William Graily Hewit or Graily Hewitt (1864–1952) was a British calligrapher and

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while other ...

who played a key role in the revival of

calligraphy Calligraphy () is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instruments. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "the art of giving form to signs in an e ...

in England in the early 20th century, alongside Edward Johnston.

Biography

Hewitt was educated at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

. First training as a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

, he interrupted his career to write a novel and a volume of

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

. He later attended Edward Johnston's evening classes at the

Central School of Arts and Crafts The Central School of Art and Design was a art school, school of fine arts, fine and applied arts in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1896 by the London County Council as the Central School ...

and quickly became a teacher there, and at the Camberwell School of Art, taking up Johnston's previous work. 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. Hewitt was central to the revival of

gilding Gilding is a decorative technique for applying a very thin coating of gold over solid surfaces such as metal (most common), wood, porcelain, or stone. A gilded object is also described as "gilt". Where metal is gilded, the metal below was tradi ...

in calligraphy, and his prolific output on type design also appeared between 1915 and 1943. His contributions to ''Writing, Illuminating and Lettering'' and his guide ''Lettering for Students & Craftsmen (1930)'' are considered particularly crucial to the revival of gilding. He is credited with the revival of gilding with

gesso A restored gesso panel representing St. Martin of Tours, from St. Michael and All Angels Church, Lyndhurst, Hampshire Gesso (; 'chalk', from the , from ), also known as "glue gesso" or "Italian gesso", is a white paint mixture used to coat rigi ...

and gold leaf on

vellum Vellum is prepared animal skin or membrane, typically used as writing material. It is often distinguished from parchment, either by being made from calfskin (rather than the skin of other animals), or simply by being of a higher quality. Vellu ...

. Elements of Hewitt's work are included in a variety of manuscript books. He was one of the initiators of the Society of Scribes and Illuminators, in 1921. Hewitt sought to link calligraphy and

type design Type design is the art and process of designing typefaces. This involves drawing each letterform using a consistent style. The basic concepts and design variables are described below. A typeface differs from other modes of graphic production su ...

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

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

's collection. His pupils included Percy Delf Smith, who he recommended to take over his teaching position at Camberwell.

Works

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

References

British calligraphers British graphic designers 1864 births British typographers and type designers People educated at Westminster School, London 1952 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Alumni of the Central School of Art and Design Academics of the Central School of Art and Design {{graphic-designer-stub