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New Approaches to Cutting Precious Metal Foil Shapes and Enamel Layering Over Foil – with Harlan Butt

on October 15, 2018

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This 3-day Masters workshop, which is the third in this year’s new Master Workshop Series Butt gives some insight into new approaches of preparing precious metal foils for enameling.

Cutting silver foil by hand for enameling is great but it is difficult to cut precise delicate shapes. Commercial paper punches can be used on foil but there are only a small number of shapes available and many of those are not very aesthetically interesting. With the Ecliips2 DYI Electronic Cutter the kinds of shapes that can be cut in foil is almost limitless. Nearly any silhouette that can be copied, downloaded or drawn on a computer software like Photoshop can be cut out in silver foil. These shapes can then be applied and fired onto an enameled surface and transparent colors can be layered over them. Once the process is understood and the technique accomplished the artist has a whole new way of looking at design possibilities using enamel.

Basic enameling experience and some experience with Photoshop would be helpful but not necessary.

Harlan W. Butt is an artist with over 40 years of experience working in metal and enamel who specializes in making vessels inspired by the human relationship to wilderness and the natural environment.
Harlan is a Regents Professor of Art at the University of North Texas where he has taught since 1976. He is past President of the Enamelist Society, past President of the Society of North American Goldsmiths and a Fellow of the American Crafts Council.
His work has been exhibited internationally and is represented in the permanent collections of the Enamel Arts Foundation in Los Angeles, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institute, the Museum of Art & Design in New York City , the Mint Museum of Art & Craft in Charlotte, NC, the National Ornamental Metal Museum in Memphis, Denali National Park Visitor Center in Alaska, the Houston International Airport, the Wichita Center for the Arts, the National Gallery of Australia, the Cloisonné Enamelware Fureai Museum.

Workshop Hours:

Monday – Wednesday 10 AM to 5 PM , with meal breaks at the Crucible in Oakland, CA

Cost: $505 plus $35 materials fee

Materials List: Provided upon registration or when ready

Registration: Limited to 10

Refund Policy: No refunds unless your workshop position can be filled by another person.

Lodging, Meals, Transportation:

Coming from out of town? Check AirBnB, Priceline, and other discounted online lodging sources, The Center will try help you make your stay comfortable and stress free while you are a workshop participant.

In categories Tagged with enamel, enameled copper, enameling, enamelist, enamels, experimental, Harlan Butt, Masters Workshop Series, The Crucible, workshops with no comments

Enamels On and Off the Body – with Jennifer Wells

By Judy Stone

on September 19, 2018

with no comments

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In this workshop we will use wire and a variety of enameling techniques to create two very different kinds of work: unique sculptural jewelry, and whimsical wall pieces.

For the jewelry, we will create complex dimensional pieces by pairing simple backings with enameled shapes of fine iron wire that we have formed and then enameled with liquid enamel. This process, which Wells has perfected for her own work, makes striking jewelry, as the lines of the enameled iron wire contrast beautifully with the monochrome colors and shapes of the flat pieces.

For the wall pieces, we will focus on line and color to create works full of color and subtle complexity. Working on flat copper sheet, we will make lines by using sgraffito in liquid enamel and pencil drawing on enamel applied to the surface, and achieve complex color layering through multiple sifting techniques and painting with watercolors and china paints. We will make frames for this work by bending iron wire in imaginative designs and configurations.

In addition to several different enameling techniques, this workshop will explore solutions to the presentation of enamels, using wire. How can we set flat enamel elements and place them on the human body? How can we frame a flat enameled piece wall so that the frame enhances what the enameled piece has to say?

Enameling techniques that will be taught:

Using liquid enamel to coat iron wire
Sgraffito through liquid enamel
pencil drawing on an enameled surface
painting with watercolor enamels
sifting to create complex layering

A basic understanding of enameling is required.

Jennifer Wells completed her M.F.A in Metalsmithing and Jewelry Design in 2010; afterwards she spent a year at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts as a resident artist, and also completed shorter-term residencies at Pocosin Arts and the Jentel Foundation. She has been a summer assistant for Haystack Mountain School of Craft and a Visiting Assistant Professor at Indiana University in Bloomington, IN. Until recently shehas taught Jewelry and Enameling in Italy with East Carolina University’s Italy Intensives program headed by Linda Darty.

Workshop Hours:

Wednesday – Friday, 10 AM to 5 PM , with meal breaks at the Crucible in Oakland, CA

Cost: $425 plus $30 materials fee

Materials List: Provided upon registration or when ready

Registration: Limited to 10

Refund Policy: No refunds unless your workshop position can be filled by another person.

Lodging, Meals, Transportation:

In categories Tagged with enamel, enameled copper, enameling, enamelist, experimental, Jennifer Wells, liquid enamel, radical enameling, The Crucible, workshops with no comments

An Evening with John Killmaster- Thurs. July 5th

By Judy Stone

on July 5, 2018

with no comments

6 PM – 4 Maxwell Ct., Santa Rosa, CA
Free and open to the public – Light refreshments will be provided

The Center for Enamel Art invites you to attend an informative evening with John Killmaster who will be inaugurating our new Annex inside KVO Industries in Santa Rosa with his workshop July 6-9.

John has a lifetime of knowledge and experience to share. In this presentation he will be showing slides of the types of techniques he will be teaching in his workshop plus images of his work as he has developed as an educator, master enamel artist and painter.

In categories Tagged with enamel, enamel on steel, enameled steel, enamelist, experimental, industrial enameling, John Killmaster, KVO Industries, large scale enameling, liquid enamel, workshops with no comments

Surface, Color, Form: We Talk With Kathryn Osgood About Her Boundary-Pushing Work

By Center for Enamel Art

on April 3, 2018

Brooch, Kathryn Osgood

Kathryn Osgood worked as an engineer for a small, family-owned telephone company in rural Maine for almost 20 years before starting a second life as an artist, jeweler, and enamelist. After studying with Linda Darty and Bob Ebendorf at East Carolina University, she moved to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, where she heads the Professional Crafts Jewelry Program at College of The Albemarle in Manteo.

Osgood’s work pushes the boundaries of enameling, using fold-forming, varied surfaces, and non-traditional materials to create tactile, sculptural pieces. Osgood will share her expertise in her upcoming workshop, Enamels: Exploring Texture, Color and Form. The workshop runs from May 18 – May 20, 2018, at the Crucible in Oakland, CA.

There are still slots available in this workshop–register now!

What drew you to enamel as your preferred medium?

I have always loved color. It elicits an emotional response from the viewer; it can be calming, sensual, exciting, joyful. Before I became a jeweler and enamellist, I was working as a textile artist, doing surface design, painting and dyeing fabric and creating wall hangings and quilts. When I took my first metals class, I was hooked. I loved working with metal; how it allowed me to create dimensional work. It could be hammered, shaped, and formed. I fell in love with the material, but I really missed the element of color.

When I discovered enamel, I found a way to bring color back into my work. Layering opaque and transparent enamels allows me explore an almost unlimited rich color palette.

Ocean Brooch, Kathryn Osgood

How did you become intrigued with textured dimensional surfaces?

When I began working with metal and was fabricating jewelry from sheet metal, I was not satisfied with the idea of decorating a flat surface. I wanted to create pieces that were more sculptural, to take advantage of the plasticity of metal, of its ability to be formed into organic shapes. I began exploring the natural forms around me: magnolia pods, pine cones, leaves. I was intrigued by the textures found in nature and I wanted to replicate them, creating pieces that were more organic.

I enjoy exploring ways to from metal by hammering, dapping, bending, fold forming, shell forming, and die forming. I like my pieces to have a tactile quality, to invite the viewer to touch. I want them to feel good, to entice with both texture and color.

Who have been your mentors?

There are so many talented enamelists whose work inspires me, so it is hard to just name a few.

I was lucky enough to study at East Carolina University with Linda Darty and Bob Ebendorf. Linda Darty introduced me to enameling and the world of color on metal. Linda is a master enamellist and she generously shared her extensive knowledge of enameling and was a supportive and encouraging teacher. Linda continues to impress me with her beautiful work and with her love for the art of enameling. Bob Ebendorf is also a mentor and generous teacher. His knowledge of metalsmithing and his adventurous creative spirit continue to inspire me in living a creative life.

Osgood on the North Carolina coast

What inspires your work?

I live on Roanoke Island, off the coast of North Carolina. Since moving to the Outer Banks area, my work has changed to reflect my environment. The colors and textures of the sand and the water that surround my coastal home inform my work. In the early mornings, I often walk on the beach with my dog, Lola, picking up pieces of shells and driftwood that have washed in with the tide. My pieces are based on marine plant and animal forms, their textures and colors informed by the shell fragments that I have collected.

Find more of Osgood’s work on her website.

In categories Creativity, Interviews, Workshops Tagged with Bob Ebendorf, College of the Albemarle, Eastern Carolina University, enamel, enameled copper, enameling, enamelist, experimental, interviews, Kathryn Osgood, Linda Darty, radical enameling, sculpture, workshops

Harold Balazs, True Artist, True Friend

By Center for Enamel Art

on February 8, 2018

Balazs at work in his studio, 2002. Photo by Rajah Bose

With the death of Harold Balazs, a wonderful enamel artist who worked beautifully in many media, the art and craft community has lost not only a tremendous talent but a true friend. Balazs passed away on December 30, 2017, at the age of 89.

His career over the years was that of a resourceful, versatile, and multi-talented artist. Originally from Ohio, where as a child he encountered the work of enamel artist Edward Winter, he studied fine art at Washington State College, where his family moved in the 40s.

He earned a living with a combination of production work and commissions: enameled jewelry, architectural designs, public sculpture, posters, paintings and drawings. He left a legacy of public art throughout Spokane. His work can be found everywhere in the city, from churches to corporate headquarters.

Large mosaic style panel, 1950s

But Balazs also left another, less visible legacy: He was an incredibly generous mentor to young artists, providing generations with encouragement and studio space. Center for Enamel Art founder, Judy Stone, was a close friend of Balazs.

“I met Harold in the early 90’s when I attended the Pacific Enameling Symposium in Seattle,” says Stone. “At the time I was feeling my way into a very established enamel community and was wondering how I could fit in and whether my work was any good. Based on Harold’s demeanor as he taught, created collaborations among students and answered questions, I decided to ask him if I could show him some of my work at the end of the symposium. I was scared, but felt Harold would do his best not to hurt my feelings. His critique was loving, constructive, and tremendously positive. From then on I considered Harold a mentor and a friend.”

Balazs gave this piece to Center founder Judy Stone. Enamel on copper, 4″ x 4.5″

“In 2003, when I was co-coordinating the Enamelist Society Biennial conference ‘On the Edge’, we asked Harold to be our keynote speaker,” recalls Stone. “His keynote, like the man himself, was about matters much bigger than himself and enameling. He talked about art and craft education in K-12–which at the time was getting slashed from many school budgets–saying that art was as important to human development as breathing.”

Balazs was that rare breed of artist — dedicated to art as a process and a way of life, not just for himself but for others, too. Of the many beautiful works he left us, that may be his greatest. “To the very end,” says Stone, “Harold lived his life as someone who cared about others succeeding.”

In categories Creativity, Uncategorized Tagged with enameling, enamelist, Harold Balazs, Spokane

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