Anna Zrelova

Anna A. Zrelova was born in Leningrad on June 18, 1985. After leaving the art school she has spent two years studying at Nicholas Roerich St. Petersburg Art School, faculty of environmental design. At present time she is finishing at Stieglitz St. Petersburg Academy of Art and Industry, and is specializing in book graphics.

My attitude towards calligraphy was formed during my studies at the Academy with a brilliant teacher, Petr P. Chobitko, who treated calligraphy as the most important component of visual art, and book graphics in particular. I have learnt to see in a letter the meaning as well as its image, character and mood. Portrait of a man can be drawn with only one letter, and it will be recognizable, but to do that one has to learn to see a plethora of nuances of the art of typography, set numerous experiments, and follow the wise advice of “maestros of font”. Computer-based fonts will never replace the quality of live fonts, because machines are dead and their language is dry, but hands… Marvelous calligraphic pieces are created by heart and spirit. The history of writing has proved that continually. I wish everyone who seeks to get into the attractive and diverse world of calligraphy be patient and free, and may success and the Divine wait upon you!