JCCFS: Tell us a little bit about yourself. What’s your background in your medium? How did you get started?

MH: Have been a professional calligrapher, graphic designer, and handwriting instructor for over 50 years, in CA, NC, & CT, my commercial works are published in several books and preserved in international collections and U.S. collections, notably the Metropolitan Museum, New York, and the Bahá’í World Centre, Haifa, Israel. I am a co- founder of the ‘Society for Calligraphy’ in Los Angeles and the founder of the ‘Carolina Lettering Arts Society’ in No. & So. Carolina. I am a Life Member of the Southern Highland Craft Guild. I taught calligraphy at university for 5 years and left to pursue my creative work full-time as a free-lance calligrapher and part-time instructor. I have taught at the Folk School since 2010. I work in a variety of media, including wood, glass, parchment, vellum, and paper. In this age of digital technology, I still feel that there is, indeed, an important place in human society for the warmth, beauty, and grace that calligraphy and handwriting can bring to our lives.

JCCFS: Tell us more about your class’s specific technique or process.

MH: The Simple Modern Hand is a cursive script that is efficient, legible at speed, doesn’t fatigue the hand, and boosts critical thinking and memory.

Photos from a previous Calligraphy class with Michael

Some of Michael’s previous work

JCCFS: What can students expect to leave your class with?

MH: Students will learn to write a modern cursive hand efficiently, without loops, to write legibly and relaxed without fatiguing the arm or hand. We also explore several hand-made, book-making techniques, how paper is made, as well as how to improve one’s note-taking or journaling. A wealth of knowledge and some practical skills ready to put to use.

JCCFS: What do you enjoy most about The Folk School?

MH: It’s the people who come to the School. They value MAKING, i.e. creating with their HANDS, HEARTS, & MINDS. Along the way, they discover a part of BEING HUMAN that those who live with their faces stuck to screens have never learned or forgotten. It’s a magical place as a result.

JCCFS: Where do you draw inspiration for your work?

MH: In my education as a scribe, I studied the evolution of the Latin or Roman alphabet over the last 2000 years (this was a self-imposed task). I am a native Appalachian. I draw inspiration from the scribes and notaries of the Italian Renaissance, before printing, and from the beauty of nature in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where I have hiked, camped, and roamed for over 60 years.

JCCFS: What tips would you give a student or aspiring craftsperson? Anything you wish you had known earlier in your career? 

MH: One can learn something valuable from almost everyone. Be in the moment; pay attention! My most valuable lessons occurred from taking the time to reflect at the end of my working day when I would consider what occurred that day; any mistakes I made and more importantly, why I made them. Daily reflection is such a valuable tool for discovering the secrets of living and one’s craft, but unfortunately, a tool used by too few.

JCCFS: Where can folks find you if they want to stay up to date on your work?

MH: At the Folk Art Center on the BRParkway in Asheville, NC: Life Members (Jan’25) Show & Focus Galley (Apr-Jly, ’25)