Letter Arts Review. Volume 25 Number 2 The Annual Juried Issue

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2 Letter Arts Review Volume 25 Number 2 The Annual Juried Issue From the Editor : We had an incredible number of entries this year 170 artists from 26 countries sent in a total of 540 pieces. I was amazed at the quality and variety of work that arrived at my studio. The judging for the Annual Juried Issue took place in late October. We were fortunate to have Massimo Polello from Italy as one of our judges, and we had to plan our schedule around his travel. He was joined By Holly Cohen, a calligrapher and writer on calligraphy from New York. They worked hard through a grueling day of selection with good humor. Here are their reflections on the experience: Massimo Polello : A few years ago I tried to be selected for the Annual. I sent pictures of my work and I was not chosen. Zero. Big disappointment. A few months ago I was asked to select, as a juror, the works submitted to the Annual this year. What happened between the first and second event? After the great disappointment, I told myself that perhaps my work was not sufficiently mature and up to the standards of an international journal. Consequently, I worked very hard over the years, and the great disappointment turned into a major challenge. That warm October morning in New York, as I was arriving by subway to Christopher s house, I thought that being chosen as a judge certainly more than made up for the exclusion of the earlier year. More important, it makes me think that criticism can build up rather than destroy, spur rather than inhibit. Being on a panel of judges is not a not a nice task, I told myself at first. What features must I have to judge the work of colleagues and friends? So I tried to look at it from another perspective: first of all as an opportunity to see hundreds of jobs at the same time, research, choices, ways to interpret and use the letters, writing, or calligraphy. What is more, thanks to the critical maturity and experience I had acquired over the years, it would be an honor and an opportunity to choose one path over another to share with others. When Christopher showed Holly and me the huge stack of images to be selected, we were frightened by the sheer quantity and the risk of overdosing on images. We didn t know where to start and how to proceed. But we soon found a selection method that was effective and well organized that allowed us to work in a precise and intelligent manner, without neglecting the details of individual works. I had never done anything like this until then, so it was a first for me. I did not know what criteria to adopt to say no, yes, maybe. The first no decisions were really difficult to make. Choosing always involves subjective and personal views, regarding one s own taste and a way of seeing things. I think, on the contrary, that panelists should be as impersonal as possible and naturally should filter their decisions according to their own experience, but in the end they should interpret a general taste that is as open as possible. So I tried to open up my mind 360 degrees and cast off my closures toward some of my ways of seeing and interpreting the handwriting I was less attracted to. This was the hardest thing. In fact we are always influenced by our tastes and perspectives. Experimentation is the operative word, I said to myself. We also sought to reward the works that ventured into research and experimentation, even at the expense of the result. It seemed appropriate to reward those whose work showed character or revealed something of the personality of the author, that proved original in the sense that they had originated from inside the author him/herself. I have been teaching various kinds of groups around the world for many years, and I have noticed how many followers of other teachers there are among people who practice calligraphy. This is normal, I know. But what distinguishes one from another is the revelation and the need for independence from their mentors. Fortunately, Holly and I soon developed a good rapport. We agreed heartily at times, but also had moments of disagreement, balanced and resolvable. Suddenly and without realizing it, evening fell. We had spent many hours, the entire apartment had became an exhibition hall with hundreds of calligraphic works all over the walls, 1

3 Gaynor Goffe England Song to the Earth Three-dimensional assemblage Acrylic, sumi, and metal leaf on various supports with stones, twigs, and metal wire centimeters Gaynor Goffe is well-known for her calligraphy teaching over 30 years, including at the Roehampton Institute, London, and later at Reigate School of Art and Design, where she trained in the mid- 1970s, followed by three years as apprentice to Donald Jackson. She is a Fellow of the Society of Scribes & Illuminators (1978) and The Calligraphy & Lettering Arts Society and has taught throughout Europe, in the U.S and Japan. Her calligraphic interest lies in exploring texts relating to natural landscapes through line and color, incorporating stone, wood and paper. 27

4 Susie Leiper Scotland Noctambulism Gouache on card in a star book format centimeters Text from Robert Macfarlane s The Wild Places. Susie Leiper Scotland Mont Blanc Ink, gouache, Chinese indigo and palladium leaf on Chinese xuan paper in a Japanese sewn binding 8 10 centimeters Text: Percy Bysshe Shelley, Mont Blanc. Susie Leiper is a freelance calligrapher and painter with a passion for all things Chinese. Four years as a scribe on The Saint John s Bible has given her the freedom to pursue her aim of combining calligraphy, painting and poetry with the spontaneity of a Chinese artist. Much of her work mutates into books. Susie is a Fellow of the Society of Scribes and Illuminators and lives in Edinburgh, Scotland. 38

5 Hiroko Shimizu Japan Foundation Panel Sumi and gesso on wooden panel centimeters Author of text: Pablo Picasso Hiroko Shimizu (Hyogo, Japan, 1958) is a professional calligrapher and started teaching in She has a passion for words. Her work has been exhibited in Japan, the U.S. and Europe. Marina Soria Argentina Deconstruction Book Gouache and pencil on Arches paper centimeters Author of text: Martha Graham Marina Soria, Buenos Aires, Argentina: Degrees in Fine Arts and Graphic Design. She currently teaches calligraphy in her own studio and has taught at Buenos Aires University, (the most prestigious university in Argentina) the first seminars on experimental calligraphy to post-graduates in design. Her main interest is to mingle and blend diverse disciplines: art, design, sumi-e and calligraphy to challenge the limits of conceptual art and technique. 51