Lines by Leslie

Hi, Everyone, it was great to see so many members at our September meeting, both the familiar and the new faces. We had a very informative business meeting, with reports from all of our committees. The Calendar Committee, chaired by Pauline Sager, did a wonderful job over the summer and once again we have a very classy calendar to show for their efforts. At the September meeting, the committee sold all 100 calendars they brought for sale. So this is a great start, and I hope the rest of this edition of 300 will go as quickly. But, having said that, I have to add that, because of the marketing competition, the cost of the project, the minimal profits, and the difficulties we've had getting people to contribute to and then to purchase our calendars, we are forced to consider whether or not we want to have a calendar in the future. So, please be thinking about the pros and cons of this issue so that we can make a decision in the near future. Meanwhile, enjoy the beauty of the Year 2000 Calendar.

Our new directory is out, thanks to Charles and Rebecca Ingram, who did a terrific job over the summer and got us all listed once again. Please remember to let the Membership Committee, chaired by Jill Adams, know if you have any changes to make in your listing. Our membership is over 100 strong, and that's something we can all be proud of.

Thank you to Janice Anabtawi and the Hospitality Committee for our refreshments this past month. As always, you keep us happy! And thank you also to Anita Hyman for organizing the door prizes. Anita has a great idea and requests that members donate original art for door prizes, to make them more personal and to enable us to share in each other's work. She also has some special door prizes coming up in the next few months, so be sure to put the meetings on your calendars.

Jill Adams brought some samples of the note cards that were done over the summer, in little hand painted eight pocket booklets. This is a limited edition of 100 and will be for sale at the next meeting, so, again, be sure to come and get our share of the goodies. And remember - no fighting over these! When this edition is gone, there will be another fundraiser project to follow. There are some great ideas in the works, and this is just the beginning.

We have some great programs, workshops, and mini-workshops scheduled again this year. The Planning Committee met over the summer and tried again to coordinate the Early Bird Specials, the programs, the newsletter covers, the fund raisers, the major and mini-workshops, etc., so that they'll all relate to one another. There are some amazing plans and I can't wait for it all to happen.

Needless to say, the highlight of the evening and absolute showstopper was the Secret Pal Committee for a fantastic job. We thought you couldn't top last year's program, but you definitely did. And, of course, the members are to be congratulated for the incredible display of talent and creativity. It was truly a feast to behold. I was especially struck by the number of people who felt that this display of friendship touched their lives in a special way over the summer. Thank you to all that took part.

You may already be tired of hearing me say this, but I have to say it at least once more - what makes our Guild so special is the participation of so many members in so many different activities. We are a large group, over 100 people, with common but not identical interests. It's natural for us to occasionally split off into smaller units for various projects, classes, etc., but our success as a Guild depends on everyone taking part in something. We've had wonderful support for all of our activities and committees, and I hope that this level of participation will continue throughout the year. The year 1999-2000 promises to be as exciting as "the coming of the millennium" makes it sound. See you in October,

.................................................................................................Leslie

Make 'N Take Round Robin

Six talented members of our calligraphy guild are also interested in the art of rubberstamping. The October meeting is a round robin, hands-on program. You will learn techniques involving or related to stamping to create or enhance greeting cards, envelopes, or calligraphic works of art.

Denise Adler shares a technique for using calligraphy or stamped images on handmade paper. Laura Heye shows how to apply Color Box inks directly on paper to develop an interesting background texture. Karen Veni assists members in learning a layering technique with a resist. Judi Hays helps you to learn bleaching techniques on different paper stocks. Beverly Carter teaches the Japanese traditional "Menko" (small folded paper purse) used by the Secret Pal committee for the September meeting. Francene Smith asks you to bring scissors to make a stenciled card. Come prepared for a whirlwind of fun and an hour or so which is guaranteed to get your creative juices flowing!

MINI-WORKSHOP

Neuland and Color-Pencil
with Bill Waddington
Thursday, October 21st
Warm Springs Baptist Rehabilitation Hospital
5101 Medical Drive
7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
$5 for members, $6 for non-members

The supply list:
(1) "ZIG" Calligraphy "Extra" 5.0 mm Black Chisel-edged Felt-tip Markers(s)--or quality markers comparable to the "ZIG" .
(2) "Berol Prismacolor" colored pencils in the following colors:
#903 - True Blue, #905 - Aquamarine, #910 - True Green, #916 - Canary Yellow, #923 - Scarlet Lake, #926 - Carmine Red,
#933 - Blue Violet, #995 - Brite Purple and #938 - White (Don't forget white).
(3) Barrel-style hand-held pencil sharpener. NOTE: All pencils must be sharpened prior to the workshop.
Pencils will need to be re-sharpened during the workshop. All necessary papers will be provided to the participants.
Good news is NO pens, NO inks, and NO gouache required. I must advise you that I cannot vouch for other brands of color pencils --
the "leads" in some brands are too hard to provide the desired results.

MINI-WORKSHOPS FOR '99-'00
If you are one of our mini-workshop presenters - please remember to write the name of your workshop in the lettering style you will be teaching. We plan to use these to announce your class; everyone will see a sample of what you are teaching. We still have some openings, sign up with Gayle Venticinque.

Secret Pals Summer 2000
Secret Pals 2000 -- or both!

Think about Secret Pals and be ready to vote at the October meeting. If you missed the September meeting and the Secret Pals program, you missed some of the best artwork and creativity ever displayed at the Secret Pal program! Calligraphy, or course, and lots of books, lots of rubberstamping and an abundance of talent on display! It was wonderful. many of the thanks yous were very touching. At the August board meeting, we were discussing Secret Pals and our proposition to you is to vote at the October meeting on the following:

1. Have the traditional Secret Pals in the summer.
2. Have Secret Pals 2000 - begin in November 1999 and reveal November 2000.
3. Or do both. (Sounds great to me! DP)

We already have volunteers for committee chairs for both options.

SACG CALENDAR FOR 2000

SACG calendar cover created by Pauline Sager

I am pleased to announce "HeartStrings", the SACG calendar for 2000. This edition has the added touch of being hand bound with color-coordinated cord. A special committee of Maggie, Leslie, Shirley, Beverly, & yours truly, spent 6 hours one Saturday in August, collate and folding the 2,400 sheets to yield 300 copies, and bound 100. The following Monday, Anita, Maggie, Beverly and Leslie bound the remaining 200 copies. A lot of work went in to make this a special edition, but everyone had fun. This is what it's all about - working together in teams to produce a handsome result. Pauline Sager -- Y2K Calendar Editor

Calendars are $6.50 each including tax - plus add postage ($1.50 for one, or $1.00 each for 2 or more).
Contact Thea Moore or Pauline Sager to purchase calendars. Over the Internet, send e-mail to: Pavasa@aol.com

26 Seeds: A Year to Grow
Attention: Those members who plan to take Reggie Ezell's year long program in 2001 - please mail a $100 non-refundable deposit post marked NO EARLIER THAN OCTOBER 8, 1999 to:
Joan Schmitz
3246 Mid Hollow Drive
San Antonio, TX 78230

We must have 15 deposits before Reggie will put us on his calendar.
We will give OUR MEMBERS ONE MONTH TO SIGN UP. On November 5, 1999, we will accept deposits from anyone outside our guild if any places are still available. There is a limit of 20 persons.

TOTAL COST is expected to be about $1,200.00 per person ($100 per month). Reggie suggests that HALF of the total amount be collected by JANUARY 2001. The rest should be collected by June 2001. A separate bank account will be set up for the Reggie Workshop. If any money is not used, it will be divided among the participants at the end of the last class.

There is a Reggie Ezell brochure with more information on his year long study.

Here's this month's installment of the Reggie Year

After the agony of last month's pressurized Romans, this month's Romans don't seem so bad in comparison. We lettered Romans with a large metal nib as well as brush lettering. In between all the lettering, we were able to do fun things like "painting" backgrounds and embossing. It's amazing how wonderful the results were!

For me, there were many inspiring moments as well as humbling ones. For those of you who haven't taken the class, I won't spoil it by telling you the stories. You will have to find out for yourself once you get there, or as Reggie says, "when you get older." :o)

One thing I really learned this month was to accept the level of calligraphy that I am capable of at the moment. I had spent all of March lettering pressurized Romans almost every day. While there was improvement, I didn't think they were good enough for complete pieces (read: not good enough to finish the homework). So, I just kept practicing and waiting until I got better instead of just plunging in and doing what I could according to my current ability. At least I would have gotten some feedback. Oh well, another lesson learned.

And for all those who haven't experienced it -- arrrrrrrghhh!!! Pressurized Romans are HARD! Those blocky looking Romans that we need to use pen manipulation on is much, much, better, albeit you have to contort your hand at times to "manipulate" these letters. :o)

Sigh - There are times when I doubt my ability to be in this class, but then I sit through Reggie's lectures and I'm fascinated. So, I'm still hanging in here!

Ginn Magante
Contact Ginn Magante via e-mail at this address: ginn@CORP.FirstIndustrial.com
Pauline Sager shared this account with us from Cyberscribes. Ginn writes like our Shirley Ginn!

New Limited Edition Note Cards

"Oohs" and "aahs" will be the order of the evening at our October Guild meeting, when the new limited edition note cards in beautiful portfolios go on sale. The kaleidoscope of color will both delight and tantalize. Choosing just one will be difficult.

Each portfolio contains six assorted note cards with calligraphy and art work by Guild members Sally Gooze, Bonnie Houser, Vera Irby, Thea Moore, Darla Peek, and Helen Rasplicka. The portfolios were constructed by hand using Arches text wove paper, acrylic paints, and an origami fold. These portfolios with note cards are a limited numbered edition of 100 and will sell for $10 each including tax.

To give everyone an equal chance at choosing their favorite colors, the cards will be sold after the business meeting during the break.

My sincere thanks go to all that contributed to this project -- those that painted the paper, those that folded it, and to the six who graciously consented to using their calligraphy pieces.

Jill Adams
Fund raising Chairperson

Marsha Brady Lecture

"Gothic variations in contemporary calligraphy"
October 1st

Marsha Brady describes this slide show as a look at how some twentieth century calligraphers have utilized the blackletter alphabets in their work, in a variety of applications and texts. From Hermann Zapf and Friedrich Neugebauer to Donald Jackson and Jeanyee Wong, we will see how numerous lettering and calligraphic artists have modified and varied the forms from the historical models to suit their expressive and creative needs.

Sponsored by the Education Committee, the lecture is free and open to the public, invite your family and friends to come hear Marsha.

Friday, October 1 * 7:00 p.m.
Christ Episcopal Church
Parish Hall, 510 Belknap Place (our usual location, different meeting room)

Call for Entries
Peace Museum

The Peace Museum requests submissions for an exhibition of international mail art for the new millennium. Mail art messages will come from around the world from peace museums, cultural institutions, artists groups, school groups, international mail art groups, cyberspace, celebrities, and musicians.

Messages can be created in words, artwork or a combination of the two. All submissions must be flat with a maximum size of 8.5" x 11". The exhibition is open to all individuals who have something to express relating to peace at the coming of the millennium. All submissions will become the property of the Peace Museum.

The Peace Museum is an educational institution whose mission is to motivate children, teens, and adults to achieve creative solutions to the problem of violence. The exhibitions will be displayed at the Peace Museum from December 3, 1999 through February 2000 and then travel to peace museums internationally. Documentation to all! Questions via e-mail leaho@mail2.forward.net

Deadline for submissions: November 1, 1999
Send entries to:
The Peace Museum
314 West Institute Place
Chicago, IL 60610

Studio tips from Other Calligraphy Guilds

Paper tip: To create a better surface for lettering on oriental rice paper or other thin paper, spray the paper with a coat of acrylic gloss medium or varnish and let it dry. ...Capital City Scribes

Gouache container: Use old contact lends cases as containers for a small amount of gouache. ...Nib 'n Inks

Whiteout recipe: Squeeze Winsor Newton permanent white onto a dish. Let it dry to remove the sizing. Wet and apply with a pointed brush.
...Valley Calligraphy Guild

Transfer layout to dark paper: Apply medium gray Conte crayon to the back of the layout. Place Conte side down on the black/dark paper and gently trace the letters in monoline onto dark paper. ...from a Martin Jackson workshop

Treatment for new nibs: Use fingernail polish remover on new nibs to remove the shellac. ...Scrittore (Calligraphic Society of Arizona)

Artist & Alphabet --
20th Century Calligraphy & Letter Art in America

If you plan to be in the New York area in October, join the Society of Scribes at their opening reception of "Artist & Alphabet" on October 13. The Society of Scribes and the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA), will celebrate the society's 25th anniversary with a major exhibition, Artist & Alphabet: 20th Century Calligraphy & Letter Art in America. Past and current calligraphers and letter artists will be showcased at the AIGA's National Design Center, The Strathmore Gallery, 164 Fifth Avenue, New York. October 14 to November 19, 1999. *** For more info click below:

http://www.societyofscribes.org/events.htm

Waddington Work at National Cathedral

Bill Waddington has two pieces currently on exhibit at the Washington National Cathedral as part of the juried exhibit "Visions of the Spirit II Celebrating the New Millennium." Sixty-six pieces of work from forty-nine calligraphers include entries from the U.S., Canada and Japan. The works include etched glass, handmade books, and framed entries from Christian, Jewish and Islamic faith traditions.

Waddington's entries are shown below. "Pater Noster,"the Lord's Prayer in Latin, was executed in Celtic lettering and illumination. A "stained glass" motif done in gouache and Neuland lettering describes "I Am the Light of the World" from John 8:12.

The exhibit opened June 28 and remains up until November 1, 1999. Waddington also had work at the National Cathedral's first "Visions of the Spirit" in 1996.

Congratulations to Bill!

S.A. Arts & Letters

Update -- they have a web site that is an extension of Stamp Antonio's site. Check it out at: http://www.stampantonio.com/artsletters.html to see what's happening.

Herweck's Fall 1999 Product Show

Herweck's normally holds their wonderful product show during September -- this year they moved it to October 22 & 23 -- the weekend before Halloween. Go check it out. The vendors will be there with demonstrations and show specials. Free seminars. Put it on your calendar. Herweck's is located downtown at 300 Broadway, call them at 227-1349.

SANDEE'S

When you're in Seguin, be sure to stop in and say "hi" to Frank and April Rippel and tell them "thanks" for posting Flourishes on the web. Frank is our webmaster and if you have Internet access, you should check out the 'net version, view it at http://www.axs4u.net/home/inksmith/sacg.htm and see the information in a different format ... or when you misplace your mailed copy. Member's e-mail addresses are available here, also. Frank is Guild member Francene Smith's son-in-law. He does a great job on Flourishes for us.

Francene is the technical advisor/calligrapher for Sandee's, located at 4037 Stockdale Hwy. A vendor at our Calligraphy Exchange, they carry an assortment of calligraphy items, hand-sewn wearable/usable art, and handmade gift items.

***Reminder***

The deadline for November Flourishes is Thursday, October 7 -- the night of the October meeting. If your copy of Flourishes arrives late, damaged or not at all -- please call Mavis Caudill, she has extras until the next meeting, then they go to Jill Adams, Membership Chairperson.

Or, as stated above under Sandee's, if you have misplaced your mailed copy, look at the latest Flourishes on the web.

Make 'N Take Round Robin

October Birthdays