This week, my fellow classmates and I took a little trip to the University of Scranton. There, we listened to Professor Knie talk about the Zaner-Bloser penmanship collection. This collection includes hand-penned fonts, art made through calligraphy, and many other items.

Some of the items even included handmade texts that date as far back as the 1400’s. Books at that time were made of hand-stretched animal skin, and the book-making process was very expensive. Below are photos that I took of two of the many books that they have in their collection.

I found this field trip to be a wonderful learning experience. Professor Knie gave an excellent presentation about both the Zaner-Bloser collection of penmanship, and about some of the hand-pressed books that they have in the University of Scranton Memorial Library.

Typography and printmaking, as I recently discovered, is something that I really enjoy doing, and it also creates some of the most interesting and unique pieces of art. This Field trip was a great opportunity for myself and my fellow classmates to learn about the art of penmanship, and the history of book-making. A special thanks to Professor Christine Medley for organizing the trip and using her class time to show us the exhibit. It really is something to see!