The Vatican Observatory

[K-2]

My university recently hosted a visit from Brother Guy Consolmagno, the Director of the Vatican Observatory. He gave a couple fantastic talks about science and faith and the history of ideas. And I did a drawing of him for promotional purposes that he liked so much, he requested permission to use it for his future events!  He especially liked that I drew it with Ferris Wheel Press "Atlas Iron Ore" ink - which I chose for the project, because Brother Guy's research focuses on asteroids and meteors.
https://www.vaticanobservatory.va/en/who-are-we/staff/br-guy-j-consolmagno-s-j

It's a limited edition exclusive ink made for Atlas Stationers in Chicago: https://www.atlasstationers.com/products/ferris-wheel-press-38ml-bottled-ink-atlas-iron-ore-atlas-exclusive

Best yet - Brother Guy invited me to visit him and his library at the Vatican, with it's collection of rare medieval and renaissance manuscripts and early print editions on cosmology and astronomy. Now all I have to do is scare up some grant funding!

[Erica McPhee]

That is fabulous news! How very exciting! Well done and thank you for sharing with us. We’re so lucky to witness. I’ll bet you are walking on the moon about the invite. Congrats!

[TeresaS]

How cool!!!

[AnasaziWrites]

Best yet - Brother Guy invited me to visit him and his library at the Vatican, with it's collection of rare medieval and renaissance manuscripts and early print editions on cosmology and astronomy. Now all I have to do is scare up some grant funding!

Need someone to carry your bags?

[Lucie Y]

I loves reading this @K2, such a cool story behind this review. I hope you get to go to the vatican.

I'm wondering, how does the Iron ink look out of a pilot parallel? Is it very dark or more greyish on the strokes.
I think it maybe available on the Europe shop now 

[K-2]

@Lucie Y - Ask and thou shalt receive!

Here are a couple of looks at Ferris Wheel Press "Atlas Iron Ore" in a Pilot Parallel Pen (2.4mm). Note the shape of the bottle: So pretty and so dumb! I live in fear that I will knock it over, because it has such a tiny base.

As you can see, because it's a shimmer ink, it has different looks at different angles. The Parallel pen does a good job at distributing the shimmer as you write. When you use a dip pen, you'll get a lot of shimmer after a shake & a dip, and then it trails off as you write.

It's a fairly dark grey underneath the shimmer - but the magic is in the chromatography (as you can see from the portrait of Brother Guy). I absolutely love doing wash drawings with this ink. If I don't want the shimmer in a drawing, I just let it settle to the bottom of the bottle.

It appears to be sold out on the Ferris Wheel Press (US) website at the moment, but maybe it's available at their Canada or Euro site - I got an extra bottle last time I was in Chicago at the Atlas Stationers shop, and I see that they still have it in stock.

[Lucie Y]

Thank you so much @K2, for the demo in 3 different scripts!!!

I have noted the instability problem and unfortunately, I'm a very spill-y type of person. Guess that has to change 😂 will be extra careful!

I can't wait to put it in my brand new pink 3mm parallel pen (did you see they issued 2 new nib widths, including 3mm?)

Have a nice day!

[Cyril Jayant]

Very nice ink and quite interesting aspect.
@K-2 your original portrait is fantastic . I love the Cosmic details you had added to the story to match with the characteristic personality of  the portrait of the Vatican priest.
That bottle is very pretty too.

Nice broad edge work !!