Illuminated Designs is my version of medieval manuscripts, which are called illuminated manuscripts and are books containing some of the most stunning medieval art created more than a thousand years ago. These books, lovingly illustrated and calligraphed by devout monks who sat in their scriptorium day-after-day penning carbon-ink words and painting jewel-toned illustrations, are what inspires me as a designer and more specifically in my art of book design. In choosing the name I honor all those scribes who came before me and stand as my teachers and masters. I stand on the shoulders of these giants as I bring my love for design and writing to the digital world.
I am a modern day scribe. Long before I discovered computer graphics and typography, I took brushes and pens in hand to create contemporary versions of medieval documents. My script of choice was the batarde (a 14th century form of black letter) and my paints were not made from precious stone but were gouache. It was in doing this close and delicate work that I learned the essence of typography and design. Part of my creative design process was creating the text, or copy. It is my love of words and images that are the foundation of Illuminated Designs.
Today my tools are Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and Dreamweaver. Each plays an integral part in each page whether its a page for print or the web. Just as I learned the art of calligraphy pen and paint brush, I have learned the tools of today. And, just as I loved sitting at my art board, working on each document and getting lost in the penning of text or stroking of paint over the page, I love creating on the computer. When you love what you do it is never merely work or a job.
I love when someone invites me to become a part of their creative team, knowing it is another opportunity to do what I do–writing, editing, and designing. I honestly cannot think of anything else I’d rather be doing than this.
