Handwriting Is on the Wall : Calligraphers from around the world have interpreted the Book of Psalms in script for Platt Gallery’s new show.

Some people think calligraphy is just for addressing envelopes. Geri Bieber knows otherwise.

About 20 years ago, she wandered into a calligraphy class looking for “something interesting and fun to do,” Bieber said. It changed her life. “It became a passion,” she said.

After that first class, she studied calligraphy with the late Maury Nemoy at UCLA Extension. He was considered the mentor of Los Angeles’ Society for Calligraphy. Nemoy sent Bieber to a workshop in Los Angeles on manuscript illumination with Donald Jackson, the scribe for England’s Queen Elizabeth. He remains the Queen’s scribe today.

“There is a whole world of calligraphy that people don’t know about,” Bieber said. “It is a fine art.”

The word calligraphy comes from the Greek word, kalligraphia , which means beautiful writing. One can see an extraordinary variety of calligraphic styles in an exhibit organized by Bieber, “From Psalms: International Invitational Calligraphic Exhibition,” at the University of Judaism’s Platt Gallery.

Bieber invited 55 calligraphers from various parts of the world to make works incorporating any psalm from the Book of Psalms in any language. She received 32 pieces from 31 artists for the show.

“I had no idea what anything was going to look like, except I knew the integrity of these artists,” Bieber said. “The highest caliber of people are participating in the show. Most have been published in catalogues and fine art calligraphy books. Many of them are members of the Society of Scribes and Illuminators, a prestigious group in London--you have to be elected a fellow. My whole feeling for doing this show is to introduce a new group of people to calligraphic art.”

“The show brings together artists who have expanded the art form of calligraphy by their use of materials and styles,” said Judith Samuel, the gallery coordinator. “It’s about innovation. And we see how different artists from different nationalities relate to the Psalms, and the different ways they express themselves.”

British-born Sheila Waters, a member of the London Society of Scribes and Illuminators since 1951, moved to the United States in 1971. In 1972, she began the calligraphic program for the Smithsonian Institution Associates in Washington, and has given lectures and workshops throughout the United States and Canada ever since. Her work in the show “Psalm 150,” in Chinese ink and handmade paper, is made of fine lines and nuances.

“She has such control,” Bieber said. The work is “my idea of perfection--simple, straightforward.”

Thomas Ingmire was the first American to be elected a fellow of the Society of Scribes and Illuminators. He is known for his Expressionist paintings that include words characterized in his own calligraphic forms. In his “Psalm 139:8,” the words begin and end on the sides of the frame.

“The emotion of the words is expressed in his painting. He has been instrumental in changing the direction of calligraphy toward Expressionism,” Bieber said. “When you learn formal calligraphy, it’s hard to loosen up and make it look like something.”

Painter, printmaker and calligrapher Arne Wolf, professor emeritus of Cal State Hayward, studied at the academies of art in Munich and Hamburg, Germany. The words in his acrylic and mixed media on canvas piece from Psalm 22:1--”My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me”--are enclosed by abstract references that recall the Holocaust. Surrounding the verse, and stripes reminiscent of concentration camp prisoner uniforms, is blackness; above the darkness is the red of fire and blood. But, transcending all that is the blue of sky and perhaps a symbol of God.

Jerry Novorr, who teaches paper cutting at the University of Judaism, chose Psalm 112:1-3 for his calligraphic paper-cut, which he formed from one sheet of rag paper. It is mounted between two pieces of glass.

Mary White, who lives in Wonsheim, Germany, has combined her love of ceramics and calligraphy. Her lettered porcelain globe with painted gold letters presents Psalm 24:1-2.

“From when we’re very young, our lives are filled with words. What calligraphers are doing is making those words come alive with emotion,” Bieber said.

Where and When What: “From Psalms: International Invitational Calligraphic Exhibition.” Location: University of Judaism’s Platt Gallery, 15600 Mulholland Drive, Los Angeles. Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Fridays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays. Ends Nov. 28. Call: (310) 476-9777, Ext. 276.