Calligraphers inspired by Jane Austen

Earlier this year, my weekly calligraphy groups were seeking inspiration as we embarked on a new term of activity.

Having chosen an overall theme – Pick ‘n’ Mix – to reflect our aim of combining different scripts to create a piece of lettering art – we needed a subject!

A quick search online for major events in 2025 led to the discovery of celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth.

So, we went with quotes from Austen’s famous works, or the author herself.

Tea and copperplate script seemed to feature prominently, rather fittingly!

And Rachel McClumpha, from RJM Brand Photography, was on hand to capture some of the finished pieces, which we’ve turned into postcard packs.

The Life and Times of Jane Austen

Austen was born in Steventon, Hampshire, on December 16, 1775, and died in Winchester, Hampshire, on July 18, 1817, aged 41.

She is best known for her six novels, which interpret, critique and comment on the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century.

The anonymously published Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), and Emma (1816) were modest successes, but they brought her little fame in her lifetime.

She wrote two other novels – Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both published posthumously in 1817 – and began another, eventually titled Sanditon, but it was left unfinished on her death.

Since her death her novels have rarely been out of print and they have inspired many television and film adaptations.

Her use of social commentary, realism, wit and irony have earned her acclaim amongst critics and scholars.