“Valentine’s Day is all about the sharing of love between people. And with almost any gift given, there is a note, written and signed by hand. There is a reason for this. A handwritten note is the most intimate of gifts, one that can only be given by you - and no one else,” says Bernard Maisner, internationally renowned calligrapher, stationer and contemporary artist. For this special occasion we are honored to have Bernard share with us his thoughts on the subject of handwriting vs. electronic communication - and how does this affect our expressions of love today?
Due to prevalence of email and texting do you think our communication has lost personality?
“Personality comes through the meaning of the words -- not how the words were put down. However, that said, seeing a hand written missive adds a great deal of emotional and aesthetic value to a communication. Writing is imbued with feeling, character, sensitivity, and most of all, variation. Variation is the spice of life. Variation is movement. And movement is the definition of life. Handwriting is a personal act, a moment of commitment to reveal a bit of one's self, to give a bit of one's self. It is an act of sharing. If nothing more than a simple signature on a printed message, and writing speaks of individuality and authenticity, something unique to each of us is revealed. We are now submerged in an era of information however, not emotion and spirituality. Fonts do well in our age, writing is less valued. A segment of the population still reveres hand writing. They love the artistry and beauty of it. One might compare it to the beauty of a live orchestral concert versus a recording of the same. A live performance involves a plethora of senses, not just hearing.
Handwriting engages many more responses from the reader than a font can. Unfortunately, handwriting is not taught or respected or practiced very much anymore. It is becoming less and less aesthetic, and more and more ugly. It is often impossible to read. Letters from 100 years ago are astonishing in their beauty. Old documents and letters are legible and beautiful. People took pride in their writing. Some people today do revere writing and lettering -- they love fine stationery papers and fountain pens. It may be a diminishing group, but it is a passionate one.
One forms impressions of a person – and one makes impressions - based on their handwriting. Mood, enthusiasm, urgency, and passion -- all come through to the reader. I have studied graphoanalysis and do believe personality characteristics are accurately revealed through writing.
Personality in communication has more to do with what is said than how it is said. When we read a poem or a novel, it is usually set in typeface. A good book will transport us and bring us to tears. That said, certain arenas of communication, such as traditional letter writing from the not too distant past, do lose an aspect of personality that cannot be captured in e-mail. Most of us have saved "old letters," and the look, feel and beauty of an envelope and hand written letter is simply a wonderful thing. The message written may be boring, exciting or simply informational, but separately, simply seeing marks made by the human hand in the form of lettering and writing is wondrous unto itself.
I think most of us would agree that much of modern day culture has traded in the benefits of convenience and efficiency for a loss of individuality and personality in a good deal of what we do. Whether it be fast food, internet shopping, or drive-thru banking, what we gain in time and convenience, we often lose in one-on-one contact with other people.”
Do you think that handwriting will eventually be lost or replaced completely by electronic type?
“I don't think that handwriting will be completely eliminated due to digital type. One could argue actually, that's typing already is quite old-fashioned. Truth be told, at this very moment, I am speaking into a microphone in which a program translates my verbalized words into type on my computer. As I do so much calligraphy and lettering and painting, my hands do have a tendency to become tired. I find typing a painful activity. At times, nothing is better than being able to write down one's thoughts with a pen or pencil, to record immediately a fleeting idea or thought passing through one's brain. The mind, hand and brain make a fabulous combination for human beings.
Not everyone in the world has a computer and smartphone. Billions of people write with a pen or pencil all the time. Also, there is a difference between handwriting for everyday use, and handwriting as art. Handwriting is definitely diminishing as a daily skill, in fact it is hardly even taught in schools. Look at how people hold their pens and pencils these days! Bizarre positions and strange configurations of fingers wrapped around writing implements will be witnessed. People used to practice writing, as one practices piano and mathematic multiplication tables. Now we have calculators to do our addition and multiplication problems, and we don't consider math to be endangered, it's just a different way of getting the desired results. If typing, recording, texting, get your thoughts out quickly and clearly, it is a good thing. Writing is another way of putting down one's thoughts, perhaps a slower way, but sometimes slow is best."
What sparked your interest in calligraphy?
I began doing lettering while still in high school. I used to write out the names of the various rock and roll bands I was in on the drum heads. At one point a school group asked me to make a certificate of some sort. I researched black letter, also known as Gothic writing, and made the certificate for them. My father happened to see what I had made, thought it was wonderful, came home the next day with pens and inks and books and paper and encouraged me to practice calligraphy every day. I become obsessed with calligraphy and lettering. Also as a painter, I fell in love with medieval and renaissance of illuminated manuscripts, where lettering and art aremerged.”
Do you listen to music while you ‘write’?
“Music is a great partner for calligraphy and other thoughtful, focused activities. Not all the writing that I do is flowing and beautiful however. Much of it is done for advertising campaigns, book covers, record albums, etc, and can be downright wild and crazy. Depending on what mood I'm trying to put myself in, in order to get the lettering to reflect the mood, I will play different types of music. So, not surprisingly, the music will range from rock and roll to classical, and much in between. Lately, I have been obsessed with the Bach Violin Partitas, and the Shostakovich Violin Concerto #1. Other times, PJ Harvey will be wailing away in my studio. I love music by Philip Glass and Stephen Reich also. I used to listen to a lot of Indian sitar music. I seem to listen to a lot of music that puts me into a sort of trance state.”
Do you own or use an iPhone or Blackberry? What do you think about ‘writing’ or communicating with your thumbs? (i.e. texting)
“I love my iPhone, and had a Blackberry before it. Using it for e-mails, communicating and texting is a wondrous and invaluable magic. There are several programs on the iPhone that allow me to slide from one letter to another instead of typing letter by letter, and another at that literally lets you write letters with your finger as though it were a magic marker. I find the history of writing fabulously interesting. Whenever I need to thoughtfully compose a letter or document, I always do it the old-fashioned way, with pen or pencil on paper, editing on the computer. I love studying the history of writing throughout the centuries. I have a collection of written letters and documents starting from the 1300’s, through the Renaissance, the Victorian era, to early American letters and documents. Whether they are love letters, postcards, Royal decrees, grocery lists, deeds to property, or bookkeeping journals for a hardware store, seeing the writing made by a skilled scribe or student of penmanship is a beautiful thing. I find the new technological age, with all its translations and variations of how we communicate fascinating, and am so happy to be part of it.”
What kind of pen and ink do you use? Do you need a specific type of paper?
“I have literally thousands of types of dip pen nibs, many luscious new and vintage fountain pens, and writing implements of all sorts. I write with brushes, sticks, toothbrushes, feather quills, markers and anything else that will move ink from my hand to a page. Accordingly, different types of paper are suitable for different types of writing, and I have a huge collection of fine papers, not to mention my own line of fine stationery products to choose from. For my classical calligraphy I tend to mix my own ink colors.”
What is the largest your work as been reproduced?
“My work has been reproduced on billboards, as murals 15 feet tall in department stores, and printed on 6 foot long beautiful wool scarves. (Maisner and Echo Design teamed up to create a beautiful scarf featuring "Peace, Love and Understanding" in Maisner's elegant lovely calligraphy.) I have also done a good deal of writing for the film industry. Sometimes in a feature film there will be a close-up of the calligraphy, either as a prop, or as live writing happening as part of the film. One of the things I find exhilarating, is an extreme close-up of a pen nib with wet fluid ink flowing onto a page, filling up the entire silver screen. In the movie Sleepy Hollow, for instance, two men are signing a will at the very beginning of the movie. One is a nobleman, and one is a farmer. Each signature was developed to represent the character, and I was dressed up in appropriate costumes for each character. The signatures, written live-on-camera, fill the entire screen. Later in the film, Johnny Depp is seen writing down notes to help figure out the mystery he is trying to solve. His hand was actually my hand, writing with a modified syringe, filled with a thinned black acrylic paint as an ink, in extreme close-up. The writing looks monumental.”
What is the most commonly requested word or words or sentiment written in calligraphy?
“The most commonly requested sentiment I am asked to pen, is always about love.”
Made famous by the movie of the same name, Ludwig Van Beethoven actually did write a letter to his “Immortal Beloved” (and the exact person, to this day, is still unidentified.) In the official translation, the words occupy the same spacing and size as his original handwriting – which was very large and in pencil, making this letter 10 pages long. Because of this we get even more of a feel for who this man was and the pain he felt. Imagine him seated at his piano, powder from his wig burning his eyes and mixing with the tears on his face. His satin ruffled jacket sleeve whispers across the paper as his hand draws out the lines of each letter. “What longing with tears for you, My Immortal Beloved.” The words are like his music. You can hear his heart breaking, even in Times New Roman 12.
If you’re in New York be sure to stop by Bergdorf Goodman tomorrow, Saturday Feb. 13th between 2pm and 4pm. Bernard will be available to personalize your purchase. What an amazing touch to a beautiful day! Thank you, Bernard, for this wonderful reminder to appreciate the power and beauty of handwriting.
