Take joy

I hope you will join me in celebration as I share this image on the one-year anniversary of the day I began seriously addressing my health issues. One year ago today, exhausted and in pain, I sat crying in my nurse practitioner’s office and said, “I want my life back.” Today, two spine surgeries later, I am happy to say that I am well on my way. Thanks to all whose good wishes and good deeds have helped in my recovery. 

May we take joy from the world we live in and share our gifts to build a more compassionate one.

Here is the text which Take joy! is taken from. It is most commonly attributed to a sixteenth century monk named Fra Giovanni Giaconda in a letter to his friend, the Countess Allagia Aldobrandeschi, on Christmas Eve, 1513. It was in fact written by Ernest Temple Hargrove in the earlier part of the twentieth century. 

There is nothing I can give you which you have not. But there is much, that while I cannot give, you can take. No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in it today. Take heaven! No peace lies in the future which is not hidden in this present instant. Take peace! The gloom of the world is but a shadow. Behind it, yet within our reach, is joy. Take joy! 

In Memory of Paul Farmer

 In Memory of Dr. Paul Farmer as shared by Dr. Sriram Shamasunder in a beautiful post on npr. I find writing out poetry to be a challenge. Presenting the words with the poet's line breaks often makes for a less interesting composition. In this case I ignored them. I think I've made it harder to read. I see that as a good thing. More time to slow down and savor the words.

Abigail May Alcott on International Women's Day

 

Abigail May Alcott often said these words to her daughter Louisa who let the world know she was alive through her writing, especially the beloved Little Women. From the book My Heart is Boundless: Writings of Abigail May Alcott, Louisa's Mother edited by Eve LaPlante who is a cousin of Louisa May Alcott and a great-niece of Abigail May Alcott. 

You can download a PDF to print and share here.

In Memory of Lawrence Ferlinghetti

 I wrote these closing lines from Lawrence Ferlinghetti's poem "I Am Waiting" which was in the book A Coney Island of the Mind which I first read in high school. Ferlinghetti, founder of City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco, died on February 22, 2021 at 101 years of age.

I did the lettering with Calligraphica Crystals and a Silverado brush on pineapple leaf paper of unknown origin from my paper drawer.

A Quote for Kamala

 "And so, lifting as we climb, onward and upward we go, struggling and striving, and hoping the buds and blossoms of our desires will burst into glorious fruition ere long." From "The Progress of Colored Women," an address given by Mary Church Terrell in 1898 to the National Association of Colored Women on its fiftieth anniversary. 

I am in awe of Mary Church Terrell. She was brilliant and determined and worked for women's rights and social justice throughout her long (1863–1954) life.  Biography: Unceasing Militant: The Life of Mary Church Terrell by Alison M. Parker. 

Lettering done with Hiro/Leonardt #40 nib (Blue Pumpkin) and Calligraphica Crystals from John Neal, Bookseller on inkjet paper printed purple to match Kamala Harris' inauguration coat.

Heroism

 

I lettered this quote for a friend's funeral but feel it speaks to the moment we are in. The lettering was done in black on white with a Speedball C-5 nib and inverted to white on black in Photoshop.

Rilke on Solitude

A quote from Rainer Maria Rilke's Letters to a Young Poet. I was inspired to write it out in calligraphy after seeing it in a Facebook post by Robyn Gordon. You can download a pdf here.




Toni Morrison on Art

I've shared this before on the blog but this seems a good time for these words from Toni Morrison's The Source of Self-Regard. 

You can download a pdf to print and share here.

To Thine Own Self Be True

A new piece from the Words From Susan collection of calligraphy to share. 

Click here to download the pdf.

Advent Calendar of Cards Day 22 (2016)

And another card inspired by the news of the day. The lettering was screened over an image of flames in photoshop. The quote is by Susan Cooper from the fifth book of her The Dark Is Rising series (wonderful children's books that I encourage you to read if you have not). Susan Cooper's poem "The Shortest Day" has been a mainstay of the Christmas Revels and an annual tradition in our house. It is now a beautiful children's book illustrated by Carson Ellis.

The Shortest Day
by Susan Cooper ©2014

So the shortest day came
And the year died
And everywhere down the centuries
of the snow white world
Came people
Singing
Dancing
To drive the dark away.
They lighted candles in the winter trees
They hung their home with evergreens
The burned beseeching fires all night long
To keep the year alive.
And when the new day sunshine blazed awake
They shouted
Reveling.
Through all across the ages
You can hear them echoing behind us.
Listen.
All the long echoes sing the same delight.
This shortest day,
as promise wakens in the sleeping land,
They carol, feast, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And so do we, here, now,
this year and every year,
Welcome Yule.

Advent Calendar of Cards Day 21 (2015)

I don't remember exactly what was happening in the news at the time but I was sufficiently discouraged with the state of the world to be unable to make a card with an uplifting message for the season. I felt this quote from Einstein gave much needed guidelines for being better humans. I used the combination of upper and lower case letters developed in the previous year's card.The lettering was done in black and white, scanned into the computer, and laid over a scan of paper in Photoshop.You can read my blog post about designing the card here.

Advent Calendar of Cards Day 20 (2014)

I write a bit about this card in my book as it marked a turning point—my return to a deeper involvement with calligraphic work after a workshop with Mike Gold sponsored by Masscribes. I often mix capitals and lower case letters in my calligraphy now and it traces back to this card. Here's an excerpt from the book:

The workshop gave me confidence in the work I was already doing and led me to new explorations. Shortly after Mike’s workshop, I made a solstice card using lines from St. Julian of Norwich, “All shall be well and all shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well.” I first wrote it in standard upper-and-lower case. When I realized that the many double ‘l’ combinations were keeping the eye from moving around the page, I combined upper and lower cases throughout the body of the text. I liked the way the mixture looked and continue to use it frequently.

You can read a blog post from about the process of designing the card here. You can find information about the book here.

Advent Calendar of Cards Day 2 (1980)

I have used parts of what I thought was a letter that Fra Giovanni Giocondo wrote to his friend, Countess Allagia Aldobrandeschi on Christmas Eve, 1513 in cards and little books over the years. I first became aware of it at the Christmas Revels which we attended for many years. A reading of it by Robert J. Lurtsema, host of Morning Pro Musica on WGBH radio from 1971–2000, was on their first recording. After a comment on facebook from Cari Ferarro and some further research, I now know that it was written by Ernest Temple Hargrove.

Here's some information from inspirationpeak:

The name of a certain "16th century monk" is familiar now to millions of people but, he never lived; he was created by an English barrister, Ernest Temple Hargrove. With the arrival of Christmas season each year, the monk, Fra Giovanni, becomes better known, and his creator drifts farther into obscurity. This is the way Mr. Hargrove wanted it. Hargrove was born into a distinguished English family, came to the United States as a young man and spent many years in religious endeavors, particularly in the field of writing.

Before his death in 1939 Hargrove composed a Christmas greeting to a friend, writing in literary style that gave a medieval  flavor to his message. The greeting took the form of a letter from a monk to an Italian countess. According to a close friend, G.M.W. Kobbe of New York, Hargrove secured no copyright, feeling that if his greeting carried a real message there should be no impediment to its circulation. With the passage of years, the letter is now thought of as the perfect Christmas card by a great host of appreciative readers, many of whom believe Fra Giovanni was a real person.

I printed it on light green stationery (came with matching envelopes) at my favorite local copy shop in Lowell. I was just beginning to expand my collection of writing tools and was in love with the scroll pen.

Words from Susan

I have added a new feature on my website: Words from Susan. It grew out of my love for writing out quotes and my feeling of helplessness at the state of the world. I do believe in the power of words—to inspire, to comfort, and to heal. You can view the quotes and download them as printable pdfs. Feel free to share widely, with credit, but no commercial use, please. The most recent quote (pdf here) is from Toni Morrison, in honor of her work and her life. To find out when new quotes are posted, subscribe to the blog and/or follow me on facebook or instagram.

Earth Day Quote

From her acceptance speech upon receiving the John Burroughs Award in April 1952. Collected in Lost Works: The Discovered Writing of Rachel Carson, edited by Linda Lear, 1999.

New Year 2019

May we look to the new with generosity of spirit and open hearts. Best wishes for 2019.

Lettering was done at Clare Gallery in Hartford, CT in January of 2017 with brush and liquid acrylic.

Forty Years #38: The Power of Words

In 2015 I contacted the Clare Gallery at the Franciscan Center for Urban Ministry in Hartford, CT about an exhibition of the Spirit Books. They were interested but the gallery could only accommodate 2-dimensional work. Through a series of email conversations, we arrived at the decision that I would create large scale calligraphy banners at the gallery. I liked the idea of exhibiting calligraphy and inspirational quotes but I didn’t want to do framed work. I didn’t want the expense and I didn’t want the formality. I wanted to do something that was more immediate which led me to suggest that I would do the lettering live in the gallery.

I called the exhibit The Power of Words and chose short quotes that I felt would give comfort and courage. I thought of lines that one might want to have drift through one’s mind while online at the grocery store. I experimented with sumi ink but found it dripped and used Golden Liquid Acrylic with flow medium added and a 1 1/4 inch Silver Black Velvet brush. I liked that the softness of the brush’s edges gave letters that were not too crisp. The banners were four feet wide by six and a half feet long. I liked the way the large size changed the viewer's relationship with the words.

  The gallery presentation in January 2017 was a performance of sorts and I prepared by repeatedly writing the quotes full size on newsprint. In the studio, everything was set up to duplicate the experience in the gallery except the quality of the paper. I wrote each of the ten quotes about eight times. I felt that the design of the lettering needed to be both bold and airy. I don’t think I would have arrived at the style I used without Mike Gold’s workshop.

The lettering in the gallery went well. I only left out one letter (in the Kerouac quote at the top of the post) and I noticed it right away. The free form layout allowed me tuck it in before I moved on to the next line.

The banners were exhibited this fall at the Monastery Gallery in West Hartford, CT along with the Spirit Books. I lettered two more much narrower banners, again before an audience. I find that I enjoy the experience but also feel great relief when it is over.

Here is a pdf I made with images of the banners and information about the quotes. I did intentionally choose to have an equal distribution of women and men. I also wrote an article about the process for Bound & Lettered Volume 14, Number 3.

Hope Quote for Action

This is part of something John Berger, author of Ways of Seeing, wrote about Hope In The Dark by Rebecca Solnit. I used a folded pen I made last year in Carol DuBosch's class for Masscribes.

Download the quote to print and share.

In Memory of John McCain

This quote was part of Barack Obama's eulogy for Senator John McCain yesterday. A moving speech with an important message for us all.

For a printable version, click here.

Quote for Deirdre

For Deirdre McCullough Grunwald who made, and will always make, us alone alone

Celebration of Life today (1.13.18) at Brush Gallery, 256 Market St, Lowell, MA, 2–4 PM

You can download a pdf of the quote here.