Calligraphy Collage Moments that take our breath away

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

This piece was hand lettered with a rose colored gouache, and many of my hand painted papers were selected for the design. The words are left to your own interpretation. (Click on an image for a larger view.) This piece was sold through the local art center gift shop, but I am currently taking commissions for pieces similar to this. Quote, size of piece, and color scheme are your choice; design is up to me! Please send an email to request details.

Custom Calligraphy: Commission for a Boat

This was a commission for a broadside to fit on the landscape of a boat. It's a quote by Arthur Ransome, and it was lettered in sumi waterproof ink on 140 lb. watercolor paper, with gold accents. My client lives on her boat, and the words are quite fitting for a person who enjoys life on the water, so I gave up straight lines and let the words move in waves across the paper. (Click on the image for a larger view.)

Hand Lettered Headings for Destination Frederick MD tourism publication

During a graphic design internship a few years ago, I was commissioned to hand letter all of the headings for a local tourism publication. The calligraphy was done in black ink on Diploma Parchment, and then scanned into Adobe Photoshop for color and size adjustments. "O' Say You Can See" was displayed on the front cover, with various other headlines throughout the magazine. (Click on the image for a larger view.)

Framed Calligraphy: A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.

This is one of my favorite quotes:
"A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."
-Lao Tzu
This print was originally lettered in white, on a brick red paste paper background. It's matted in a double cut 6" x 12" black rag mat, and enclosed in a black metal frame. I did a series of these last year, with three separate quotes, but this first one was my favorite. (Click on the image for a larger view.)

Small works by Emerson, Seneca, and Sivananda

In preparation for an art show, I created these miniature tabletop pieces, with easel backs. They were sold as nice little gifts that don't require a frame. I used various color schemes, and some of the wrapped backgrounds were actually prints of my own hand marbled papers. Others are miscellaneous papers from my extensive stash. Some of the quotes I used for these pieces were:

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us" - Emerson

"One of the most beautiful qualities of friendship is to understand and to be understood" - Seneca

"Put your heart, mind, intellect and soul into even your smallest acts. This is the secret of success" - Sivananda

(Click on the image for a larger view.)

Calligraphic Note Cards

This is a collection of blank note cards, each designed with one of eight hand lettered motivational quotes. The collage work is made up of various decorated or hand made papers, and is wrapped with metallic threads, so that no two cards are exactly alike. The calligraphy is a basic formal italic. They are printed on white laid card stock and measure 5 1/4" x 8", including size A8 envelope. (Click on the image for a larger view.)

Original Matted Calligraphy Collage

These three images are samples of my original matted collage pieces. Each collage is individually hand lettered in gold gouache (opaque watercolor) on a cream colored text wove fine art paper, with collage work in various color schemes, consisting of decorated or handmade papers, beads, charms, wire, or fibers. They are then matted with ivory or black rag (archival) 8x10 mats. (Click on an image for a larger view.) Custom pieces are available. Quote suggestions are always welcome!

Welcome to my studio!

Please come in and stay awhile. Whether your interest is in taking a peek at my latest creative endeavors, or simply learning more about calligraphy, design, and the related arts, you are more than welcome to return as often as you like, and comment or ask questions whenever you wish. Calligraphy is a lifelong pursuit, and lettering artists worldwide take pride in sharing our work, our experience, and our ideas.Thanks for stopping by!