Illumination Inspired by the Sforza Book of Hours

A few weeks after attending my first SCA event (A&S Championships!), I found myself (along with everyone else) home indefinitely. A few more weeks (well, months) later I finally had my first practice scroll completed!

I had painted and created art using a variety of media in the past, though I'd most enjoyed highly textured oil painting. Still, making award scrolls for the Kingdom seemed a good way to practice my art, explore a variety of historical styles, and contribute to the East Kingdom. But before the Kingdom assigns me scrolls, I need to show examples of my work. So I embarked on my first ever calligraphy and illumination project: a scroll inspired by the Sforza Book of Hours. http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?index=2&ref=Add_MS_34294

I began by looking through the manuscript and generating a plan for my scroll layout. As I was planning a symmetrical border, I designed only one side. I later used my light box to trace the design onto my hot-press watercolor paper. The design here contains a few images evoked by the poem used in the text: a spoon, a shell, coffee (plants here), and skulls (to evoke the ever-present themes of death and wasting away). The spoon and coffee plant were completely self drafted, while the other elements (skulls, pearls, flourishes, and vases) were based on images I found within the Book of Hours.

Next came the calligraphy. The text is a stanza from one of my sister's favorite poems, The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock. This is admittedly my weakest portion of this work, as my experience with calligraphy is limited. I also struggled with my materials, a cartridge pen that laid down a thin amount of ink. In future projects I'm planning to use the dip pen I ordered and received, which has proven much more effective in laying down an even, dark line. I left spaces in the calligraphy for the illuminated letters. The calligraphy itself was based on carolingian miniscule, based (a bit shamefully) on the fact that it looked like an easier script to begin with.

The first bits of paint to go down were the ones within the lettering. A few simpler letters, and then the illuminated capital itself.

Next I added color to the border. I added blocks of background color first, then added in shadowing. I used gouache as my paint, though much more opaque than in my previous portraiture experience. Look through the slideshow to watch the evolution of the scroll!

I particularly struggled with the pearls. A few friends recommended I watch a video tutorial by Mistress Camille des Jardins, and it completely blew me away. The technique became so much clearer, and I went and fixed up my pearls to improve them. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwdAzeU58iU&t=1545s

I'm really proud of the end result! I learned so much during this process. There are certainly things I would change next time, but for a first-ever scroll, I think I've done quite well. Time to ship this darling off to my sister in Alaska!