American Calligraphy 2: Italic Revival

ABCs of the USA: The stories behind America's most distinctive calligraphy styles. 

Lloyd Reynolds (1932-1978) helped to kindle America's interest in Italic calligraphy. In the 1950s and 1960s, his course at Reed College in Oregon incubated a generation of enthusiasts.  Many of them went on to revolutionize handwriting instruction in elementary schools in the Northwest, and spread the craft all around the U.S. 

Later, after studying with Reynolds's successor, Apple founder Steve Jobs (1955-2011) said the the calligraphy class he audited at Reed  inspired him to make the Macintosh "the first computer with beautiful typography." 

Many aspiring calligraphers first encounter the art of the pen by trying Italic script, in the quest to improve their own handwriting.