Japanese calligraphy workshop

Product detailed description

The workshop is suitable for anyone who would like to explore the aesthetics of Japanese script and try a form of creation in which every brushstroke matters. No previous experience is needed — just a desire to discover and create.

Basic information:

• Capacity: 6 people / workshop
• Duration: 120 minutes
• Location: kaš-mi-daš, Janovského 33, Prague 7 (map)
• Experience: suitable for complete beginners
• Workshop language: Czech

The workshop price includes

• a 120-minute workshop with expert guidance
• full use of all Japanese calligraphy materials and tools
• materials for practice as well as your final calligraphy artwork
• individual guidance in a small group
• unlimited non-alcoholic drinks from our café

How to get here

Janovského 33, Prague 7, 170 00 (a street parallel to Dukelských hrdinů)

• Trams 6 and 17, Veletržní palác stop (approx. 1 minute on foot)
• Metro Vltavská (approx. 7 minutes on foot)
• Parking at OC Stromovka (approx. 4 minutes on foot)

How the workshop works

The workshop takes place in a calm and focused atmosphere and includes the following approximate phases:

Introduction to Japanese calligraphy

• a short introduction to Japanese calligraphy
• explanation of the rules of holding the brush
• correct posture while writing

Practice of basic strokes

• getting familiar with brush and ink in practice
• practising basic lines and strokes
• learning to feel rhythm, pressure, and direction of the stroke

Practice of the simplest character

• step-by-step demonstration
• independent practice with the lecturer’s guidance

Choosing characters and preparing your own artwork

• selection of characters from prepared templates
• demonstration of how to write the chosen characters
• independent practice
• if participants have a specific wish for what they would like to write, the lecturer will prepare a template on the spot

Final calligraphy on authentic calligraphy paper

• transferring the practised characters into their final form
• creating your own calligraphy artwork

Who will guide you through the workshop

Kaoru Ishida

My name is Kaoru Ishida, I am an artist from Japan, and I have been living in Prague since 2002. I have loved painting and drawing since childhood, and in Prague I completed my master’s degree in animation at the Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts (FAMU).

In Japan, I attended Japanese calligraphy classes from the age of six, and thanks to this background I have been teaching Japanese calligraphy in the Czech Republic since 2005. In the workshop, I will be happy to share my experience and my joy in this traditional discipline, which combines technique, concentration, and personal expression.