Illuminating the Past

A workshop to create an illuminated letter "Laubwerk" or foliage style.

Saturday 21 June, 9:00-13:00

The word ‘manuscript’ comes from the Latin words ‘manus’ (hand) and ‘scriptus’ (writing) to literally mean ‘written by hand.’ The term ‘illuminated manuscript,’ comes from the Latin ‘illuminare’ (to light up) and refers to the rich decoration of these books that were often embellished with gold and silver leaf and paint on large ornate initial letters at the start of chapters, some of the text, border designs and illustrations. The pages of the books were made from animal skin, commonly calf, sheep or goat. 

‘Laubwerk’ or Foliage style

In this four-hour workshop we are going to create a ‘Laubwerk’ letter. This terminology comes from the German word meaning foliage and the style was especially popular in Germany during the fifteenth century. In around 1450 a type of manual known as ‘The Gottingen Model Book’ was made by an unknown artist or artists. It describes how to draw leaves, initials and patterned backgrounds in different colour compositions. The twisting and turning ornate leaves were also incorporated into Italian illuminated manuscripts by Renaissance artists such as Fra Angelico, Zanobi Strozzi and Lorenzo Monaco, but often as flourishes outside of the letters rather than contained within their form.

This workshop will provide you with all of the necessary materials to complete a finished letter to take home. We will be transferring the letter design onto parchment*, flat gilding it with silver leaf and painting it using seven different colours pre-prepared in small shells as was customary in the middle ages and renaissance. We will also look at how the colours were made.

*If a participant is vegan and particularly uncomfortable with that choice normal paper can be supplied.

Each student will be issued with a kit (which they can take home) containing the following:

• A small white cardboard box,
• 7 small shells of colour; malachite green, sap (buckthorn) green, indigo blue,Italian gold earth, synthetic substitute for lead yellow, vine black, silver powder.
• A piece of silver leaf
• A miniature bottle containing black pigment and mission (glue) for gilding
• A miniature bottle of permanent brown ink
• 2 double headed cotton swabs
• A plastic dropper pipette
• A piece of animal parchment
• A booklet of step by step instructions 
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All other equipment will be lent to the participants of the course. 

No previous experience needed

Registration fee: €90 per head, materials included

Register now!