On a recent trip to Japan, I took a 1-on-1 lesson with a skilled calligrapher in Kyoto (Chifumi Calligraphy Tokyo). Having primarily studied calligraphy without a teacher, it was an extremely educational experience, not to mention fun (the featured image shows the final artwork I produced from that class). While in Kyoto, I also stopped in the wonderful Shimadai Gallery to see a calligraphy exhibit that showcased various beautiful works of art, and had a brief calligraphy experience there as well.
Finally, later in the trip I stopped in Jinbocho––the city of books–-where I bought a calligraphy dictionary in a bookstore.
I decided to cover these things in detail (including a handful of tips about improving my calligraphy) in my new podcast Japanesque: Musings on all things Japanese, which you can find here: