Online Workshop

Pointed Brush with Luca Barcellona

By popular demand, Italy’s Luca Barcellona returns to the Society of Scribes—this time treating us to another one of his specialties: the pointed brush!

Brush writing is one of the most expressive forms of calligraphy in use today. Many styles can be recreated with the brush using pressure techniques, both classical and otherwise—from italic forms, to varieties of cursive, to sign painting. This workshop tackles the basics of how the round brush works, starting with a formal model initially based on the skeleton of the italic. We will primarily be using Tombow brush pens, later moving to real brushes with bristles. After initial exercises with single strokes and developing control of the tool, we will move on to the construction of the alphabet, of words, and of small texts.

More flexible and sensitive to pressure, the round-tipped brush allows for greater manipulation of strokes and application of ink, allowing for varied and contrasting weights and thicknesses. Starting with a formal and disciplined study of the dynamics of brush writing provides students with the basis from which to later tap into the tool’s great potential and create a more expressive individual style.

Together we’ll learn to appreciate the simplicity and organic nature of brush writing, to know how to “look” with a critical and in-depth approach at the subtle details in calligraphy, in order to improve ourselves both as calligraphers and as people!

In the week between each live session, students will have time to practice and submit assignments online for brief instructor critique.

The sessions will be livestreamed and will also be available as recordings to watch online until February 12, 2022.

MATERIALS LIST

A convenient list of supplies specifically for this class is available at John Neal Books → view

• At least 3 Tombow dual brush pens in black and/or another dark color of your choice.

  • Warning: The tips of brush pens such as the Tombow tend to wear out quite easily. It is advisable to have enough brush pens (3–4 for each day of the course, to be used on a very smooth and not-too-absorbent paper, such as layout or tracing paper). Do a test run to make sure the ink dries quickly and at the same time does not spread.

• Optional: Tombow Fudenosuke hard tip brush pen (good for writing small)

• A3 layout pad or fairly smooth layout paper.

• 1 or 2 good quality round-tipped brushes for the last session. Luca uses Da Vinci or Daler-Rowney. Brush sizes are at your discretion—they can be slightly smaller or larger than the tip of the Tombow. In any case, not very small and not huge, in order to get reproducible writing on the paper size used during the course.

• Gouache (dark colors) or sumi ink

• Some small jars or containers for water

• 2B pencil

• Paper tape, ruler, pencil sharpener, eraser, cutter

• A few sheets of white/colored good quality paper

• Some short texts