Our mission

Calligraphy.org is about embracing technology and using it to expand our analog world. Calligraphy is not an art in decline. Calligraphy is resurgent.

We are building an online community of lettering enthusiasts. We are welcoming in new members with top-notch instruction and educational resources. We are expanding our skills with continuing education.

Digital meets analog

Back when the world was entirely analog, calligraphy and the other lettering arts were a central form of communication. You would break out your pointed pen to write a love note or invite a friend to dinner. You would paint a sign above your business with a brush and paint.

The digital world has transformed calligraphy from an everyday part of life to a unique art pursued by enthusiasts and professionals who are taking an ancient art form in new directions. Online interaction enables us to share our art worldwide. We are rebuilding our communities online.

I Still Love Calligraphy

Calligraphy.org is an expansion of Melissa Esplin's original calligraphy teaching website, IStillLoveCalligraphy.com. I Still Love Calligraphy—ISLC for short—was a single online class produced by Melissa and her husband Chris in early 2012. ISLC grew steadily year after year. Chris quit his full-time job to code the website, and Melissa brought in her friend Erika Paulsen to help teach.

I Still Love Calligraphy introduced thousands of new students to modern calligraphy. Calligraphy.org will expand upon that vision by catering to beginner, intermediate and advanced calligraphers. We're bringing in fresh new teachers with their own techniques and points of view. The coursework will be even better than students came to expect from I Still Love Calligraphy, because we better understand how to teach calligraphy, and we've rewritten the website from the ground up to create a seamless online experience.