The Guild is incorporated under the Associations Incorporation Act 1987 of Western Australia. Browse or download our constitution (you may need Adobe Reader to read it).
CGWA Constitution (amended) March 2019
Our thanks to Barbara King and Trish Krauss for their work on this update.
Link here to REMINISCENCES of the Late – Cliff Stevenson a long time Guild Supporter by Jennifer Young
In 1982, twenty students of the late Eric Tristram, a lecturer in Calligraphy at the University Of Western Australia Extension courses, met with a desire to encourage and assist each other in ‘practising the old art and craft of calligraphy’ and formed a ‘Calligraphy Club’.
At their first meeting, the name was changed to Calligraphers’ Guild. The rules then set out are not too far removed from our presently incorporated group, The Calligraphers Guild Of WA (Inc.).
Donald Jackson was the first overseas contact as he was with the Society of Scribes and Illuminators at that time. The Guild had decided to borrow some exhibition slides and purchase a book, The Calligraphers Handbook. Now the Guild runs its own exhibitions and has a library of over 250 books. In 1984 three members went to Albury, NSW to learn directly from a Donald Jackson visit.
The Late Peter Evans, an accomplished Calligrapher and now retired Senior Art lecturer , arranged for Guild meetings to be held at the University in the mid 1980’s. This allowed good facilities and your writer well remembers several visits by Rosemary Sassoon. Despite Western Australia’s tyranny of distance we are no strangers to many of the international Calligraphers visiting Australia. Peter commenced a full time course in an Associate Diploma of Arts (Visual Arts and Crafts) with a major in Calligraphy in 1987. The change to a University from the Tertiary College of the time saw the demise of that course but not before most of Peter’s students joined the Guild.
The heady years from 1987 – 1990 saw a change in venue to a community centre, the Incorporation of the Guild, and a growth in numbers rising to 170. In 1989 it was decided to produce an annual diary. The cover of our first issue in 1990 was designed by Eric Tristram who died in March 1990. The diary was a success story. Most years a theme, for example ‘Australiana’ in 1999, was chosen for diary pieces, due to rising production costs the diary is no longer being produced.
Our members are mainly from the metropolitan area with a few from country areas. Over the years we have had several from other states as our members migrate as well as some from overseas.
The Guild’s magazine was an extension of a handwritten single sheet by Eric posted to members. It is now called ‘Quillo Talk’ and is issued prior to the monthly meeting.
Compiled by The Late John Hinwood
