At the invitation of cultural institutions, schools and universities, as well as organizing independent trips, I have conducted workshops in different parts of Poland. I conducted calligraphy and manuscript painting classes in Jodłowo in the Kłodzko region, Gdynia, Sobieszewo, Olsztyn, Poznań, Słupsk, Kłodzko, Płock, Koszarawa, Warsaw, Wieliczka, Mogilno, Malbork, Toruń, Poronin, Oleśnica, Katowice, Lublin, and Siedlęcin.

There are places on the map of Poland that I particularly like and to which I often return.

One such place is the Benedictine Abbey in Tyniec. When I ran my first calligraphy class within the Abbey walls in 2008, I never imagined that the Scriptorium workshops would become such an integral part of Tyniec for so long.

Back then, when I was embarking on my professional journey as a calligrapher, illuminator and teacher, I had many dreams and ideals regarding my work. Many of them have come true. A lot of these have been realized in Tyniec. Ever since I started dealing with this noble and ancient craft, I have always wanted to be able to pass it on to others. It is the only way art can live on. I have always wanted to run workshops in monasteries, where there used to be scriptoria and hardworking hands that would write countless verses of letters every day.

It was a great emotion when in 2008 I was able for the first time to organize a new scriptorium within the walls of the monastery in Tyniec. Again, after many centuries, heads bent over the pages of letters and hands patiently rewrote texts. Such a moment, when in a new and different way, tradition sanctified by the work of monks for many centuries, came back here. Today, calligraphy and illumination workshops are held regularly at the Benedictine Abbey in Tyniec.

A detailed plan of the workshops can be found in the tab Workshops Poland Tyniec

The second such place to which I have been returning for many years is the Elijah’s Hermitage, a retreat house in Jasiona, in the Opole region. Father Roman Hosz, who works there, is a great admirer of early monasticism. We share this passion, especially for the Celtic Church! The workshops I run in Jasiona are always connected with retreats. We experience there a real ora et labora. By immersing ourselves in biblical verse, through conferences and liturgy, our scriptural work allows us to experience the ordinary activity of writing in an utterly different, deeper way. We get a little closer to our understanding of how countless monks and scribes experienced this work over the centuries, above the pulpits.

Workshops in Jasiona, combined with biblical retreats, are always held in summer together with Father Roman. Details can be found on the website of the Hermitage: https://www.heliosz.org/index.php

Workshops held in various fascinating corners of Europe were born out of a passion for two worlds: travel and illuminated manuscripts. Contrary to popular belief, the Middle Ages were a very mobile era. Monks travelled between monasteries, carrying manuscripts and, with them, designs that were reproduced in subsequent codices. People set out on journeys to obtain the pigments and parchment needed for painting. Students, eager for knowledge, wandered from town to town. Musicians wandered between courts and towns, seeking a livelihood. Messengers wandered, carrying important news. Vagabonds and beggars roamed the roads, seeking a better tomorrow. People in the Middle Ages were constantly on the move.

Drawing on these travels, I am keen to run workshops in various parts of the world that are directly linked to the culture of the handwritten book. I am particularly keen to accept invitations to places where illuminated manuscripts were once produced and where scriptoria once operated. We try to visit libraries where we can see books that have survived to the present day.

TThe first place we visited with our Scriptorium was Italy. The history of Italian scriptoria and the various styles of illumination is extremely rich. I spent two years running workshops in Florence. On the first occasion, our subject was the illuminations in the exceptionally beautiful Renaissance Bible belonging to Borso d’Este, Duke of Modena. The following year, our subject was the 16th-century world maps drawn up by the Ottoman admiral and cartographer Piri Reis.

France became our next destination, a place that in the Middle Ages had been bustling with activity in its many scriptoria. We set up our scriptorium in a place that had long been sanctified by the presence of monks. Although the present monastery in Rochefort-du-Gard near Avignon dates from the seventeenth century, the first chapel on the hill was built during the reign of Charlemagne. Several editions of the workshops have taken place at the Marian Shrine which now stands on this site.

Journeys in the footsteps of the early medieval Irish-Scottish monks hold a special place in my heart. Our scriptorium was invited to Glenstal Abbey in Ireland, where we studied the extraordinary interlaced decorations of Irish-Scottish manuscripts.

It was a dream come true to lead calligraphy workshops on several occasions on the extraordinary island of Iona off the coast of Scotland, known for its monastery, whose influence extended far beyond the island. Iona is also famous for the Book of Kells, a precious Irish manuscript that was most likely created here.

The close connection between medieval scriptoria and monasteries gives workshops held in such spaces a unique atmosphere, conducive to tranquillity and patient work. Another part of Europe I enjoy visiting is the Iberian Peninsula – I have had the pleasure of running workshops at the former Franciscan monastery of Batalha in Portugal, and in Spain: at the Augustinian monastery of Yuso in San Millán de la Cogolla and the Benedictine monastery in Girona.

I currently run calligraphy and illumination workshops at Wenlock Abbey – the former priory of the Benedictine monastery in Much Wenlock, England.

WORKSHOPS IN ENGLAND – Wenlock Abbey

WORKSHOPS IN SCOTLAND – the Isle of Iona
WORKSHOPS IN PORTUGAL – Batalha
WORKSHOPS IN SPAIN – the monasteries of Suzo and Yuso