What is a CALLIGRAM

The poetry it is a literary genre that has many different ways of expressing itself. We know the classic poems that are epic and exciting, some modern ones that can make us laugh, etc. There is a type of poetry that is perfect for children can understand and that will capture their attention from the first moment.

In this lesson from a PROFESSOR we explain what is a calligram and what are its main characteristics. In this way you will be able to recognize them at a glance when you find yourself in front of one and you will have the necessary tools for when you have to compose a calligram yourself.

A calligram can be an entire poem, a phrase, or even a single word. which is ordered visually to give an image to the reader. The image is usually related to the theme on which the poem speaks and the same letters are the ones that make up the drawing.

For example: A poem that talks about war and that the same words form the image of a gun.

In order to shape it, you can use a computer which will make the text fit well or can be design by hand, considering that it is a work of art.

Technology has been advancing and we can see more and more calligraphies on television, on the internet or even on social networks. These calligrams, which began as monochrome, have now come to use a wide color range thanks to advances in graphic design.

This is a great way for little ones to start read his first poems. The first thing that will catch their attention will be the drawing and then they will have to make an effort to understand the content of the calligram and link it to the image they are seeing.

The calligram has very marked features that will allow you to recognize this type of text at a glance. Thanks to the calligram, poetry can be united with the graphic representation of figures. These are the main characteristics that you can find in a calligram:

• The words of a calligram are arranged on the paper in a very specific way, so that their whole form a certain image.
• The image that can be seen with the naked eye try to express visually what the words mean.
• They may be written in prose or verse and they have rhythm and rhyme.
• The sentences are organized within the set, to facilitate the reading of the person who is enjoying the calligram.
• The typography of the letter usually also goes together with the subject that is being treated and the same happens with the color.
• It is a perfect fusion between text and image, as if it were a harmonic complement.
• They are usually simple
• They have strong roots literary cubism and of futurism.

The word calligram comes from union of two greek words: "kállos" which means beauty and "grammé" which means stroke. This literary resource has been widely used by poets throughout history and in Spain it reached its peak at the beginning of the 20th century.

Many authors of the time decided to start researching through this type of discipline that is between the literature and visual art.

Making a calligram requires a lot of creativity and imagination, but the sooner you start, the sooner you will be able to make authentic works of art. To do this you will have to take into account the text and also the image, so you will have to put all your artistic disciplines into action. follow these steps to make a calligram:

• Write a poem
• Think of an image that defines the poem you just wrote
• Find a sketch of that image to get an idea of ​​what shape your calligram should take. This sketch will serve as your guide, so you can print it out and trace it in pencil onto a blank sheet of paper.
• Draw the lines where you will have to write your text inside the drawing. Do it with pencil to be able to erase them later.
• You can choose a free pattern to start writing your text, but we recommend that you do it when you have a little more practice. Your first calligrams should be made in a clockwise direction, that is, from left to right.
• Write the text in the direction that we have mentioned and always on top of the lines that you have drawn.
• Finally, erase the pencil lines you had drawn on the template and erase the sketch as well.

We hope that this lesson has been helpful to you and that you now know what is a calligram and what are its main characteristics. If you are interested in continuing to learn more about this topic or something similar, do not hesitate to take a look at our writing section.