How Long Does It Take To Learn Calligraphy for Beginners?

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Have you ever thought about how someone has beautiful handwriting? Other than talent, it is safe to say that people will always have their time to learn. In this case, let's talk about beginner calligraphy. It is lettering that comes in between art and basic writing skills. And surprisingly, everyone that knows how to write can learn this style.

Many people know and learn how to write from a young age. Sometimes at the age of 5 or so. And it gradually gets more complicated with your creativity and art ideas. At some point, the idea of learning new skills will always come with duration to learn. Each skill will need a different time to learn or even master. So, how about the duration to learn calligraphy for beginners?

The answer is pretty abstract since every person's ability and creativity skills are not the same. But for beginners, you can learn it in a pretty quick time. It goes to the fact that you know how to write and learn basic lettering. Thus, a beginner in calligraphy will not take that long. However, again, the duration differs. And this timeline will tell you how and why.   

It Takes As Long As You Want It To!

There are many questions about how long can people master or learn something? The answer will never be the same. At some point, the best answer is it takes as long as you want it to. The idea is pretty clear that you cannot set a time when you want to learn about something. It is especially true if you are talking about the creative industry. 

Studying calligraphy, design, graphic, and anything that relates to the creative industry can either take a quick or long time. All goes to your determination and talent. So, your time to learn can take as long as you want it to. If you are hustling and want to learn about calligraphy faster, then it is possible to get it pretty easy. 

As you know that it is part of the art world. Just like any other part of art, there is no end to calling yourself past the timelines or considerations. There is a time when people consider themselves already learning it in hours, weeks, or even years of practice. So, the pace on how long to learn calligraphy for beginners is not something you can control.  

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The Timeline 

The following timeline is not the exact determiner of how long and how far one will take to learn calligraphy. As a beginner, your journey in learning lettering art is more than just simple steps. There are many considerations and practices that you need to consider. Which later shows how far one has already reached their timeline or milestone. 

1. It Can Take Only About 2 Hours For Basic Modern Calligraphy 

Two hours is just a general number. It is not something that you can use as a time measurement or indication of how far or skilled you are. In this case, underline the fact that calligraphy is a blend of illustration and writing. You are going to make lettering that comes out of a basic character; after that, you add flair, shapes, lines, etc., to make it pretty. 

That is the basics of how to learn calligraphy for beginners. Everything started with the basics, which is about learning the fundamental concept. So, what are the basics that you should learn? In this phase, your goal is about nailing the technique. Remember the goal, so you don't put too much attention on the duration of time when learning about calligraphy. 

As a beginner, you will start with how to move slowly and not rush. The idea is that calligraphy is different from normal writing. You will need to know how to handle the pen, know the angle, and understand the pen or the nib function. The idea is that every piece of information about the basic beginner calligraphy study introduces the technique. 

The best way to learn calligraphy is to join a workshop and see the real practice. You can witness how to handle and hold your pen. Witnessing the real deal helps you learn the writing rhythm and the pen angle. Each stroke you make for the calligraphy will have its particular rhythm, which helps create a control, shape, and steady look. 

In this case, beginners will notice how the practice of calligraphy comes with a slower pace of writing. Every pace and stroke will have a different look. It is also happening with the angle, spacing, and width. Your goal as a beginner is to figure it out and get the basics. In this case, some of the crucial details such as the use of chisel nib, correct grip, and pressure.

One of many calligraphy workshops states that giving and learning the basics mostly take around 2 hours. Again, the number of times on how long to learn calligraphy for beginners can differ for every person. But, the goal to learn the basics should be the main focus. It is especially vital since many beginners have no idea about lettering art at all. 

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2. Basic Practices For At Least 2 Months

Since many beginners have never learned or worked with calligraphy before, they mostly have no idea how to hold the pen. Your pen grip is one of the basics to create and learn calligraphy. As much as you know the basics, it does not mean you can easily handle the pen as professional calligraphers do. It is because writing this lettering needs practice and experience. 

After you learn calligraphy for beginners in the basic class, you will need to step up your goal and objectives. During this phase, you already know details of the width and spacing, the shapes, the angle, the gripping, and the type of pen for the lettering. But your progress in studying lettering art as a beginner has just started. 

As a beginner, the start might be hard. You will need constant practice to ensure you get every aspect right by starting from the shape and rhythm. Practice is vital after you learn calligraphy rudimentary. You will work days and hours to master the exact positions. Such as how to grip the pen, apply pressure, and make a beautiful stroke. 

During these beginner practices, you will find yourself getting used to the calligraphy characters. You can use practice sheets and get used to every hand lettering point. It includes studying the baseline, ascender line, X-line, x-height, cap line, slant time, descender, and ascender loop. Learning about those names will help you get the positioning and detailing. 

But, your rhythm and strokes challenge is on how to write every letter. In this case, you will find that every letter has different strokes. A thin upstroke and a thick downstroke are the fundamental technique for every beginner. But when you are going for a letter, it is more than just that. You will have to overturn, loop, curve, oval strokes, etc. 

Again, you got that information from the previously learned calligraphy for a beginner class. But as you make it, it will turn into another challenge. Writing this lettering art is not an easy matter. You have to put the proper pressure and pen position to make the exact stroke. As an example, the 45-degree pen handle is one thing you need to learn. 

As you learn calligraphy pen handle and grip, you will eventually make the proper stroking line. An example is a thin upstroke which needs lighter pressure. Your beginner skill in doing loops and strokes also needs a lot of practice. During this phase, it is better to work with guidelines. Thus, you can make an event and write cleanly.  

Suppose you do not know how to learn calligraphy letter by letter; it is easier if you know about all kinds of strokes. You got down, under turn or overturn stroke, descending or ascending loop, and compound curve. Every letter needs different kinds of curves or loops. Thus, you can learn it as the fundamental way to learn calligraphy for beginners. 

The best example is when you write M. As a beginner, you already learned how to write the normal M. But, if you want to learn the letter in calligraphy, you have to incorporate loops and strokes. The M letter will consist of a downstroke, an overturn, and a compound stroke. It will be different if you are going to write an A letter, which is an oval stroke and under turn stroke. 

You can practice every letter one by one. Thus, you can get a grip on how to make the proper display. During this beginner's time, creating perfect lettering is not your concern. Remember your goal and take your time. In many cases, with constant practice, you can get some of the muscle memory and ideas in about two months. 

During your practice, it is crucial to work with many projects to improve your knowledge and ideas. You can try to explore and experiment with your writing. As a beginner, this idea might be quite hard to follow. But the main point is that you can get and learn calligraphy as you want. At some point, it might also open a greater career opportunity. 

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3. 2 Years For Starting Your Calligraphy Career 

Those who are only looking to learn calligraphy for beginners do not have to follow this timeline. However, if you want to learn further and develop your unique style, it might take around years or so. Again, you need to underline that every person has a different pace. If you can reach the goal in 2 years, it is good. But if you can't, it does not mean the end of the world. 

Many professional calligraphers or course owners will say that 2 years is enough to develop your beginner career. It is the bare minimum, but it does not mean you have to rush. A beginner calligrapher might already develop or explore some ideas. Thus, you can start selling some of your art, such as wedding invitations or simple greetings. 

During the two years of your progress to learn calligraphy for beginners, you have enough time to experiment or find your most suitable style. During your beginner year, there are times that you will grow into your art and enjoy the same style all over the time. But, it is also possible to change your style and make your signature design. 

Take your time to learn the best style or ideas for your project. Don't forget to keep on practicing. As your experiences as a beginner increase, you will be ready to respond and call yourself a professional. Your goal is what you need to pay attention to. It is because learning the perfect design is almost possible, both for beginners and professionals.   

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4. And A Live Time Study To Master The Calligraphy 

If you ever want to learn calligraphy and master the art, you better put that idea away. One thing that you should underline is that there is nothing called mastering the art. In this case, modern calligraphy is almost impossible to master. One of the reasons is that the art of lettering is always evolving. So, there is no finish line or end to your research. 

Of course, your journey as a beginner might have stopped after you start your career and call yourself professional. But, the lettering world is always changing and evolving. Art is not a statistical thing. You can learn and master it. What you have learned today might change and have different values the next day. 

It means that being a master or beginner in calligraphy does not change the fact that you always have something to learn tomorrow. You can see it from the varying style and ideas of lettering out there. Styles upon styles are surfacing. The older style, such as gothic lettering, to the aesthetical coffee-shop typography is trending. So, it always has something new to explore and try. 

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How To Set Up Your Time, So Everything Is Under Control

If you are a beginner that wants to learn calligraphy, you better know what kind of point you want to achieve. You can only say that you are finished or done learning something if you got something to reach. Thus, the first thing every beginner needs to have is a goal. Having a goal helps you know the progress. 

When you want to learn calligraphy for beginners, try not to think about time or how long it is going to take. Sometimes having that mindset will only deter your attention, thus making any accomplishment sound very hard to achieve. It also makes you think about how long to learn and get a certain degree of mastery. But when it comes to art, the result is your main focus. 

You should remember that using time as your measure of mastery only makes everything looks difficult. Switch your mindset with a result-oriented attitude. Thus, your goal to learn calligraphy as a beginner will aid you to achieve better and further. In other words, you are not limited in the time or duration of learning calligraphy as a beginner. 

Because even with the same amount of time to learn the art, the result of every person will not be the same. It goes to the fact that many points and aspects can affect every single result of your calligraphy lesson. It includes the way you learn, your education, background, and many more. 

If you have a problem finding a goal, the best way to make a result-oriented mindset is by determining your reason. Why do you want to learn calligraphy? What kind of expectation do you want from doing so? Is it for better handwriting, to use as a design element, or anything? Having such questions will help you learn your study as a beginner. 

Again, you need to understand that every beginner and learner has their time. One might get the most as they learn calligraphy for beginners in one or two years. Others might show very slow but steady progress. And the others might even stop practicing and learning all over. The point is that practicing and learning should not be the duration of focused progress. 

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Conclusion 

From the information above, you can say that learning calligraphy is hard to measure. For beginners, the amount of time can differ from one to another. It is especially true if you put determination at the front. The idea is that the time to learn calligraphy has almost no finish line. It is a mission impossible to master since it is a never-ending action. 

However, it does not mean that calligraphy is not suitable for beginners. You should know that every person has their first, the same as if you want to learn how to make calligraphy. Starting from the basics and improving your skill time by time is the main point of this process because the world of art will always evolve and change over time.