Parchment, Quill and Paint

Join experimental archaeologist and leather specialist Dr Theresa Kamper (Alone Season 8) and natural materials artist and teacher Caroline Ross (@foundandground) for this unique long weekend diving into ancient European art and crafts. 

Over the 2.5 day course you will learn how to make traditional parchment from deer hide and go home with a piece of the finished skin. In between working the hides with Theresa, you'll learn how to make natural paints from ochres and coloured rocks, oak gall ink, and feather quills and brushes with Caroline, as used for over 1500 years, and still used by illuminators today. Then we will have a chance to work on parchment using your new tools, paints, and inks, inspired by works made by one of our hosts, artist Candace Jensen.

There is nothing like the scriptorium sound of a roomful of people writing with freshly cut feather pens on parchment, nor the satisfaction you'll gain from knowing how to turn waste animal skins into a precious, durable art surface. Theresa and Caroline have been teaching in their fields for many years and are both authors of books on the subjects we'll be covering. There will be ample time for questions and experimentation. You'll go home with an art kit that can party like it's AD999, and as importantly, all the skills to make tools, parchment and colours almost anywhere, that will stand the test of time and not cost the earth.