How to decorate ceramics Made in Italy: craft techniques
From its origins to the present, ceramics are decorated and painted according to numerous techniques invented over the years by artisans. Tradition expected that pottery is painted and decorated by hand and there are so many ways to do it.
Mario Criscuolo founded Ceramiche Piccadilly back in 1981, driven by passion and love for his land. Passion that transmits in the quality of its ceramics too, decorated according to the most ancient craft traditions. But what is the ceramic decoration technique and what are the subjects of Italian tradition?
Decorating the ceramics according to the Italian tradition
The most traditional and well-known technique, especially as regards Made in Italy, is the one where are used ceramic colors. These colors are able to withstand the very high temperatures of the final firing of the ceramic and are obtained from various metal oxides, minerals and earths. The ceramic colors are found on the market in the form of powders which are then diluted in water, based on the intensity of color to be obtained.
The first step is to glaze the decorated ceramic by immersion, brush, spray or cascade. Before proceeding with the decoration, it is important that the enamel is well dried. Usually, the craftsman prefers to decorate freehand, especially the floral subjects and landscapes, paying attention to the pressure exerted by the brush and to the density of the color. If, on the other hand, we want to create geometric decorations, we use a technique called “of spolvero”, to trace guidelines. This technique consists in placing a perforated sheet of paper along the contours of the design that you want to carry to the ceramic, then you dab it with a wad of fabric from the coal dust that deposits on the ceramic through the holes in the paper, leaving very light marks that disappear after cooking.
Once the decoration is finished, the ceramic goes into second firing in the ceramic oven at 940 ° for 12 hours. In this way the enamel and the colors merge and become indelible.
Wich are the Italian tradition subjects
Italian ceramics are real art-masterpieces, unique pieces handmade by expert craftsmen and decorators. Works that you can bring to your table or you can exhibit on the walls or in your living room, featuring the beautiful landscapes of the Amalfi coast, views of Positano, the narrow streets of Sorrento, the blue waves of our sea and above all the yellow Amalfi lemons.
The intense yellow of these fruits and the emerald green of their leaves are an essential part of the views of the Amalfi Coast, so much so that they are a symbol of the territory. The art of ceramics became widespread in the Amalfi Coast as early as the fifteenth century, and the lemon has always been the most reproduced subject in the decorations of majolica, especially the “Sfusato PGI Lemon” of Amalfi, a typical variety of the territory, with a characteristic tapered shape that is cultivated in terraces along the coast. These particular lemons were already known at the time of the Romans, not surprisingly in Pompeii and Herculaneum very ancient were found with these cheerful and aromatic fruits as protagonists.
Observing the decorations of the beautiful Italian ceramics will take you back to the beautiful landscapes of the Amalfi Coast, making you want to return as soon as possible to immerse yourself in our crystal clear sea, accompanied by the smell of yellow and juicy lemons.
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