IAMPETH 2023 - Layout and Design for the Lettering Artist - Rick Paulus

Layout and Design for the Lettering artist – ALL SKILL LEVELS

The lettering artist is inescapably connected to the design world; it is incumbent upon us to place our beautifully-formed letters on a page in an appealing and effective manner. Where to even begin?! Enjoy a day of discussion, demonstration, and practical layout exercises with former White House chief calligrapher, Rick Paulus, as he unlocks the mysteries of design and shares timeless layout techniques sure to improve your work, no matter the project. Invitations, menus, certificates, signs, quotes and poems—all of them will benefit from this day of exploration. After a quick review of basic studio tools used in design and layout, we will begin our study by learning the basic concepts of how a page is read by the viewer, then we will dig deeper into what it is that we as designers can do to make the viewer’s journey across the page more interesting, more focused, and more effective. Having this knowledge in your toolbox with help reduce anxiety and allow you to approach projects with an elevated sense of confidence.

Class Supplies

• 8-1/2” X 11” grid paper (P22)
• 11” X 14” Canson XL Multi-media Pad (P2022)
• sharp pencil (recommend mechanical .05mm, HB) (PL21) (PL38)
• pencil sharpener if you are using a wood pencil (PL13)
• plastic eraser (E13) (E37)
• 12” roll of tracing paper 

Color tools of your choice for quick layout sketches such as:

• color pencils (PL28) (PL05) 
• calligraphy markers or standard color markers (M156) 
• 12” clear plastic ruler with grid (S871)
• black fine Sharpie (M183)
• black ultra-fine Sharpie (M184)
• Micron Pigma 1mm pen (or similar) (M17)