettered, and her calligraphy appears in a limited edition artist book, Swords and Angels.

Copperplate
Melissa Titone, instructor
Fort Mason
Seven Tuesday evenings • 6:30—9:00 pm PDT
September 13, 20, 27, October 4, 11, 18, 25
$185 FOC members / $205 non-members

Select one:

Copperplate is a beautiful flowing script which was developed in the seventeenth century and is commonly used today, mostly for formal events such as weddings. In this class, you will learn to use a pointed pen for lettering the uppercase and lowercase alphabets, numbers, and punctuation.We will discuss how to vary the letterforms to create different styles. The students will choose whether to learn flourishing or the mechanics of addressing envelopes for the final class.
All levels of lettering experience are welcome.

Supplies: This instructor prefers that everyone use the same supplies, which can be purchased at the first class for approximately $25.

Melissa Titone has owned a freelance calligraphy business since 1988, doing everything from wedding invitations to commercial lettering. She enjoys teaching children and adults, both privately and in workshops and classes. Her work has been published in several books, including Greeting Card Design, The Speedball Textbook, American Corporate Identity, Letterheads Gone Digital, The Artful Letter Engagement Calendar and 100 New York Calligraphers. She was co-director of The Passionate Pen, 2015 International Calligraphy Conference.

Decorated Letters
Rick Paulus, instructor
Fort Mason
Four Saturday mornings • 10:00 am—1:00 pm PDT/PST
October 29, November 5, 12, 19
$135 FOC members / $150 non-members

Select one:

The decorated letter has served the purpose of drawing attention to the page for thousands of years and continues to be a foundational element of design today. This four-session workshop will explore decorated letters through the ages; discovering motifs, styles, and techniques along the way. These discoveries will give you a solid foundation from which to grow a strong repertoire of decorated letters in your own work.We will be working with lots of color, and at a very small scale.
All levels of lettering experience are welcome.

Supplies: 1 sheet hot press watercolor paper, 1 sheet cold press watercolor paper, tracing paper, pad of Canson XL Multi-media paper, HB pencil, ruler, right angle triangle (min size 6”), 01mm & .05mm black Micron Pigma pens, pointed pen with stiff, fine nib, Sumi Moon Palace or Higgins Eternal ink, gouache (3 primary colors), pointed brushes 01 / 0 / 00, mixing brush, mixing palette, water, rag.

Rick Paulus has been a calligrapher and a teacher for over forty years. Rick apprenticed for several years at the legendary Tolley Studios, in Washington, DC, before becoming the engrosser for the US State Department. In 1998, he was appointed chief calligrapher of the White House, where he remained for two presidents. Today, Rick enjoys calligraphic explorations from his studio nestled in the coastal hills of Sonoma County.

Friends of Calligraphy Lecture

There are no lectures scheduled at this time.

MEMBERS WHO TEACH

San Francisco:

Thomas Ingmire • Call 415.673.4938.
International Calligraphy Correspondence Program. Classes at all levels.
CPA-HO, 1040A Filbert Street, San Francisco, CA 94133

Raoul Martinez
Copperplate and blackletter classes for beginning, intermediate and advanced students.

Ann Miller • Call 650 558-8270
Calligraphy and Letterform. Advanced Calligraphy.

East Bay:

Patricia Coltrin • Call 510 524-5208

Meredith Klein • Call 510.205.1119

Kaori Ogawa

Antonia (Nini) Smith • Call 510 526-7249
Year-round classes at Piedmont Adult School

Erma Takeda• Call 925.284.7368

Carla Tenret • Call 510.526.1214
Year round classes at Albany Community Center

South Bay:

Melissa Dinwiddie • Call 650.938.3939
Calligraphy, book arts, and illumination

Sara Loesch Frank • Call 408.446.3397
Ongoing calligraphy classes for beginners and intermediates.

Marian Gault • Call 408.395.8026

Ann Thompson • Call 408.378.6965

Marin County:

JoAnn Burchfiel Brand • Call 415.924.2625

Jody Meese • Call 415.272.3612

Mendocino:

Judy Detrick • Call 707.964.9276
Ongoing classes at all levels.

Sonoma County:

Christine Renden Haggarty
Ongoing classes in Asian calligraphy for beginners and intermediates.

Sherrie Lovler • Call 707.528.1723.
Calligraphic Abstract Painting.

Rick Paulus • Call 774.323.0050

Melissa Titone • Call 707. 573.3810
Ongoing classes and private lessons in Santa Rosa.

Yolo County:

Sumner Stone
Type design workshops in Rumsey, CA

Santa Cruz/Monterey/Carmel:

Ruth Korch
Art and calligraphy classes in the Santa Cruz area

Kern County:

Chris Paschke •Call 661 821-2188
Ongoing classes at all levels in Tehachapi

Reno/Tahoe:

Carol Pallesen • Call 775 329-6983
Ongoing classes in calligraphy and book arts

New Mexico:

Bill Kemp • Call 505 235-4983
Teaching and tutoring in Albuquerque

Online:

Harvest Crittenden • Call 517 545-3031
Online classes in Spencerian, Flourishing, Copperplate and Photoshop for Calligraphers.

Melissa Esplin
Brush lettering, gestural pointed pen, and chalk lettering.

Elizabeth McKee
Ongoing classes in pointed brush

Ann Miller • Call 650 558-8270
Calligraphy and Letterform. Logo, Font, and Lettering for Illustrators. Two accredited Online courses through San Francisco Academy of Art University

Sally Penley
Email Sally for a list of current Zoom classes

Jacqueline Sullivan