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| Ms. Thanh Tuyen putting her feelings into every Calligraphy words |
Attraction from Calligraphy words
Ever since she was a child, Ms. Thanh Tuyen has loved beautiful words in handwriting books and wedding invitations. She thought it was just a child’s love of new things. To her surprise, however, that love has still existed after so many years, since she chose to study architecture, then graduated and went to work for 6 years.
She shared: “In 2018, after seeing letters and pictures written in beautiful fonts online, curiosity and childhood memories led me to learn more about Calligraphy.”
As a type of art from Western countries, Calligraphy includes many different fonts and is used for many purposes, ranging from writing wedding invitations, handwritten letters, book covers to engraving on stone stele, etc.
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| The elegant handwriting of Calligraphy |
“Despite its diversity, for me, Copperplate and Gothic are the two closest font choices. The slender lines created by the pointed nib of the Copperplate fonts and the thickness from the horizontal nib when using the Gothic fonts both have their own distinct appeal and impression. Not only that, when combined together, these two fonts bring an interesting blend, both strong and explosive, but also loving and gentle for the eyes,” added Ms. Thanh Tuyen.
Along with techniques and rules, the content expressed on each page is also extremely important to produce a satisfactory Western Calligraphy product. Therefore, along with four years of honing her skills, Ms. Thanh Tuyen also focused on learning about statements, quotations and inspirational stories. She said: “I did not only gain more knowledge, but in return, the energy and attraction from those words also gave me more energy and motivation to continue pursuing this passion for Calligraphy.”
The echoes
The year 2021 marks a major turning point in the 8X girl’s journey. For the first time, Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Tuyen received an order for a handwritten birthday card. Also this year, with the desire to spread her passion for this fascinating kind of art, she organized a workshop to both share her journey of pursuing Calligraphy and guide those who would like to know how to create beautiful Calligraphy words.
Ms. Thanh Tuyen shared: “Despite following the rules, from the shape of the words to the distance between words, the techniques, and the way to use pens, paper, and fonts, a calligrapher still needs to come up with appropriate innovations and variations to increase the harmony and overall beauty of the Calligraphy product. Along with that, through each word, each winding line, the writer’s style and personality are also clearly revealed. Therefore, it can be said that no Calligraphy product is the same, even though it is written by the same person and in the same context.
In modern life, with the rapid development of digital technology, the art of Calligraphy is no longer as popular as it was in its heyday. But in return, with the uniqueness and sophistication in each word, most especially imbued with the writer’s personal identity and talent, Calligraphy is appreciated and sought after by many customers when they need to write handwritten letters, wedding invitations or logo design. Not only that, this kind of art also hones meticulousness, carefulness and the ability to perceive lines and shapes, thereby providing additional skills for those who are passionate about graphic design.
Ms. Giang, a customer who ordered a Calligraphy card from Ms. Thanh Tuyen, shared: “For me, a handwritten Calligraphy card is not only a beautiful, but also extremely wonderful and surprising gift for my friends. A friend of mine even excitedly commented that Ms. Tuyen’s handwriting is very graceful and elegant”.
Calligraphy has not been introduced to Vietnam for too long. Fortunately, with the development of Calligraphy in big cities, tools for producing this kind of art, ranging from paper, pen to ink, can be easily found and selected. And with her burning passion, Ms. Thanh Tuyen intends to launch more workshops on Calligraphy in hope that more people will know and contemplate the beauty of elegant handwritten words on white pages.