Magnani Paper Swatches

 I was asked to do some Magnani paper trials for the Calligraphy Society of Victoria.

These are my results.

S U M M A R Y

The papers are beautiful to touch and work with. Some were more responsive to others given the media and the tools used. I included erasing lines as this is so common in our work and I also included embossing. The papers I like the most for the more painterly techniques that I use are almost all of them as you can see glimmers of painterly swatches with and without gesso. They work exceptionally well even the lighter weights, which took on a slight cockling.

The best of the Magnani in my opinion for formal pen, ink, gouache and gilding work would be the Revere Platinum (standard white RPT145WH) 100% cotton 145gsm & the Velata Avorio (VEL 120) wove, alpha, 120gsm & the Vergella Arvorio (VERG115) laid, alpha 115gsm.

Whilst these Magnani papers are all good for specific purposes, the papers I would like best for my personal use where I use a lot of wet media in the grounds are the two Corona, the Revere Platinum 300gsm, the two Acquerello hot and cold press and strangely enough I love the Annigoni but I would limit the wet media I place on this paper.

Some of these papers are excellent for printmaking and embossing. Perhaps the Pescia would fall into this category.

For pointed pen work I trialed both upright and angled and found most of the papers lacking for very fine pen work. From the swatches and what little I did with the pointed pen I found most papers worked in varying degrees of success but, the most responsive were the Revere Platinum 145gsm, the Velata Avorio 120gsm, the Vergata Avorio 90gsm and the Vergella Avorio 115gsm.

Where to purchase these beautiful Magnani Papers, click here!

N O T E

Noodlers ink. I quite like the Noodlers ink particularly for washes and stronger grounds. As you can see it has behaved very badly when used with a Brause 4mm and worked thickly onto the paper. I suggest therefore, this ink is never used in a book where the pages agitate each other as you can see it offsets at the lighted touch. And to add insult it blurs when sprayed for protection.  I primarily use Noodlers ink in my Lamy Safari sketching pens without a problem with smudging and I mix it with media such as gesso, matte mediums, molding pastes and crackling pastes for works on canvas, paper and mdf board. Thinner washes do no behave this way with the Noodlers ink but lesson learnt, proceed with care.

The Briem Report 2012

Great certificate, thanks Briem!!!! 

The Briem Report is available for anyone who is interested in an absolutely fabulous calligraphy hard copy book penned by the hands of many of the world's most wonderful and generous calligraphers. All kudos goes to Gunnlaugur SE Briem ... thank you Briem. Many of my friends and colleagues are featured therein.  My work though featured in the online version of the first edition will be featured in the hard copy of the second edition to be published next year.

To download the Briem Report 2012 go to:  http://66.147.242.192/~operinan/8/2/211.html

Clan MacLaren

The MacLaren Chieftain Coat-of-Arms

This Coat-of-Arms is hand painted in gouache and watercolours along with pen and ink.

Musettes

 

Musettes - the piccolo oboe

My hand-painted illumination loosely based on the medieval manuscript

the Cantigas de Santa Maria (Canticles of the Holy Mary)

created between 1221 - 1284

This sample was a demonstration for the medieval illumination workshop this weekend just past.

When something inspires ...

A walk into the Divine Trees forest Qilan (Cilan), Yilan County, Taiwan

revealed an inner peace I had never felt before.

This photo is as I took it - in colour.

 David and I went on this trek as we were staying at the hostel at Mingchi (clear lake) higher up the mountainside.  After driving up the mountain that morning we were picked up by a small van and driven back down the mountain, turned inward then drove a different track back up and into the forest proper. This was where we met our teacher and trekked through the forest for about two hours. Our teacher was distraught that we could not speak Mandarin and he no English ... we got on very well though and managed to allay his fears that it would all come to naught.

 

Stairways in and out of the forest.

Rest area.

David and I were with this couple and our teacher. Even though we could not understand mandarin we certainly got a feel for the love our teacher had for the forest and the Divine Trees. The lass here knew a spattering of English words but we got by with lots of "okay, okay" and "beautiful".

I felt very safe and at peace with myself in this place.

I am grateful for the experience as I have taken this feeling away with me

all the way to another island in the antipodes.

At each Divine Tree there was an information board.

Each tree is named after a prominent figure from Chinese history.

In this case an ancient Chinese writer Szuma Chien.

Divine Tree No. 5 is 2158 years old.

I cannot explain the feelings we both had walking with trees this old.

Underneath this umbrella which stands about a foot high is this:

What is it? I don't know.

A species of arum lilies, Penny says ... with another name "Jack in the Pulpit" ... I love it!

Medieval illumination workshop

Here are three images from the one-day medieval illumination workshop on the weekend at Artbeat of Tasmania. Even though these are incomplete I was thrilled the participants got as far as they did in just the one day considering this is a workshop that should be much much longer. This first one is mine ... which I hope to finish tomorrow.

 Musette (Oboe)

 This is the sample I was working on

as the participants moved through the stages in their medieval illuminations.

 Participant Leanne

working on the chameleon.

Participant Sandy working on the magpie.

Participant Ali working on the Harz birds.

Beautiful things ... ink-sticks are

David, Jun-Tien Chen & me at Da-You the ink-stick making house in the Sanchong District of New Taipei City.

 This wooden ink-stick mould is one hundred years old. The wet ink lays in the mould until slightly hard then it is turned out to dry, turned every day until fully dry.

 

The two sides of the same stick.

Ink-sticks drying.

Hanging ink-sticks drying.

Some of the stick I purchased.

This stick bears the hand print of the maker Chen, Jai-De

The story:

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While on holiday in Taiwan last week I visited the ink-stick house where a father and son team work to keep the ink-stick making business alive.  Jun-Tien Chen the son, seen here with David and me operates the factory outlet while his father Jia-De Chen strives to keep up with the demand of their main clients on mainland China.

Taiwan is an island off the south east coast of China proper, an hour and a half by plane from Hong Kong.  The island is half the size of Tasmania and holds a population equal to Australia, 24,000,000.

I was very fortunate to have made contact with Miss Ongong Pan prior to my trip and as our hostess Ongong was very generous, kind and giving.  I asked her if she knew of any ink-making places and so she had arranged with Jun-Tien for us to meet.  We had a great day together going to the ink house, the Japanese “old house” and the art supply shops making good use of the MRT to get around.  We have now forged a solid friendship. 

The ink-stick house is in the Sanchong District of New Taipei City. As we were weaving our way through narrow alley-ways hosting all manner of produce and fare (and people) I could smell the ink house Da-You well before we got there. It was that overpowering sensual aroma of ink and Chinese herb.  I wasn’t surprised when Ongong said we were nearly there as it was already in my nostrils … I soaked up the lovely smell … just as I do when I use my ink-sticks.

Two of the sticks held a particular interest to me. One, a short squat block cast from a wooden mould of over one hundred years old.  Here is the mould and the stick showing both sides.  The other was a round stick which bore the hand print of the ink-maker Jia-De, the father.  All sticks carry the maker’s name and are a rich black fine ink when ground, allowing for the finest of fine strokes.

Jun-Tien was delighted ... and I think a little amused, that I was so keen to know everything there was to know about his work.  I was like the proverbial child in a candy shop. I had decided to purchase some precious sticks from Jun-Tien so I bought five and an interestingly carved ink-stone. Jun-Tien then very generously gave me a few more for good measure.  One of which is still drying!

Da-You is the last of the traditional ink making houses in Taiwan … a sign of things to come perhaps.