The Enamelling Workshop

SiO2 & CuO ... the true method of knowledge is to experiment
William Blake

13th November 2014

... made by fusing powdered glass to a substrate by firing, usually between 750 and 850 °C (1,380 and 1,560 °F). The powder melts, flows, and then hardens to a smooth, durable vitreous coating on metal, or on glass or ceramics.

http://www.janlyjaggard.com/
http://janinepartington.co.uk/view-enamels/copper-series/
http://www.daledevereuxbarker.co.uk/
http://www.swarez.co.uk/

See Colouring Light: Brian Clarke - an artist apart. BBC 4
http://www.brianclarke.co.uk/about


My preconception of enamelling was that it was a process for grown ups. I thought it exclusive and inflexible. I was first introduced to these shiny metallic slabs of 'abstract' gorgeousness in the early 90s following my Illustration degree by looking at the work of Elizabeth Turrell and Janly Jaggard, who were lecturing at the School of Art and Design in Bristol. Also looking at the intricate enamel pieces of the then new jewellery designer Kit Heath, in conjunction with Mappin and Webb Jewellers in London.  

Arriving at the Fabrication centre at 10am I was feeling slightly ruffled. Comme d'habitude, I did not have a clear direction - other than needing a Cornetto from the shop - having already been screen printing A2 'juicy landscapes' with the irrepressible Mr. Fortune and a series of anxious MA 'mini-printers' since 8.15am.
Rachel Merelie, our elegant enamelling tutor was inspiringly passionate about this process and my Cornetto hunger slowly evaporated, being replaced by 'Champleve, Cloisonné and Copper Oxide' cravings.
We were given instruction in the science of metal and glass fusion that is the Enamelling process and shown how to 'chop', 'nibble' and 'punch' our copper sheets to create a variety of marks before degreasing the metal and adding the 'counter glaze' to the underside of our copper. This metal was then fired in the kiln at a temperature of about 800 degrees from 30 seconds to 6 minutes depending on the size of the original piece of metal. Health and safety was paramount. I wore huge industrial gloves and welding goggles in order to put my work in and take it out of the kiln - bit of a Flash Dance vibe.

Once removed from the kiln and the metal had cooled,  the sooty black residue or 'Fire Scale' has to be scoured away before adding the next glaze.  Rachel was on hand with advice and I experimented with underglaze pencils (being impatient) tried  'under firing' my work which gives a greener tint to the white vitreous enamel.

I loved the red textures created by the chemical reaction of clear glaze on raw  metal with the application of heat and some of my first glazes were beautiful.. Martian landscapes in miniature and linked perfectly to the volcanic paintings of Cesar Manrique. My abstract textures and patterns evolved by trial and error and I loved the spontaneous nature of this process. I found Enamelling, although painful at times, a very satisfying and expressive process; a chaotic, but paradoxically, considered duality between two and three dimensions.  For me this evocation of texture is captured by Gerhard Richter and the huge painted textural responses by Anselm Kiefer to his past, present and future: 

" He is the most liberating painter since Jackson Pollock. Like Pollock, Kiefer transforms a painting from a picture to be contemplated into a fact that splashes out into the world. Pollock often left bits of rubbish on the surface of his paintings; cigarette butts that fell in the wet paint, for instance. And Kiefer, who includes Pollock-esque drips among the marks he makes, also leaves everything from woodcuts to organic matter encrusted on his art’s rich surfaces. But the effect is utterly different from the late American artist". Jonathan Jones-The Guardian September 2014

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/sep/22/anselm-kiefer-royal-academy-of-arts-review

In the words of 'Forrest Gump' enamelling is like 'a box of chocolates .. you never really know what you're gonna get'.