How to Hold a Calligraphy Pen

This article about pen angle will give you insight into how to use a calligraphy pen, starting with how to hold a calligraphy pen for best results.
Fooling the Eye

Fooling the Eye

By Maryanne Grebenstein – You may have experienced something like this: You walk into a restaurant that is housed in a building with solid walls all around. But as you pan the room you see a view of a beautiful footbridge across a very picturesque river with...

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A Christine de Pizan Manuscript

A Christine de Pizan Manuscript

By Maryanne Grebenstein – Other than members of royalty, we know relatively few medieval women by name. And those that we do know, Joan of Arc for example, we know largely because of the circumstances under which they met their demise. Christine de Pizan (1364-1430)...

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A Medieval-Style Binding

A Medieval-Style Binding

By James Reid-Cunningham – When Maryanne Grebenstein asked me to bind her manuscript by Christine de Pizan, I immediately thought that the binding should reflect the period of the author’s life. The challenge was that the manuscript is only a few leaves, while most...

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Illuminated Manuscripts “Beyond Words”

Illuminated Manuscripts “Beyond Words”

By Maryanne Grebenstein -- “BEYOND WORDS: ILLUMINATED MANUSCRIPTS IN BOSTON COLLECTIONS is the first exhibition to showcase highlights of illuminated manuscripts in the Boston area. An ambitious collaborative project, Beyond Words is notable for the size of its...

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Summer Days on Nantucket

Summer Days on Nantucket

By Maryanne Grebenstein -- I don’t know how I got lucky enough to receive an invitation from the Nantucket Historical Association (www.nha.org) to teach a calligraphy workshop on Nantucket, but I was not about to turn it down! What a nice compliment! And who wouldn’t...

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The Brilliance of Hermann Zapf

The Brilliance of Hermann Zapf

By Maryanne Grebenstein -- Hermann Zapf (1918-2015), born in Nuremberg, Germany, was one of the greatest calligraphers and type designers who ever lived. He began lettering at age 18 and spent many years studying historic letterforms. With the advent of computers,...

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