How To Get Started as an Illuminator

    In Trimaris every award scroll given out by our Most Royal Majesties is hand
    calligraphed and illuminated by one of our talented kingdom Scribes. With 100-400
    scrolls being awarded each reign, we are always looking for those who are
    interested in these arts to lend a hand. In this missive I will focus on how to get
    started as an Illuminator including information about supplies and even some basic
    designs. Supplies and further lessons can be obtained through the College of
    Scribes, but here is some information to show how easy it is to get started as an
    Illuminator and even to produce your very first scroll.

    Illumination:
    Illumination is the medieval art of book and page decoration to enhance the text of
    a manuscript often in the form of initials, borders and miniatures. Illumination
    includes the paint and gold leaf applied to pages.

    Supplies:
    Illumination supplies include paint, paper, brushes, pallets, a pencil, an art quality
    eraser and a water container.

    Obtaining Supplies:
    Some paper, paint and other supplies can be obtained through the Quartermaster of
    the Trimaris College of Scribes. Requests can be made in person at College of
    Scribes meetings (Coronations and Crown Lysts) or via email to the
    Quartermaster. Also, these supplies can be found at most art stores.

    Gouache paint:
    Gouache is a watercolor paint very similar to medieval illumination paints in that it
    includes a pigment and a binder. Watercolor gouache is reusable as the dry paint
    can be re-wet with water and used again. This helps your paint go a long way.
    Some often used brands of watercolor gouache: Reeves, Talon, Pebeo, Windsor-
    Newton. Some of these brands can be purchased for as little as $5 or $8 per set (8
    colors) or $3 to $5 for a tube of metallic paint.

    Pigments:
    Pigments are the elements of paint that give it color. In period many
    pigments were mineral or earth based and had to be painstakingly
    hand ground and prepared for use as paint. Modern pigments are
    often synthesized so that they no longer contain expensive and
    sometimes toxic minerals and compounds.

    Binders:
    Binders are the elements of paint that adhere it to the page. Common
    period binders include gum (especially gum Arabic: a type of resin
    produced from plant sap), egg yolk (used for egg tempera) or glair
    (another egg product not as common in modern times).

    Bristol Board:
    Bristol is a heavy weight paper that feels similar to a card stock. In period, animal
    skins were prepared to create Vellum or Parchment but these are quite costly in
    modern times. The surface of Bristol board can come in “smooth” or “vellum”
    which is slightly more toothed. This paper is heavy weight enough to hold up to a
    lot of paint and can take more abuse than typing paper. Also, Bristol board is
    archival grade paper that will last much longer. Some often used brands of Bristol
    Board: Pearl Store brand Bristol, Windsor-Newton, Strathmore. Bristol is sold in
    packs of 20 or more pages and can be purchased for as little at $8 per pad.

    Brushes:
    Brushes are really up to the artist preference. A few types to get started. A round
    brush with a fine point will always work well for detailing (ex: extra long liner size
    0 or 1). A small flat brush (size 0 or 1) will help with filling small areas and for
    edging along straight lines. Pick up a few inexpensive synthetic hair brushes ($1 to
    $5 each) to get started and purchase more expensive brushes along the way.
    Remember to clean your brushes well after every use and they will last a lifetime.

    Pallets:
    Pallets have small wells in which wet paint can sit without spilling and often
    provide a flat surface for mixing shades of color. In  period natural cup shapes like
    seashells worked as excellent paint wells. Modern plastic pallets can be obtained
    very inexpensively at any art supply store. Since we use a watercolor type paint,
    pallets with dry paint can be stored and used for multiple projects. Pallets can be
    purchased for as little as $.50 each.

    Erasers, Pencils and Water Cups:
    We all make mistakes so a decent art eraser (about $1 or less) is essential to
    learning illumination. For drawing you will need a package of pencils (the
    mechanical sort work very well). Plastic drinking cups can be used as water
    containers and then rinsed out or disposed.

Drawing Your Design

    Once your supplies have been collected it is time to begin drawing. Next we will
    cover some basic design elements for a "Bar and Vine" style border that is
    common in SCA illumination. This is a great type of design with which to begin
    illuminating.

    Layout:
    Layout is the most important step of design for your scroll. During this process
    you will determine your margins, the area in which you will draw and later paint,
    and the area which will be left for calligraphy.

    Margins:
    Mark off a one inch wide space on all four sides of your sheet of Bristol Board.
    This area will serve as the outside margin of your illumination and should be left
    blank. Measure in from each side one inch at three different points and make a
    small mark. Then use a straight edge to connect your marks and create a straight
    border. By leaving a margin, this allows for a clean space around your art and for
    recipients to frame your beautiful piece of illumination.

    Drawing area:
    Next we will mark off the drawing area. Measure in from
    your border 1.5 inches on the top, bottom, and left hand side
    of your page. This gives you a three sided area of 1.5 inches
    in which to place your bar and vine designs. On an 8x10 page
    this leaves a small area for calligraphy, so you may want to
    use an 11x14 sheet of paper for this design. Once you begin
    drawing, try not to cross into your outside margins or the
    calligraphy area. Also, as you continue to draw place a scrap
    page under your hand so you do not smear your pencil lines.

    (Figure 1- click to expand)

    Drawing, Dividing and Decorating Bars:
    The bar design provides an excellent margin for the
    calligrapher who will later work upon your scroll. Although a
    very simple shape, the bar design can be divided in half,
    broken in to sections, and decorated so that it becomes
    beautiful artwork in itself. The bar will be the base to anchor
    your vines. On the left side of your page, use a straight edge
    to create your bar.

        (Figure 2- click to expand)

    Drawing Vines:
    At the top and bottom of your bar lightly sketch smooth
    curving lines that will be the base of your vine with a pencil.
    Once the basic lines have been created, curls can be added to
    fill in the gaps. Tiny bits of vine can be added to the left of
    your bar to fill in that section of your page.



    (Figure 3- click to expand)

    Leaves, Step by Step:
    Leaf designs look very complex and daunting, especially
    when there are hundreds of them on a page. For this lesson
    we will use two leaf shapes and put them together step by
    step. Keep your leaf designs fairly small so you can fill the
    area with a great number of tiny leaves.

    (Figure 4- click to expand)

    Squashed Bugs:
    So-called “squashed-bugs” are a doodle shape that can be
    used to fill in blank spots of your vine work. They are meant
    to appear as a drop of gold upon the page with rays of light
    emanating to show the glow of the gold. The center of the
    squashed bug should be filled in gold and the rays can be
    done with in black with a fine brush, calligraphy pen, or art
    pen. They should be added last and used to fill gaps.
    (Figure 5- click to expand)

    Finished Section of Vine Work:
    A finished section of vine looks best when it reflects nature.
    Smooth curves are pleasing to the eye and a vine covered in
    hundreds of leaves looks more pleasing (and healthy) than
    one with one a few dozen leaves. Open spaces can easily be
    filled with squashed bugs.



    (Figure 6- click to expand)

Painting Your Design:

    Setting up:
    Lightly erase all unnecessary guide lines when your sketch is all finished. Get out
    your paints, brushes, paint pallets, and a container filled with clean water.

    Choose and mix your paint colors:
    For this type of design we will start with just 5 colors. For our example we will
    use red, blue, gold, black, and white. Squeeze a small amount of paint (less than
    dime sized) into the various wells of your pallet. With your brush add drops of
    clean water and mix each color until it is smooth and easy to brush on the paper.
    Try testing the consistency of the paint on a scrap page. The paint should dry a
    consistent opaque color and appear solid rather than allowing the paper to show
    through.

    Applying paint:
    Brush the paint on to each area with even, smooth strokes to create a solid block
    of color. Remember to breathe when you paint, instead of holding your breath on a
    difficult bit. Holding your breath will cause your hands to shake and your paint will
    appear less even.

    Leaves:
    Paint about half of the leaves blue and the other half in red. Scatter both colors
    around your vine work. Once the leaves are filled, you can go back and paint a thin
    black outline around each leaf (alternately try a thin calligraphy pen or PH neutral
    art pen). This will makes the color inside each leaf stand out.

    Bar:
    With your bar broken into sections alternate red, blue and gold inside the smaller
    blocks. Try to have blocks of similar colors not touch each other. When finished
    filling in the colors, go back and outline the sections and the outside of the bar with
    thin lines of black.

    Vines:
    Use thin “outline” type of lines to paint in the vines. These thin lines can be
    challenging so try it on a scrap page first. Paint that is fairly wet will draw out
    easier and create a less lumpy look. Extra long liner brushes work great for this as
    they hold plenty of paint (so you re-dip less often) and tend to have a nicely
    pointed tip.

    Squashed Bugs:
    The center of each squashed bug should be painted gold and thinly outlines in
    black. The surrounding “rays” should also be done in thin black lines.

    Whitework:
    Whitework refers to any of the small finish designs and
    highlights added last to your illumination. This can include a
    few tiny, thin lines of white on each leaf (suggesting the veins
    of a real leaf) or simple to complex geometric designs to
    decorate sections of your bar. This addition also helps to
    visually distract from areas where the paint is not a smooth,
    solid color. Areas painted in gold do not need whitework
    added.
    (Figure 7- click to expand)

Finishing Up

    Congratulations! You have drawn and illuminated an entire scroll by yourself. Once
    your piece is dry turn it over and write your name and the date in pencil at the
    bottom of the page. Completed illuminations can be turned in at Kingdom events
    during the College of Scribes meetings.

    No One is Perfect, Trust Me:
    Your first attempt at illumination may not be perfect, in fact, it probably will not be
    perfect at all. You may even hate it. Turn it in anyway! Ask any scribe about their
    early scrolls and they will laugh as they list their mistakes (like my first scroll had
    no border margins! Oops). With time your skills will be finer adjusted and practice
    may well get you producing pretty great pieces. Almost any mistake (except an
    entire overturned bottle of India ink- also me- Oops) is fixable, and we even teach
    Scribal classes that will teach you to fix your own mistakes. Soon you’ll be doing
    scrolls that your friends can receive in Court. Go scribe already!



    In Service,
    Mistress Maol Mide ingen Medra, OL
    Chancellor of the Trimaris College of Scribes
Getting Started as an Illuminator
Trimaris College of Scribes