Flourish Forum
General Categories => Open Flourish | General Discussion => Topic started by: Ken Fraser on July 17, 2017, 06:58:16 AM
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INDEX
#00 Italic
#01 Uncial
#02 Foundational
#03 Spencerian
#04 Clerestory font (handwritten)
#05 Copperplate ; English Roundhand
#07 Gothic Rotunda
#08 Kaufmann font (handwritten)
#09 Spencerian Ladies' Hand
#10 Spencerian Business Writing
#11 Elicit font (handwritten)
#12 Wilhelm Klingspor Gotisch font (handwritten)
#14 Madarasz Script
#15 Upright Italic
#16 Vivaldi font (handwritten)
#17 Vere Foster Civil Service Script
#18 Italic with Swash Capitals
#19 Double Stroke Foundational
#20 Italian Hand 18th Century
#21 Italic pointed variation
#22 Italicized Uncial
#23 Uncial var. by Byron J Macdonald
#24 Gothic var. by Byron J Macdonald
#35 English Court Hand
#39 Rustic Capitals
#44 Spencerian & Copperplate
#48 Irish Uncial
#49 Light Italic
#50 Formal Italic with Swash capitals
#51 Cursive Italic
#52 Bardolino
#53 Engrosser's Script
#57 Lombardic Versals
ITALIC
This version of Italic is only one of many variations. It was written at a slope angle of 5 degrees from the horizontal with a Rotring Artpen fitted with an edged nib.
It is very suitable for use as everyday handwriting as it can be written very fast without breaklng down and becoming illegible
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UNCIAL
Whilst this script is too slow for everyday handwriting, it is very effective as a style for letter writing where time isn't such an issue.
The letters are written wide and spaced close together.
The exemplar was written with a Rotring Artpen fitted with an edged nib.
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FOUNDATIONAL
This alphabet was written with a broad-edged nib fitted in a Manuscript fountain pen.
The paper was Conqueror smooth white and the ink was Higgins Eternal.
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SPENCERIAN
Spencerian Script was devised by Platt R Spencer after whom it was named.
For extensive information on the style, go to www.iampeth .com
This exemplar was written with a Hunt 101 nib in an oblique holder with Iron Gall ink.
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CLERESTORY (font) handwritten Gothic Textura
This exemplar was written with a Rotring Artpen fitted with an edged nib. The paper was Mondi IQ Selection
100gsm white and the ink was Higgins Eternal black.
This is a handwritten version of the Clerestory font.
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@Ken Fraser I am unfamiliar with "Clerestory font". Is it a computer font?? Has it ever been a handwriting style, like Uncial or Italic? It's very attractive!
Janis
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COPPERPLATE (English Roundhand)
The version of English Roundhand (Copperplate) derives from 18th century exemplars. It was written with a Gillott 303 flexible dip nib in an oblique holder. The ink was Higgins Eternal and the paper was Mondi IQ Selection 100gsm. It was written at a slope angle of 55 degrees from the horizontal.
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GOTHIC ROTUNDA
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KAUFMANN handwritten
This is a handwritten version of the monoline font 'Kaufmann'.
The alphabet was written with a Pelikan fountain pen fitted with a round-tipped fine nib.
The text was written with an edged nib, creating an attractive alternative.
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SPENCERIAN LADIES HAND
This style, with minimal shading, was originally written with a straight penholder. As such, it is well suited to being written with a fountain pen with a moderately flexible nib. I wrote this, and the alphabet, with a Namiki Falcon.
The shading can follow the pattern of shading in Spencerian, or omitted altogether, or as in this example it can be used on all downstrokes, as in Roundhand aka Copperplate.
The most obvious characteristic is in the extended ascenders and descenders. This, combined with modest shading, gives the lettering a light, elegant look which no doubt accounts for the name 'Ladies Hand'. It can, of course, be written with as much pleasure, by either sex.
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SPENCERIAN BUSINESS WRITING
The 'Business Writing' alphabet was written with a Pelikan fountain pen fitted with a round-tipped nib.
The ink was Aurora black and the paper was Conqueror smooth white.
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ELICIT handwritten
This handwritten interpretation of the font called "Elicit" was written with a Rotring ArtPen.
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@Ken Fraser I am unfamiliar with "Clerestory font". Is it a computer font?? Has it ever been a handwriting style, like Uncial or Italic? It's very attractive!
Janis
Of all the styles, Gothic scripts have by far the greatest range of variations. This is just one of the many scripts under the general heading of Gothic.
This is based on a computer font which was written/drawn to simulate handwriting. This is going full circle; attempting to make a few minor adjustments to produce a style which can be easily handwritten.
Text : Clerestory font handwritten
for full alphabet see reply #04
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WILHELM KLINGSPOR GOTISCH Handwritten
This is a handwritten interpretation of the Wilhelm Klingspor Gotisch font designed by Rudolph Koch. It is a particularly attractive style IMO which easily lends itself to handwriting with very few modifications.
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MADARASZ SCRIPT
This much-admired hand was devised by Louis Madarasz. He called this Spencerian/Copperplate hybrid, "Madarasz Script". It was written here with a Brause Rose 76 nib and Higgins Eternal ink.
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UPRIGHT ITALIC
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VIVALDI Handwritten
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VERE FOSTER CIVIL SERVICE SCRIPT
This simple handwriting style is the script I was taught in the UK in the 1940s. It's written with a flexible nib in a straight penholder, either upright or at a slight slope (as here). It derives from Copperplate (English Roundhand) and the slight shading is the natural result of the flexibility of the nib. There are no pen lifts within words.
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ITALIC WITH SWASH CAPITALS
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DOUBLE-STROKE FOUNDATIONAL condensed
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ITAIAN HAND 18th century
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ITALIC pointed variation
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ITALICIZED UNCIAL
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UNCIAL Variation
This is my interpretation of a beautiful, personal variation of Uncial script devised by Byron J Macdonald.
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GOTHIC variation
This is my interpretation of a beautiful, smooth variation of a Gothic script devised by Byron J Macdonald.
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VERE FOSTER CIVIL SERVICE SCRIPT
This simple handwriting style is the script I was taught in the UK in the 1940s. It's written with a flexible nib in a straight penholder, either upright or at a slight slope (as here). It derives from Copperplate (English Roundhand) and the slight shading is the natural result of the flexibility of the nib. There are no pen lifts within words.
Bless you, @Ken Fraser, this is exactly what I've been looking for. I've been wanting something that is a close enough approximation to my current, informal handwriting (which tends to be upright) that will feel natural as I try to learn it in order to use for letter writing on regular lined paper without slant guidelines. And I don't want to have to fool around with pen lifts. I would love to see a quote written in this style if you ever have some time and feel so inclined.
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I would love to see a quote written in this style if you ever have some time and feel so inclined.
[/quote]
Text : Vere Foster Civil Service Script
For full alphabet see reply #17
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Text : Italic
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Ken, what a handy resource you have given us. We can just lay these pages out to view, compare and study without pulling out many file folders. Thanks!
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Ken, what a handy resource you have given us. We can just lay these pages out to view, compare and study without pulling out many file folders. Thanks!
You're welcome!
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This gives such a great over iew :D
Thank you very, very much for making this overview @Ken Fraser !!
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@Ken Fraser : Brilliant, as always! THANK YOU!!
Janis
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ITAIAN HAND 18th century
This is one that I have tried out a little bit but I'm not so fond of the filled in circles on the ends of some of the capitals. But, when I try leaving them off, the letter looks unfinished somehow, like that end is just sort of dangling in space. I haven't figured out a satisfactory solution to that, so I have put this script far down on my list of ones to master in my lifetime (it's a long list, I'm not sure I'll ever finish it).
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Splendid, Ken. I think there are still some to come - court hand, for instance?
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This is so amazing Ken, thank you for sharing this!
What great inspiration. I am new to the calligraphy world and it is amazing to see such beautiful examples of so many hands.
Lauri
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ENGLISH COURT HAND 17th Century
"English Court-Hand writing was used by the official courts of the sovereign, but later became used by professionals such as lawyers and clerks. By the middle of the 17th century the writing had become so stylized that it was primarily being used for formal documentation." - Plymouth City Council.
This style of writing dating from 1585-95, is beautiful to look at, but virtually useless in a practical sense as it is almost indecipherable to modern eyes. The first line of this example is my name. I've then written out the complete alphabet, both minuscules and majuscules. It's worth noting that there are 10 letters with identical upper and lower case forms. It is relatively simple to write with its strong Blackletter influence but there are a couple of tapered downstrokes which require a bit of nib manipulation. The edged nib is turned gradually anti-clockwise narrowing to a point.
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Splendid, Ken. I think there are still some to come - court hand, for instance?
Thanks for the reminder - I'd forgotten that one!
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Ken - thank you so much for all your hard work and sharing your wealth of knowledge. I never tire of looking at your inspirational works.
With respect,
Catherine
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ENGLISH COURT HAND 17th Century
"English Court-Hand writing was used by the official courts of the sovereign, but later became used by professionals such as lawyers and clerks. By the middle of the 17th century the writing had become so stylized that it was primarily being used for formal documentation." - Plymouth City Council.
I love court hand. It's like someone decided to take a standard alphabet and make it as funky and stylized as possible. Or they decided it would be infinitely better if the alphabet looked kinda like runes.
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RUSTIC CAPITALS
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RUSTIC CAPITALS
Since Rustic Capitals are originally and ancient Latin script, the letters J, K, and U wouldn't have original sources, right? So, for this exemplar, are those letters your interpretations of what they would look like or did you reference another exemplar? Also, my understanding is that, in cases such as these, the non-canonical letters would have been created using strokes seen in the other letters and it does look like that was the case here. It seemed like a fun exercise to see if I could figure out how the letters were created, so I spent some time looking at them.
After studying the script, I would say that the non-canonical letters were created in the following way:
1. J: The downstroke and top cross bar appear to be what you would get if you took the downstrokes of E, F, and T, plus the bottom cross bar and turned them upside down. The bottom curve looks the same as the bottom curve on S, B, and D, which makes sense if you compare S, B, D, and J look in a standard printed font.
2. K: The left half (the downstroke) is identical to I, while the right half looks like what you would get if you took the X and cut it in half down the center vertical axis.
3. U: This is a tricky one. It looks a lot like a miniscule italic v to me (but done large). The left side looks just like the V, but I'm having trouble with the inspiration for the right side. It might be the same as part of the right side of the O but I would need to print it out and lay them over each other on a light box to know for sure. Mostly, it looks like a softened version of V, which I suppose U is.
So, @Ken Fraser am I correct in my interpretation (if you used a reference for those letters, then you wouldn't be able to say for sure of course, but you could say if you agreed with me or not)?
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K (the Greeks' kappa) predates the Romans and was used in their early inscriptions until they'd figured out a way to phase it out. Can't say I've ever seen a rustic example from the classical period, however. Incidentally, this pdf (http://guindo.pntic.mec.es/jmag0042/ingles.php?d=LATIN_PALEOGRAPHY.pdf) might be of interest.
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So, @Ken Fraser am I correct in my interpretation (if you used a reference for those letters, then you wouldn't be able to say for sure of course, but you could say if you agreed with me or not)?
Your analysis of how this was written is pretty accurate. There is nothing here that is original. I took my examples from early historic versions with the exception of the letters which didn't exist then. These are taken from various examples (including the u) which I've seen over the years. I gradually built up an alphabet from these sources and there is nothing here which is my own creation.
This alphabet is slow to write with constant nib manipulation with changes of angle. The occasional downstroke which tapers from narrow to wide can be written in one stroke whilst twisting the nib edge but this is difficult and I generally take the easier way out and overlay a second short stroke at the foot.
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Thanks for your interest, Andy - appreciated. :D
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SPENCERIAN & COPPERPLATE
The combination of Spencerian majuscules and Copperplate minuscules works very well IMO.
Combining the free-flowing flexibility of the Spencerian capitals with the austere elegance of the Copperplate minuscules creates an attractive alternative style, combining elements of both.
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@Ken Fraser Thank you so much for re-collating this. I was having panic attacks as I could not see the images in your earlier thread ;D
Was going to write to you to find out what happened and then saw this.
Made my day. Your talent and generosity is beyond compare.
Thanks again
Prasad
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Thanks, Prasad. I'm glad that you found them :)
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K (the Greeks' kappa) predates the Romans and was used in their early inscriptions until they'd figured out a way to phase it out. Can't say I've ever seen a rustic example from the classical period, however. Incidentally, this pdf (http://guindo.pntic.mec.es/jmag0042/ingles.php?d=LATIN_PALEOGRAPHY.pdf) might be of interest.
I confess I was thinking more of Italian than Latin when I assumed that there wouldn't be a K (I know they are not identical but there are a lot of similarities) since Italian does not use the letter K except for words it might have borrowed from another language.
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IRISH UNCIAL
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LIGHT ITALIC
This version of light Italic was written with a very narrow-edged nib at a slope angle of 8 degrees.
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FORMAL ITALIC with SWASH CAPITALS
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CURSIVE ITALIC
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BARDOLINO
A few years ago, I designed this lettering style. as entirely my own work.
As everything has to have a name, I called it "Bardolino" after our favourite holiday destination in Italy. As the letters have built-in ligatures as part of the design, the minuscules butt together eliminating any need for careful inter-letter spacing.
If anyone wants to try this style for themselves, I would appreciate acknowledgement of its origin.
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ENGROSSER'S SCRIPT
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BARDOLINO
A few years ago, I designed this lettering style. as entirely my own work.
As everything has to have a name, I called it "Bardolino" after our favourite holiday destination in Italy. As the letters have built-in ligatures as part of the design, the minuscules butt together eliminating any need for careful inter-letter spacing.
If anyone wants to try this style for themselves, I would appreciate acknowledgement of its origin.
It's lovely, Ken. I'm really enamored of the last down stroke on the miniscule h, m, and n. I was going to ask what the specs were if someone wanted to try their hand at it, and then I thought, "Where's the fun in that?" So, after printing it out and messing with a ruler and protractor and a few nibs, I came up with:
x= 5 nib widths
ascender/descender= 2.5 x
caps= 2x
slant= 15 degrees from perpendicular
pen angle= 50 degrees from baseline
Is that an accurate assessment?
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x= 5 nib widths
ascender/descender= 2.5 x
caps= 2x
slant= 15 degrees from perpendicular
pen angle= 50 degrees from baseline
Is that an accurate assessment?
Spot on! That's absolutely accurate ; well done! ;D
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x= 5 nib widths
ascender/descender= 2.5 x
caps= 2x
slant= 15 degrees from perpendicular
pen angle= 50 degrees from baseline
Is that an accurate assessment?
Spot on! That's absolutely accurate ; well done! ;D
Yay! It was fun to do. It's the kind of thing that speaks to my inner nerd.
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LOMBARDIC VERSALS
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@Ken Fraser : A question about Copperplate/English Roundhand: In your alphabets, some of the ascenders are looped but in your quote exemplars, those same ascenders are not looped (ie #05: the l and h). I'm asking because I do often see copperplate with non-loop ascenders, but I'd rather use looped ascenders as I would rather "write" it than "draw" it (if that makes sense? minimal lifts is what I'm getting at here) and I already use looped ascenders in my regular handwriting, so it seems more natural to me.
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@Ken Fraser : A question about Copperplate/English Roundhand: In your alphabets, some of the ascenders are looped but in your quote exemplars, those same ascenders are not looped (ie #05: the l and h). I'm asking because I do often see copperplate with non-loop ascenders, but I'd rather use looped ascenders as I would rather "write" it than "draw" it (if that makes sense? minimal lifts is what I'm getting at here) and I already use looped ascenders in my regular handwriting, so it seems more natural to me.
Much of my Copperplate is influenced by examples in The Universal Penman where almost all of the ascenders are straight. I believe that the looped ascenders were a later development. I like both ways, but never mix them in the same piece of writing.
I understand your preference for looped ascenders being "written" as opposed to being "drawn" with minimal interruption, but, in fact, both straight and looped ascenders can be easily written smoothly without pen lifts.
The looped ascenders are written with an upward hairline to the right of the letter continuing without a break, anticlockwise into the shaded downstroke. The motion is virtually the same for a straight ascender. The hairline is produced upwards on the slope line and without stopping at the top, the tines are spread open and the downwards shaded stroke covers the hairline to the base line. Both styles of letter can be written smoothly and without pen lifts.
AFAIK Straight ascenders are never used in Engrosser's Script or in Spencerian.
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I was wondering if you would be kind enough to provide some examples of your Foundational Hand. Possibly a few letters and maybe one or two diagonals. What nib height are you using and what the pen angle is. Appreciated. I could not find any examples of this style in your post. JERRY
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I'm sorry that you missed it - it's at the very beginning #2 just after Uncial.
Ken
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Thank you Ken, the problem was that i did not login. Very nice. Respectfully, JERRY
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Ken, are you a master penman yet? Because I swear after oggling and drooling after all your exemplars I am FLOORED...they are amazing...I'm out of words to describe my awe after this...
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Ken, are you a master penman yet? Because I swear after oggling and drooling after all your exemplars I am FLOORED...they are amazing...I'm out of words to describe my awe after this...
Ken is too modest to respond in the affirmative to this question, so I will offer you my opinion: Ken is indeed a master penman. He may not have the title that IAMPETH has conferred over the past 30 years or so, having never sought that title from them as far as I know, but surely would be granted that title if he were to seek it, imho. His work is better, again, in my opinion, than a number of people with the official title.
At best, in his modesty, he might describe himself as a scribe or master scribe.
Lest I reignite the discussion of what constitutes a master penman, which is discussed at length elsewhere on this forum, I would simply say I am old school on the matter, meaning I look at a person's work and compare it to the best work ever published that I've seen (for example, the "Universal Penman" for English Roundhand). Is Ken's work comparable? Yes, it is, again, in my opinion. That makes him a master by my lights. In olden times, that's how the title was granted, informally--by a person's peers based on the person's work. Whether or not a person has an "official" title granted by a self selected group is quite irrelevant.
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I am in complete alignment with @AnasaziWrites. There are many times, I thought his work were generated from a computer typeface and I have suspected as so. It wasn't until Sir Fraser described the process of this creation, that I was enlightened. I am still at awe of his work. I also recognized another master scribe, Michael Moore.
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Wow this is amazing!!
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Beautiful, amazing and wonderful work Ken Fraser. Thank you for the share of your talents that add more values to this forum.
Thank you again and again.
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Beautiful, amazing and wonderful work Ken Fraser. Thank you for the share of your talents that add more values to this forum.
Thank you again and again.
You are more than welcome! :)
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May I ask which resource you used for the 'Spencerian Business Writing' exemplar please?
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May I ask which resource you used for the 'Spencerian Business Writing' exemplar please?
Nicola,
It was a long time ago and I can't remember my sources as I was learning, but I do remember being influenced by the beautiful writings of E E Mills and J J Bailey.
Many examples from both are freely available on the IAMPETH site.
They would still be my first choice for study, coupled with the great resources from Dr Joe Vitolo as the up-to-date equivalent.
Ken
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Ken Thank youuuu so much for this compendium!!! It is great!!! bests, Angelica
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Ken, are you a master penman yet? Because I swear after oggling and drooling after all your exemplars I am FLOORED...they are amazing...I'm out of words to describe my awe after this...
I would simply say I am old school on the matter, meaning I look at a person's work and compare it to the best work ever published that I've seen (for example, the "Universal Penman" for English Roundhand). Is Ken's work comparable? Yes, it is, again, in my opinion. That makes him a master by my lights. In olden times, that's how the title was granted, informally--by a person's peers based on the person's work. Whether or not a person has an "official" title granted by a self selected group is quite irrelevant.
Well said @AnasaziWrites. Cant put that in any better ways. Thanks bro :D
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This gives an amazing overview. Thank you so much!!
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Thank you Ken, for ALL the effort you went through to write, compile and post these here. I am SO excited to learn more about each script, and so far my favourite is Madarasz's Script ;)
I truly appreciate your generosity. I know this would be one of the places I revisit and revisit.
P/s: I'm new here and probably missed an instructional thread here and there, but I was wondering if anyone can help me with 'saving' this thread for easy access in the future? THANK YOU IN ADVANCE <3
Cheers to you!
Rachel
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Thanks Ken, these examples are fabulous! You are so talented.
Linda
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Thank you Ken for your time and effort on this post! It is thorough and I will reference your compendium in my future calligraphic endeavours. :) Sincerely, Shirley
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Really, thanks. It is a wonderful work.
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What an amazing resource! Ken, thank you so much for gifting the rest of us with these! I know I will be coming back often.
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Having had the opportunity to view your work for hours, and at days end, continually be in deep awe, I genuinely salute you, Sir.
Not wishing to appear rude, I have read that you are +four score in years, and yet you continue to share your obvious love to educate mere mortals. You, Sir, deserve the appreciation you receive. You are, without wishing to overstate my opinion, a legend in your own lifetime.
Thank you so much, Mr Fraser.