Bye Bye Blackletter

The names of everyone who has ever attended a Black Sabbath class by Ward Dunham

It was a bittersweet event.  On Saturday, December 4, students and friends of Ward Dunham & Linnea Lundquist gathered to celebrate the end of four-and-a-half years of "Black Sabbath" blackletter classes in their San Francisco studio, Atelier Gargoyle.  Those of us lucky enough to attend these monthly Saturday sessions were expertly and enthusiastically schooled in Textura, Johnstonian Italic, Uncial, Batarde, and other related topics by two exceptional calligraphers who happen to be a couple and, often, a comedy duo.

There was food, including cupcakes from the wonderful Jasmine Rae Bakery, who have kept us in yummy gingerbread and other delectables these last few years.

Look closely...those are fondant Brause pen nibs!  Good enough to eat, and we did.

Ward tended bar, offering his signature Hot Apple Pie adult beverage...

...while Linnea helped everyone stock up on supplies from the shop.

The exhibit of the students' final projects, beautifully displayed on the studio walls and tables, was varied and awe-inspiring!

Here is a closer look at a few of the pieces for which the photos came out reasonably well.  There were so many wonderful ones!

Meredith Jane Klein

Paul Costanzo

David Brookes

Patricia Coltrin

Jessie Evans

Helen Fung

Bonnie Noehr

Dean Robino

Raoul Martinez

There were awards, speeches, and heartfelt tributes, followed by lively conversation and merrymaking!

Ward made sure we all had the contact information for their new abode in Half Moon Bay...

...and Linnea, along with the rest of us, shed a few tears.

But it has been a great run, and all of us who participated are richer for it.  Black Sabbath has been an important part of the San Francisco calligraphy community, and will be sorely missed.  Thank you, Ward & Linnea!  It has been a pleasure and a privilege.

Letters of Note(s)

I was browsing through gothic exemplars one day and found a picture of a woodcarving where the letters looked as if they were made from ribbons.  I started wondering if that were possible.  Some antique sheet music pretty much jumped into my hand and let me cut it into strips, and then the fun began, twisting and folding and gluing.  I made the curls by winding the paper around a pencil for a few minutes, then tacking it in place. 

For me this piece was symbolic because right around that time I had decided to give up a longtime musical career, which had floundered for lack of enthusiasm, and pursue calligraphy as my artistic outlet.  I've never looked back!   (Thanks, Carole, for the photos!)

Gothic Gratitude

Some sketches for thank-you cards. The scribbles in the background are actually an old favorite rubber stamp. The hand is Textura.

Post of New Year's Past

I missed 2009 (the card, not the year) because of a shoulder injury on my writing side, but here is 2008's edition. The Walter Scott quote is in Blackletter Textura, scanned and printed on the inkjet. The red line and gold ornamentation are hard to see in this photo, but were added to each card by hand.

Since my cards usually go out closer to Lunar New Year than January 1st, I like to give it a little shout-out. Oh-eight was a pretty good year considering it was "of the rat"!