Tanja Bolenz
I am a letter carver, letter designer and calligrapher working from my studio in the Dovey Valley, near Machynlleth in Wales. I carve memorials, plaques, house signs, garden features and celebratory pieces to commission, as well as personal inscriptions, standing stones and sculptural creations for exhibition. Materials are usually British limestone, sandstone or slate and all work is done by hand.
To create something beautiful and meaningful, to do it with care and attention to detail and with the best materials available, is what inspires me. A key part of this process is to work sensitively with the client’s concepts and ideas to develop a mutually satisfying design and final carved artefact.
The basis of creating unique inscriptions in stone lies in the design and drawing of the letters by hand. Characteristics such as strength, joy, playfulness, elegance - whatever the brief might demand - can be reflected in the design. This provides both endless challenges and great enjoyment.
I am also an elected member of Letter Exchange and a Fellow of the Society of Scribes and Illuminators (SSI) in London.
