Majolica

Majolica is something I wasn't particularly familiar with prior to this project and I wasn't interested in applying the majolica to any of my pieces simply because once this particular glaze-style is applied, the vessel is no longer functional; however, after this project was completed, I realized it's quite attractive if done right.

Now, the Maiolica piece is one of my favorites as I glance back at my corner full of pots. The bright green is an eye catcher. My Maiolica piece started out as a very basic plate. Once I did some research, I found an artist that I really enjoyed: Matthias Ostermann. His use of bright colors on a black Maiolica surface is really intense and appealing. Since I did not have a black Maiolica base at my disposal, I had to create the illusion of black Maiolica. I started by glazing the entire plate with the white Maiolica base. I then painted on the flower and leaf design. Once I had painted it all, I went in and filled all the white space in with black Maiolica paint. I then used a sgraffito method over the top of the flower and carved back through the glaze to reveal some of the white base glaze. I think the piece was really successful, and reflects my personality very accurately: loud, bright and a little bit different.