William Graily Hewit or Graily Hewitt (1864–1952) was a British calligrapher and novelist who played a key role in the revival of calligraphy in England in the early 20th century, alongside Edward Johnston.

Biography

Hewitt was educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge.[1] First training as a lawyer, he interrupted his career to write a novel and a volume of short stories.[2] He later attended Edward Johnston's evening classes at the Central School of Arts and Crafts and quickly became a teacher there, and at the Camberwell School of Art, taking up Johnston's previous work.[3] Hewitt remained at the Central School until the 1920s and 1930s, publishing together with Johnston throughout the early part of the century and working with a series of other illuminators over the decades.[4]

Hewitt was central to the revival of gilding in calligraphy, and his prolific output on type design also appeared between 1915 and 1943.[5] His contributions to Writing, Illuminating and Lettering[6] and his guide Lettering for Students & Craftsmen (1930) are considered particularly crucial to the revival of gilding.[7] He is credited with the revival of gilding with gesso and gold leaf on vellum.[8] Elements of Hewitt's work are included in a variety of manuscript books.[9] He was one of the initiators of the Society of Scribes and Illuminators, in 1921.[10]

Hewitt sought to link calligraphy and type design, arguing that type should represent creations of pen.[11] The Treyford Type, employed for The Pen and Type Design, was a design of Hewitt's.[12] He also created a series of initials for St. John Hornby's Ashendene Press, during the long period 1902 to 1935.[13] He continued calligraphy up to his death on 22 December 1952 aged 88.[14]

His work is kept in the Victoria and Albert Museum's collection.[15] His pupils included Percy Delf Smith, who he recommended to take over his teaching position at Camberwell.[16]

Works

  • Hewitt, Graily, Lettering for Students & Craftsmen (1930).

References

  1. ↑ "Hewitt, William Graily (HWT883WG)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
  2. ↑ Child, Heather (1980). Graily Hewitt: The Master of Penmanship. London: Pelham Books. p. 17.
  3. ↑ Chazal, Julien (1996). Calligraphy: A Comprehensive Guide. New York: Harry N. Abrams. p. 38.
  4. ↑ Finke, Gail Deibler (2008). Calligraphy and Hand-Lettering for the 21st Century. Cincinnati, Ohio: North Light Books. p. 12.
  5. ↑ Harris, David (2003). The Calligrapher's Bible: 100 Complete Alphabets and How to Draw Them. Hauppauge, New York: Barron's Educational Series. p. 14. ISBN 0764156152.
  6. ↑ Johnston, Edward "Writing & Illuminating, & Lettering", 8th Edition
  7. ↑ Godfrey-Nicholls, Gaye (2013). Mastering Calligraphy: The Complete Guide to Hand Lettering. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. p. 16. ISBN 9781452110202.
  8. ↑ Hewitt, Graily (1926). The Art of the Book. London: Methuen & Co. Ltd. p. 40.
  9. ↑ Johnson, Pauline (1991). Creative Bookbinding. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. p. 132.
  10. ↑ Prawer, S. S. (1996). A. W. Pollard: A Memoir. Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 131.
  11. ↑ Nash, Paul W. (1987). The Forms of Hebrew Letters: A Script Manual. London: David R. Godine Publisher. p. 32.
  12. ↑ Harthan, John (1980). The History of the Illustrated Book: The Western Tradition. London: Thames and Hudson Ltd. p. 270.
  13. ↑ McKitterick, David (1992). A History of Cambridge University Press: Volume 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 288.
  14. ↑ "Obituary: Graily Hewitt". The Penrose Annual. London: A. Wheaton & Co. Ltd. 47: 192. 1953.
  15. ↑ "Graily Hewitt". Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  16. ↑ Nash, John. "In Defence of the Roman Letter" (PDF). Journal of the Edward Johnston Foundation. Retrieved 13 October 2016.


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