Enamel Color and Shading Effects
Many people, including artists, aspiring enamelists, collectors of art, and individuals interested in jewelry are drawn to enamel pieces or enamel art because of color.
Color that is sensually appealing, flowing, almost liquid.
Color that amazes the eye, glossy, vivid, eliciting the “wow” response.
Color that embodies meaning and symbolism.
Color that can be sharp, bold, and assertive; more varied in effect; or muted, delicate, nuanced and complicated.
Enamel, as a raw material, typically comes in the form of a powder. The powder consists of a myriad of different sized, tiny particles of colored glass. Each individual color is a fixed part of the glass and is not changeable in controlled use. In many instances, the powdered material form precludes extensive mixing, at least as we usually think of mixing paint to create particular shades of color. Melting the powder onto a piece of metal can change the material form (from powder to hot liquid appearance to cooled solid), but it will not change the glass color.
So how does gradual color shading happen? To replace mixing, enamel artists frequently “layer,” using transparent and/or opalescent (semi-transparent or translucent) types of enamel. For example, by applying and then firing in a kiln a layer of a transparent enamel of a particular color, and then repeating the same process for multiple layers over each other, the overall color appearance will gradually darken. Firing layers of different colors over each other can create individual shades that don’t exist in the basic single color powder form. By adjusting the position of the powders in different ways in the same space during application, it is possible to achieve the color appearance of blending and gradation.
The first enamel jewelry pieces I ever encountered were medallion-sized cloisonné pendants that used two or three vivid, highly polished, opaque enamel colors. The work was professional and finished. The imagery was slightly detailed and nominally figurative. But the essence of the design relied on carefully placed color contrast.
My response was immediate attraction, but also quiet puzzlement. Something was both compelling, but also seriously lacking. Intuitively for me, color contrast was not enough. Only later, as I learned how enamel pieces are created and how they fit into a larger historical picture, did I understand what was missing: complex and nuanced color, to go with careful line configuration and complementary jewelry design and metal construction. I discovered that a better way for me to work existed and I wanted to make that happen.
Color was the first and primary key: How to create a coherent palette that enhances the line configuration; how to position, intersperse, and shade the enamel such that the viewer can see the multiple interactions between colors and understand the messages those interactions attempt to convey; how to use the color shades to establish depth and as much perspective as is helpful; how to use textural effects as part of the design. All these details and more can make each piece unique, exciting, challenging, and engaging. Color can become the key that can move enameling (and for me, the technique of cloisonné) into the world of art.
By Don Viehman