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
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The Circle Keeps Expanding—Eclectic Inspiration for Calligraphers
a 5-day in-person workshop with
Carl Rohrs
(download the pdf flyer)
Tuesday - Saturday, August 6 - 10, 2024
9:30 AM to 4:30 PM
Arlington Community Church
52 Arlington Avenue, Kensington, CA
$500
(FOC members only)
Note: No materials fee. Workbook is included in registration fee.
Experience Level: Intermediate to Advanced, But Adventurous Beginners are Welcome
This class is limited to 18 FOC members.
Complete registration instructions are in the PDF flyer
This workshop is full and a waiting list has begun. You must register to be put on the waiting list. If no space becomes available, you will receive a refund.
Everything we see is a source of inspiration to be mixed with the movement of our own hands to create new ways of working. This class is about introducing you to the work of unusual and sublime lettering artists and letting their lines influence yours.
From ancient Rome to Victorian-era Japan to 1920s Germany to mid-century New York (and more), and the artists working there, we’ll have their help in building new additions to your own house of styles. From Catich to Cusick, Koch to Korger to Kilian, Hoyer to Hokusai, Menhart to Mouse, Masami Teraoka to Madeleine Dinkel, your connections to innovators of the past will be strengthened, and bridges to your own wild future will be built by the hands-on experience in modern calligraphy techniques with flat pens and flat and pointed brushes.
Put simply, this class wants to expose you to lots of different scribes’ work as well as teach concrete pen & brush handling techniques with which to both emulate and interpret their work, plus strategies for inventing new styles by using any combination of the work of the artists involved. The workbooks are enormous and beautiful, giving you a myriad of choices from which to work and combine, so all participants’ results will be different and surprising. The material included will be sources of inspiration for years to come.
CARL ROHRS has been a lettering artist & signpainter in Santa Cruz since 1977; teacher of lettering & typography at Cabrillo College since ’84; workshops and conferences since ’86 worldwide; editor/designer of Alphabet, the Journal of the Friends of Calligraphy, from 2015 to the present (plus ’89 – ’92); designer & co-editor of the 25th edition of the Speedball Textbook, 2021.
Questions? Please contact Meredith Klein at gkle@sbcglobal.net or Carl Rohrs at rohrs@baymoon.com.
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.
(Download Fort Mason pdf brochure for 2024)
Basic Supplies: Non-waterproof black ink (i.e., Pelikan 4001, Higgins Eternal, or Dr Ph Martin’s Hydrus Carbon Black), all sizes Brause pen nibs, one or two pen holders, pencil and eraser, 18 or 24 inch metal ruler, notebook, cotton rag, a small water jar.
If other pens, nibs or holders are specified for a class (e.g., Engrosser’s Script), then it is not necessary to buy the Brause pen nibs on the Basic Supplies list.
There may be additional supplies specified by each instructor that are listed after each class description in the Fort Mason brochure. (Download pdf brochure for 2024)
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.
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.
![Italic](../images/4 Italic.png)
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Italic
Meredith Klein, instructor
7 Tues. nights • 6:30 – 9 PM • In Person
September 17, 24, October 1, 8, 15, 22, 29
$205 non-members / $185 FOC members
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, books—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 x 17" pad of layout bond paper, a protractor, a drawing board and an 18" or 24" T-square. An 18" C-Thru ruler is suggested in place of the metal ruler.
![Engrosser's Script](../images/5 EngrossersScript.png)
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Introduction to Engrosser’s Script
Rick Paulus, instructor
4 Sat. mornings • 10:00AM–1:00PM • Online
November 2, 9, 16, 23
$150 non-members / $135 FOC members
Among the pointed pen hands, Engrosser’s Script stands out for its elegant strength and formality; it has been used to inscribe presidential appointments for over 100 years, and is the primary script hand used in White House entertaining.
Inspired by the Zanarian School’s “Roundhand” or “Engrosser’s Script,” we will begin by practicing the surprisingly few basic strokes required to create a minuscule alphabet. After a series of exercises designed to familiarize the eyes and the hand to these new shapes, we will move on to majuscule letter forms and numbers, thus laying a solid foundation to developing an elegant script hand.
All levels of lettering experience are welcome.
Supplies: Basic supplies, plus an oblique pen holder with brass flange, flexible pointed pen nibs (Leonardt Principal EF, Nikko G, Gillotte 303, Zebra, etc.), and a 9 x 12" marker layout paper.
Friends of Calligraphy Memorial Scholarship
The Friends of Calligraphy has a scholarship fund honoring beloved members.
To apply, click here.
Friends of Calligraphy Lecture
-
FOC has scheduled several future lectures. They will be posted as soon as flyers are available.
MEMBERS WHO TEACH
San Francisco:
- Katie Leavens
Calligraphy & Illumination classesEast Bay:
- Patricia Coltrin • Call 510 524-5208
- Meredith Klein • Call 510.205.1119
- Raoul Martinez
Copperplate and blackletter classes for beginning, intermediate and advanced students.
- Carla Tenret • Call 510.526.1214
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.- Ann Thompson • Call 408.378.6965
Marin County:
- JoAnn Burchfiel Brand • Call 415.924.2625
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.Yolo County:
- Sumner Stone
Type design workshops in Rumsey, CASanta Cruz/Monterey/Carmel:
- Ruth Korch
Art and calligraphy classes in the Santa Cruz areaKern County:
- Chris Paschke •Call 661 821-2188
Ongoing classes at all levels in TehachapiReno/Tahoe:
- Carol Pallesen • Call 775 329-6983
Ongoing classes in calligraphy and book artsNew Mexico:
- Bill Kemp • Call 505 235-4983
Teaching and tutoring in AlbuquerqueOnline:
- Harvest Crittenden • Call 517 545-3031
Online classes in Spencerian, Flourishing, Copperplate and Photoshop for Calligraphers.- Nancy Hills
Email Nancy for information about current classes.- Elizabeth McKee
Ongoing classes in pointed brush- Ann Miller • Email, or call 650 558-8270
Art 50 and Art 53: Two zoom courses at Stanford Continuing Studies
- Kestrel Montes
Pointed Pen Calligraphy and Engraving- Rick Paulus • Call 774.323.0050
- Sally Penley
Email Sally for a list of current Zoom classes- Jacqueline Sullivan