I. CALLIGRAPHY
"THE ART OF BEAUTIFUL WRITING"
A. History
• Egyptians wrote using hieroglyphics, made up of symbols and
pictures: 3000 B.C.
• Cuneiform - * first real writing - used in Mesopotamia 2500 B.C. –
marks made in clay stood for sounds; together these made words.
• Chinese script 1500 B.C. used over 1,000 characters; each character
stood for one complete idea.
•
Greeks: 500 B.C. adapted cuneiform, added vowels.
• Romans 100 A.D. adapted Greek script to produce Roman Capitals,
from which all western European alphabets descended. Roman capitals were
chiseled into stone.
Uncials: 6th c. AD a rounded hand used by the Catholic Church.
Carolingian hand, or alphabet, was developed in France in 9th century.
This used small letters known as miniscules as well as capitals or
uppercase letters.
•
Chancery Script was developed in Italy in 15th. century.
• Gothic Script, also known as Old English, descended from the
Carolingian hand. Narrow, angular, more letters per line; almost illegible.
• Italic hand, is an informal style considered the best alphabet for
everyday use.
Two main families of letters: Roman alphabets (thick and thin; pens were
hollow reeds); Gothic (angular, tight, same width): first typeface when
printing press developed in Germany in 1450.
B. Vocabulary Terms for Calligraphy
•
ascender: the part of the letter which extends above the writing line
(f,b,d,h,k,t)
•
descender: the part of the letter which extends below the writing line
(f,g,j,p,q,y)
•
the counter: the inside shape of a letter
•
the nib: the pen point, or sharpened point of a quill pen
•
the pen angle: the angle at which the broad edge of the pen is held in
relation to the writing line.
•
serifs: the short lines extending from the upper and lower ends of the
letters' strokes
•
a versal: very large, decorative capital which often marks a new
paragraph.
Carolingian
ROMAN
GOTHIC
ITALIC
Your projects to be signed off as completed
Your name: _________________________
Assignments
(#1-5 by Feb. 8)
Uncial hand
(# of points)
GET THIS CHART SIGNED OFF AND THEN TURN IT IN!
Italic hand
1. 2 each of
capitals (10)
2. 2 each of
lowercase
(10)
3. Your name
(10)
X
X
4. A quote or
saying (10)
X
5. A verse,
poem, or
stanza of a
song (10)
An Illumination
with the theme
‘love’. Versal must
be Gothic; rest
can be any hand.
Border & color
required. On
parchment paper
at least 8x10”.
Rough draft in
pencil due Feb.
8th.
(10)
X
Versal
Final due
Feb.10th.(40)
Test
PORTFOLIO
REFLECTION
Vocabulary and
history Feb. 4
(20)
Gothic Hand
Feb. 16th
Border
Color inks or
paints
Illumination Description
Design and execute a page uniting text and calligraphy with
ornamentation and illustration, using parchment paper or another highquality paper of your choice.
The text‘s theme: love
Include: a) Ornamentation or illustration, using colored inks or paint.
: b) a border
The project will be graded according to the following rubric:
1. quality of calligraphy and alphabet chosen;
2. quality of layout and use of design principles of balance, unity, and
rhythm/repetition;
3. craftsmanship and neatness;
4. display: the work must be mounted and ready for hanging.
5. Commitment: meeting all requirements and deadline
6. 40 points –
portfolio project 1 -
0
