Melissa is currently offering the following classes at her Studio in Santa Rosa CA*. These classes are taught in four, or eight-week sessions, two hours per week. For current information about dates, times, and registration fees, please click here.

*Selected classes are occasionally offered at Fort Mason in San Francisco by the Friends of Calligraphy.

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Uncial (pronounced “ún-shull”) was one of the main book hands of the late Roman Empire (6^th century) and was later influential in the development of Celtic scripts in Ireland. This wide, rounded, bold, broad-edge hand has only one "case." It can be varied to look more contemporary and combines well with other lighter hands such as Italic and Copperplate. The alphabet, some variations, and spacing will be taught in this four-week session.

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This Gothic book hand is characterized by straight-lined rectangular letterforms and the even distribution of black marks to white space. Its geometrical design makes it easy to master and rewarding to practice, though a bit harder to read than more contemporary hands. The elaborate capitals provide counterpoint to the even texture of the lower case, giving the eyes something delightful to rest on. The upper and lower case alphabets and spacing will be taught in this class.

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This curvaceous combination of Italic and Blackletter was the book hand of the early 1400’s, also known as Italian Gothic. Though overall it looks very different, you will recognize the underlying forms of both hands as you learn it. The lower case alphabet will be taught, along with variations on the Blackletter upper case alphabet for matching capitals. This is a fun hand, and can be used in conjunction with Copperplate and Uncial.

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Design Classes

Design 101
Design Principles

You've taken a lettering course or two and have the basics down, but are unsure how to put it all together into a pleasing layout. Good design is all about making decisions, and experience is the best teacher. In this class we will use projects as a vehicle for learning design principles such as balance, contrast, rhythm, etc. and train our eyes to discriminate between what works and what doesn't. In the process we will cover the importance of using archival materials, how to make a layout template with traditional cut-and-paste techniques, how to use Photoshop to do a layout (optional), how to mix gouache and write with it, how to execute a final piece of work, how to correct mistakes, and clever studio tricks that will make it all go easier and faster. This class is open to anyone who has taken at least one beginning lettering class in which the upper and lower case of any "hand" was taught.

Design 201
Design for Reproduction

While continuing to train our eyes in design principles, this class will focus on projects that can be reproduced, and the techniques used to prepare artwork for reproduction in traditional ways, as well as with new technology. Printing methods and pre-press specifications will be covered, as will techniques for touching up artwork, both by hand, and digitally. Don’t worry, you don’t need to be a computer whiz to understand this stuff. I won’t confuse you with a bunch of unneeded information, just the basics. We will work together on a collaborative book, prepare a mechanical with which to make as many copies as we want, and learn a simple binding technique.

Design 301
Holiday Cards

How would you like to send out hand-made holiday cards this year, featuring your own beautiful lettering? This four-week session will focus on designing your own unique card, how to embellish it with a variety of fun possibilities such as rubber stamps, watercolor washes, metallic foils, embossing, collage, photographs and more. You will be excited to send out your card this year, you may even like addressing them!

 

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Calligraphy Teachers click here to check out my new product for teaching. No more messy chalkboards or crooked guidelines!

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