During the golden age of penmanship (1860 - 1930), before the typewriter, becoming a Master Penman was the path to a successful career and high regard of friends and colleagues. Businesses required competent penmen for purposes of managing records, writing policies and executing certificates and many continued their craft by teaching penmanship throughout the country. Today there are only eleven individuals who bear the title ‘Master Penman’, and one of them is Bill Kemp who lives in nearby Albuquerque, NM.
In a lecture open to the general public, Bill Kemp, Master Penman, will describe the progression of perfecting his letterforms to a level of excellence that would pass rigorous scrutiny by the International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers and Teachers of Handwriting, or IAMPETH. The long, arduous process culminated in Bill creating his own ‘Certificate of Merit’, completed in his most skillfully penned letterforms for the final stage of the process.
Bill Kemp, from Albuquerque, New Mexico, has been studying the calligraphic arts for more then 30 years. His mentor for Copperplate is Mr. Bill Lilly. Learning sessions with Mr. Lilly occur once or twice a year continually for several years. Bill is a member of his local calligraphy guild,Escribiente, in Albuquerque, and is on the IAMPETH (International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers and Teachers of Handwriting) Executive Board and also belongs to several other guilds thought the country. Bill has taught at numerous calligraphic conferences including Castle in the Air in Berkeley, CA, Houston, Ghost Ranch in Abiquiu, NM and in Albuquerque, NM .
