Definitely a valuable piece of fine art, this oblique pen holder is the most special one in my calligraphy arsenal. Well, so far. My collection keeps on growing, it seems. It was quite challenging to hide my excitement when the package containing this finally arrived, all the way from Hanoi, Vietnam. There are two major reasons why I am absolutely in love with this writing tool. One, international master calligrapher and pen maker Huy Hoang Dao made this one for me. Two, because it is inexpressively beautiful.
As always the case with Hoang’s pens, the intricate details give away the amount of passion and level of artistic excellence that he commits into anything that he creates! Every calligraphy pen contains a piece (if not all) of him. For this Peony-inspired oblique pen holder, he poured his heart and soul! I’ve always been a fan of Urushi and I am beyond ecstatic to finally own a fine art item that used this Japanese-lacquering (if that is even a word) technique. This was Hoang’s message about this marvelous artwork:
The pen is made from century-old rosewood, finished with roasted quail egg shell inlay and Japanese-lacquered (Urushi). I painted the whole pen in order: raw lacquer, raw lacquer mixed with soil, brown lacquer and black lacquer. 2-3 layers of each kind. Then inlaid the quail eggshell followed by mother of pearl. Continuously covered it with black lacquer and polish until shells reappeared. Then I touched up the details with black lacquer, real gold and silver dust. And polished using antler ash until everything is shiny. It is a very very complicated process that it took me like 7-8 weeks to finish it. One layer needs 24-48 hours to dry in a humid box.
My calligraphy game intensified and improved a great deal after attending Hoang’s Roundhand Calligraphy (also known as Copperplate Calligraphy) class in Berkeley. More so when I received my first and second artisan oblique pen holders from him. I love that my calligraphy pens are unique, truly one-of-a-kind. If you are a calligrapher or if you want to buy a meaningful gift for a friend who is into calligraphy, I highly recommend making Hoang’s online pen store as your shopping destination.
Peony Urushi Oblique Pen Holder
P.S. Hoang ships worldwide from Hanoi, Vietnam. It only takes 3-4 weeks for a pen to get here in the United States. If you see something on his site that you’d like to buy, I recommend acting on it immediately since his pens sell out fast. Learned this lesson last week when one of the pens that I needed was purchased by another calligrapher.
This is not a sponsored post. Hoang’s dedication to his craft is something that I truly respect. I find his passion for calligraphy and pen-making inspiring. He’s already a respected name in the industry as a master calligrapher and I truly want him to be recognized as an artisan pen maker too!
Jyoti Babel says
April 17, 2018 at 8:55 amThis indeed looks like a piece of art! A lot of work has gone into making it – so, it is definitely a piece to treasure. I can very well understand your excitement about it.
ROGER TRENT says
December 4, 2018 at 1:10 pmWHAT A HAUNTINGLY BEAUTIFUL PIECE. THE EGG SHELL MOSAIC IS REALLY A NICE WABI SABI CONTRAST TO THE MORE CHINESE STYLING OF THE BRIGHTER BITS AND THE REST OF THE PEN. IMPRESSIVE!
Stiv says
December 20, 2018 at 9:19 amHello Roger and Eileen,
I appreciate this comment! Thank you very much. I’ve always loved the Urushi technique and seeing the pen-maker fusing that approach with my calligraphy pen really took everything to a different level.
Regards,
Stiv
Jersey says
December 11, 2018 at 8:20 amSo unique and beatuful! I know the hard work and love that must have went into it!