Illustrated is a large
serving platter and pasta bowl glazed and decorated in a tin based majolica
based on formula from both Dick Schneider and Linda Arbuckle, both appear to be
based on a recipe known as Batz majolica easily found all over the web. Using
wax resist and several colors, after putting down the wax spirals I painted alternating squares of crimson and yellow on the surface and then
went in with copper and black accents to mimic the white resisted spirals as
well as the help animate the overall surface. I should also mention that I add
just a tiny amount of color to the white base glaze to soften it a bit, perhaps
.5%, this presents a white surface without being so white. I like the slightly
muted white surface and finds it works better with the colored washes and
decoration that I tend to use. I know a number of these larger serving pieces
have ended up in the hands of caterers and they stand up pretty well to the
constant use and abuse. I know my wife and I have a few pieces made in the late
90s which look close to new but I think the first pieces of majolica I ever made
were back in 1990 or 1991 and I now wonder how they have fared after all these
years?
It may be rather clear by now that I rely quite a bit on
spirals, not only because they are easy and simple to work with but rather because I
have always been interested in the significance of the device. The universal
and spiritual aspects of the spiral and its relationship to culture across the
globe and into the reaches of the universe, think spiral galaxies and beyond,
the spiral is much more than a simple decorative device and can be interpreted
as many things by many people. What better than to use a decorative device that
can say so much with such a simple circular collapsing brush stroke.
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