This workshop introduces participants to the fundamental principles of historical calligraphy through direct engagement with tools, materials, and letterforms. Designed for researchers and teachers in cultural studies and art history, librarians, students, and independent artists—with no prior experience—it bridges book history, visual form, hands-on practice, and the adaptation of historical handwriting to contemporary aesthetics. 

It focuses on a selection of key principles — core ideas that help students understand where to begin and how to approach this art form. While these concepts are typically developed over years of study and regular practice, the workshop offers a structured entry point for further exploration.

Teaching calligraphy within a short session presents a specific challenge: the practice requires time, repetition, and an understanding of structure. At the same time, many students primarily engage with text digitally and may encounter ink and quill for the first time in this setting.

This raises a practical question: how can a discipline that is usually developed over years be meaningfully introduced within a two-hour session?

Rather than attempting to compress a full course into a single class, the workshop is structured around foundational principles. It does not promise immediate mastery, but instead offers a framework for understanding—one that students can continue to develop independently or pursue further in a longer course.

This approach differs from many short-format workshops that prioritize immediate visual results without grasping the meaning behind it. Here, the emphasis is on understanding rather than imitation. Calligraphy is approached as a process grounded in observation, structure, and repetition over time.

Students are invited to experiment, to work through the constraints of the materials, and to experience how historical principles translate into their own modern practice. 

• how tools shape writing (quill, nib, surface)

• basic structure of letterforms across historical styles

• connections between historical scripts and contemporary design principles

• relationship between letters, words, and spacing

• how historical practices inform present-day aesthetics

• difference between handwriting and typography

• fundamentals of composition, including monograms

• balance between form and space

• why handwriting remains relevant today

Calligraphy is not only a visual practice but also a key to understanding how texts were historically produced, transmitted, and read.

By working directly with tools and letterforms, students gain insight into the material conditions of manuscript production: the relationship between writing surface, instrument, and the resulting script. This shifts their perspective from reading text as neutral content to recognizing it as a constructed visual and material form.

The workshop also highlights the distinction—and connection—between reading and writing. Engaging in the act of writing reveals structural decisions that are often invisible to the reader, such as spacing, rhythm, balance of graphic elements, and proportion.

More broadly, it introduces students to the materiality of text: how form, tool, and gesture shape meaning. This perspective is essential for understanding manuscripts, early printed books, and the continued influence of historical writing on contemporary visual culture. 

The workshop offers:

• rare knowledge within the North American context

• a structured introduction to core principles of handwriting

• an engaging aesthetic and material experience

The session is structured in five parts, each reflecting a core principle of handwriting. Each segment (20–25 minutes) combines a short historical introduction (5–7 minutes) with guided practice (15–20 minutes), allowing students to immediately apply each principle. 

Online format

• small group (8–10 participants)

• individual guidance during the session

• brief individual feedback at the end

• materials PDF provided in advance

The workshop will be confirmed once a minimum of 6 participants is reached.

Price per participant: $65

For groups of 10 or more please reach out: info@dsartistrylabs.com

This workshop can be adapted to courses in book history, typography, cultural studies, art history, or studio practice.

If you are interested in bringing a similar session to your students, feel free to get in touch: info@dsartistrylabs.com  

For independent artists and those interested in historical handwriting, I also offer small-group workshops. If you would like to participate, please send an expression of interest to: info@dsartistrylabs.com. A session can be scheduled once a small group is formed.