Pottery decoration under the glaze

by M. Louise McLaughlin

Carving in clay, as well as modeling and incising can be glazed with the colored majolica glazes with excellent effect.

CHAPTER VII.
PAINTING UPON THE BISCUIT.

After the ware has been fired once and is in what is called the “biscuit,” it can be decorated by the use of underglaze colors, in the form of thin washes resembling water-color painting. Ware used for this purpose should be made of white, or very light cream-colored clay, as the colors, being used in transparent washes, would be dimmed, and would have their tints sullied by use upon a ground of dark color.

On white ware those colors should be used which will best stand the heat necessary in the firing and glazing of this ware. For this reason painting executed on white is usually in monochrome, and only the strongest colors are used, such as blue, black, or brown. The best effect is produced by the use of blue. This style of work is familiar from the numerous pieces of Japanese ware, of porcelain or white earthen-ware, painted in blue, which are brought to this country.

The method of painting is simple and not likely to prove difficult or uncertain as to its results in the hands of one familiar with the use of water colors. The color generally used is dark blue, and there are several different blues which furnish very fine tints. Among these might be mentioned Emery’s cobalt blue, which is excellent and does very well upon the white ware manufactured here. Phillips’ mazarine blue and Harrison’s Persian blue are also very rich, deep colors, the latter having a purplish tint. One of the best blues, as reliable and pleasing in color as any, has been prepared by Mr. Joseph Bailey, of the Hamilton Road Pottery.

The color must be rubbed down until perfectly smooth, and should be mixed with water and enough gum arabic to keep it from rubbing off in the necessary handling before firing. The design having been sketched upon the ware to be decorated, with a lead pencil, the first washes may be put in with a light tint of the blue. These should be laid on with a free hand and without retouching before they have dried. The darker tints may then be laid in, and lastly the deepest shadows. These should be painted thickly and sharply to give the proper depth of color. If necessary they may be painted over a second time; care should be taken, however, not to have an excess of paint in any part, as that would prevent the glaze from adhering to the ware. The lines should be particularly clear and sharp, as they generally spread more or less in the glazing, and if they are not well defined and the shadows are not dark enough, the effect will be blurred and indistinct. In this kind of work clearness and distinctness are to be desired. If the painting is carefully executed and the various degrees of light and shade are well preserved, something of the effect of a painting in water colors will be produced. Monochromes in brown and black are done in the same way, only that in the case of the latter color it is better to mix a very little blue with it, as that will make it stand the fire better. Before glazing, the ware should be fired once to “harden on” the colors. If the color should run in the glazing, the painting may be repaired by the use of gilding over the glaze, by which the blurred outlines may be concealed. When, from the perfection of the firing, this is unnecessary, work of this kind, and especially that in blue, may be very much enhanced by a judicious use of gilding.

Painting in the Lambeth or Bennett Style.

This is done upon a very light, cream-colored ware. The method of painting is similar to that described above, with the exception that all colors can be used. In using the weaker colors, and in mixtures, the same rules that have been given before must be observed. Colors which do not stand the fire very well, such as yellow and rose color, must be laid on thickly, while in mixtures, as well as when used alone, the stronger colors should be used sparingly. In the Lambeth or Bennett style of painting upon faience, the designs are either wholly or partly conventional. The grounds are either left the natural color of the ware or painted. The designs usually of flowers are in natural colors very slightly shaded and surrounded by a dark outline.

The design having been drawn upon the surface with a lead pencil, the ground, if it is to be colored, may be laid on with some color, or mixture of colors, which will harmonize with the decoration. As it is impossible to paint it smoothly with a brush, or to do it by any of the methods in use for over-glaze painting, the ground must be “dabbled” on, either with a small blending brush, or better, a sponge, which has been cut to the proper shape and size, and which may be fastened in a quill and used as a brush. This is dipped in the color which has been mixed upon the palette, and with it the color is applied to the surface of the vase, producing a mottled ground, which may be shaded from light to dark, by the application of more or less color, as desired, and also may be varied by the introduction of other colors which will harmonize with each other, and with the decoration. The design may then be painted in flat washes, which should be laid on freely, with the shadows boldly defined. This done, a line, either of black or dark olive green, made from dark brown and a little green, may be painted around the design, outlining and relieving it against the ground.