I feel bad for the people who have to make Bic pen ads.
They just can’t seem to get it right when it comes to women.
Remember the “Bic For Her” campaign a few years ago? The French pen brand launched a version of the classic Cristal with pastel colors and a thinner barrel it said was supposed to fit a woman’s hand.
A short Canadian documentary has been making the rounds of the pen community this summer, and for good reason.
It’s a brief, delightful ode to pen, ink and handwriting as an art form.
Ink was directed by Toronto filmmaker Ryan Couldrey and focuses on Tanja Tiziana, a freelance photographer with a passion for pen and ink.
The other day, I happened onto the site of Japanese pen guru Russ Stutler. I’d visited it before, but there …
Kit pens don’t get much respect, especially from hardcore pen geeks. And sure, not without reason. They often use generic nibs, fittings and refills mass-produced to less than exacting standards.
But that’s not totally fair, either. Some kit pens have beautiful barrels, lovingly crafted by hand into genuine works of art. Such pens may be less about the writing experience and more about the aesthetics.
These are not those pens. Or, at least, not entirely.
When we think of the loss of handwriting as a common skill, we tend to think of it in terms of English handwriting.
But the Chinese are experiencing a similar issue with regards to traditional Chinese calligraphy. And now, as fewer and fewer people learn the painstaking handwriting craft, a core group of traditionalists are working to keep calligraphy alive.