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February 14 - 17, 2003
This was a rare opportunity to study with Charles Pearce, one of the world’s leading calligraphers. Working with acrylics on canvas, “Calligraphy on Canvas” was about the creation of a calligraphic painting.
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Calligraphy on Canvas, a four-day workshop with Charles Pearce, could also have been titled “How to Throw Paint Ferociously.” Bend down. Lower. Lower still. Practice the throw. Think about what direction you are going to throw. Watch that you don't hit someone else's canvas. Get the arc going. Okay. Throw. Now wait. Patience. Don't touch it until it is dry......an impossibility on the first cloudy moisture-laden day. Such was the personal coaching we got from Charles as we attempted to mimic his well-practiced paint "throws."
This was not a workshop for the timid, meek soul (although there were a couple of us there); this was a workshop for the BOLD. Charles prefaced his workshop by sending us all pre-workshop instructions. We were to plan on doing one of two things. We could do a self-portrait - using words, colors, textures (not images); or we could do something meaningful to us as individuals. We were instructed to remember that this was a CALLIGRAPHY on canvas workshop and that we would be expected to do the best calligraphy we were capable of. No pressure there.
We were all handed pieces of unprimed, unstretched canvas - 4' x 6'. Charles showed us how to soak our entire canvasses and then pour our pre-mixed paint on the wet canvas, using colors that wouldn't muddy each other (i.e. not complements). We used acrylic paint mixed with water and matte medium. Once our initial pours were dry, we mixed more paint and began to throw ferociously making bold bands which we would use compositionally for our lettering. Day one was a lot of waiting for canvasses to dry. Hershey (Cary's dog--our friendly canine mascot) tried to help us by putting her paw prints on our canvasses; Charles had one in the center of his - covered later with a ferocious blue throw. Poor Hershey was relegated to the house.
Once our initial pours/throws were dry, we went into our lettering phase. We wrote on the canvasses with brushes and with pens and acrylic paint, again mixed with w ater and medium. We each had many consultations with Charles and he freely gave us his advice. He was very kind about listening to us and then gently telling us how he would do it. Limited to 10 participants, the workshop was the perfect size for significant give and take between students and instructor. It also allowed Charles to work on a piece so that we could see how he proceeded. Charles stressed that we needed to be patient with this process, to let our work dry completely between applications. He also reminded us that we are going to lose a good 6-8 inches of our canvas when it is stretched. Finally, and most importantly, Charles implored us to be most careful with our calligraphy, that what makes this method successful is the contrast between the PRECISION of the letters and the freedom of the background.
The workshop location could not have been more inspirational. Cary Joel graciously opened her garage and home to us - and, more significantly, her dirt lots where we could freely throw paint. All in all, it was a wonderful experience with a wonderful teacher. Thanks to Teri Martin for arranging for Charles, to Cary Joel for offering us the use of her home, and, of course, to Charles Pearce for offering us such an outstanding experience.
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