The Guild of Enamellers

Enamelling in the 21st Century
Enamels, the raw materials, are qualities of glass that can be fused to metal surfaces. The range of translucent and opaque colours, alone of all man-made materials, can echo those of the precious stones, from rubies, emeralds and sapphires, to lapis lazuli, polished malachite, garnet and ivory. The enamels, for art work, are suitably prepared and fused at red heat to a gold, silver, copper or alloyed base, to give a durable and brilliant glaze.

Enamels can be inlaid into an engraved or recessed design [champleve] or applied over an engine-turned surface [guilloche], or added as a thin coating of glaze to raised forms [email en ronde bosse]. Cloisonne enamelwork is a jewellery style, which can be adapted for the larger scale, using flat or round metal outlines, and is suitable for stylised figural or abstract designs. Striking effects are produced if an openwork design is made, and clear enamels are fused to span across the cells [plique-a-jour]. There are, in addition, several distinctive painting methods with these unfading materials. In the modern era, traditional methods have been augmented with experimental techniques and newly formulated enamels that can extend the horizons of this traditional art and craft.

For jewellery, enamels have played a particularly important role since medieval times, for their potential to enhance regalia as well as personal ornaments. Over the intervening centuries many spectacular pieces have been enhanced with enamels, from Renaissance pendant jewels to the eye-catching, inventive designs of Rene Lalique. On a far wider scale, enamels have been integrated into a great diversity of ornamental jewellery and also used for badges, on precious metals and gilt copper bases. Thus, enamelled jewellery can offer traditional craftsmanship or innovations: from controlled to freeform patterning, from settings for gemstones to the use of colour to merge with a sculptured metal design, while singular pieces give reign to flights of fantasy, with the splendour of these fused colours.

The Guild of Enamellers, currently celebrating its 25th year, has provided a unifying and progressive organisation for craftspeople who are linked by their work with various branches of enamelling. Membership extends to people engaged in ancillary researches, thus to jewellers, metalworkers, pigment scientists, craft teachers and historians of decorative arts. The Guild also welcomes newcomers to enamelling who will find creative support and access to information as members.

The Guild of Enamellers offers an annual Conference, which is a weekend event: there are full day tutorials, within a programme that includes a lecture, a Master-class and other presentations. The Journal of the Guild, while of small format, is an important, on-going archive of modern enamelling. It helps to keep members in touch, and informs about new materials, processes, books and researches, plus forthcoming events. The Guild of Enamellers Library is an outstanding resource for the members, who can borrow by post or at the Conferences.

There are seven Regions of the Guild spanning across the country, with local meetings at regular intervals. There are annual selections for which members can submit six piece of enamelwork, which are assessed by a panel of experts, and can lead to the attainment of the status of Associate of the Guild of Enamellers [A.G.E], or of Craftsman of the Guild of Enamellers [C.G.E]. There are various annual certificates awarded, including for beginner's work. Research work can be submitted at any time of the year in the form of a thesis, according to the Guild directives, and this enables the gaining of either the A.G.E. or the C.G.E. status.

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This article first appeared in Issue 153
of Craftsman Magazine

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