V is for Very long time

It's really been a very long time since I've inflicted one of my filigree lettering on you. Probably because I took a break and devoted myself to other elements of calligraphy.

So here is a two-tone V with filigrees (a little different from what I usually do) and my inevitable little gilded dots.

And I take this opportunity to remind you that there are only a few days left to register for the course on split versals & filigrees that will be hosted by the gentle penman platform.

S as in Sarsaparilla

 A little filigree
initial with a few gold dots to delight your eyes during this holiday season.

These filigrees will be the subject of my next online course in English on January 22 & 23.

If you are interested, you will find more information here.

Welcome

 Welcome to little Alexandre, born last week.

To celebrate his birth, a filigree initial with, for once, a bit of color.

Have had enough ?

Well, here it is again.

2 small filigree initials to announce an upcoming online course on the subject.

It will be on August 21 & 22, 2021, online and in English.

Registration here.

The letters are 2cm high, the A is in walnut stain, the C in watercolor and the dots are gilded with gold leaf.

Again...

 A new filigree initial, in the same style as the previous one. A D this time, still 3 cm high, still gold leaf, Payne grey for the letter and Prussian blue for the filigree.

The fury of creating

 A new composition with a NEULAND reworked on a text by Emile Zola proposed by my wife.

The writing was done with a piece of wood and watercolor (Payne gray), the decoration is inspired by the tiled backgrounds of the Gothic period with a line whose center is the O of glory at the penultimate line.

I used several blues and greys as well as gold leaf for the small decorative elements.

The paper is a mixture of hemp and linen with straw inclusions.

I would like to take this opportunity to remind you that I will be conducting an online course (in french) on NEULAND on December 12 & 13. All the info on the page that lists my courses here.

Day's dream

 A work for four hands and above all for two brains. My wife offered me this fragment of Zola's Germinal. And we both worked on the composition, the writing, the colours.

Then, of course, once I had finished scribbling on the paper, she did the framing.

I am very happy with the result.

The writing is a 16th century humanistic, and I am happy to have gone back to an older type of decoration, the tiled background for the strip on the side.

Different dilutions of Payne's grey and leaf gilding to bring the light.

A prayer

In these difficult times, regardless of our faith (I include atheists and agnostics), we all pray for things to get better.
Here is the result of a small commission that a friend made to me some time ago.

Gold leaf on gesso, watercolor, pigments and arabic gum on paper.

A

A small commission, the letter is 3cm high.
Prussian blue, cobalt blue and gold leaf on paper.

Fame !!

I am very happy, there is an article dedicated to my work is featured in the last issue of Bound & Lettered, an American magazine published by John Neal.
In addition to many illustrations & explanations of my work in general and in particular on filigrees, you will find there the pictures of the different steps of the letter E I was telling you about here and that I finished !

You can order the issue of the magazine from the following link: 17.1

Monogram

I post relatively little lately, it's because I have other obligations (administrative among others...) and in fact less availability for calligraphy.
Nevertheless, here is the result of a recent commission, an MCC monogram.

Prussian & cobalt blue & gold leaf

Oblique moon

After a few weeks of doubts, failures and trial and errors, I finally composed a new calligraphy on a text by Guillevic.
I deliver it to you very hot out of the workshop, even if the subject is quite cold ;-)

as in the first composition, it was made from walnut stain and iron gall ink, this time with a few gold-leaf dots to lighten and warm up the subject.

Heart reloaded

I couldn't stay on my failure.
So here's version 2, in red!

I much prefer, the two shades of red are fused enough so that the filigree patterns are not too obvious.

Terminé

The showers were more numerous than expected this weekend so I had time to finish my initial T.

The filigree square is 5 cm wide.

The gilding is made with 24 carat gold leaf on acrylic gesso.

The letter as well as part of the filigree is made in Prussian blue and the other part of the filigree in cobalt blue & the support is an handmade linen paper.

Last commission before Xmas

If you want me to draw an initial or to write a text for this Xmas, it's too late. I just finished the last commission & will not be able to do anything else before Xmas (you can still buy some of my older works ;-) ).

Here are some pics of the different steps of the work.
The instructions were a blue R and something about the sea. I looked at some old medieval maps and let my nib ramble on the paper.

gilding & painting of the letter.

Drawing of the structure of the filigrees and first pattern

End of the cobalt blue filigree

End of the end of the final thing

I used prussian blue & colbalt blue (watercolor), gilding is done with gold leaf over acrylic gesso as usual, the whole thing has been made on Arches watercolor paper.

filigrees

Back to paperwork for an initial with filigrees. This is only a detail first because it isn't finished yet and second because I don't want to spoil the surprise for the person who will receive it.

The dark red circle is approximatively 2cm in diameter and I used a pattern found in the MS Espagnol 33 from the BNF, manuscript that we will study during this summer courses in my workshop.

blue vine

A small initial decorated with white vine, I'm happy with the shape of the vine but the gilding was difficult, I don't practise enough.

Valentine's day

2 little works related to this feast

the love dice, to know whether (s)he still loves you (I've cheated a bit, there's a heart engraved on each side).

And an initial V

Happy Valentine's day to all lovers and all the others !!

Initial D

I've just finished a new initial with filigrees. Nothing special to say about it, it's the kind of thing I do whithout even thinking about it now.

To see the whole thing, click here.

Initial

While waiting for inspiration for more ambitious works, I continue with filigrees. This time it is a V and in blue shades to change a bit from the usual B&W.

To see the whole thing, click here.