Existing comment:
Electroplating
By the early 1960s, Schwarcz felt limited by the thinness of the copper in her basse-taille enamels. She wanted to build higher walls around the recessed areas of etching and more varied surface texture. She found her trailblazing answer in electroplating---an industrial metalworking process that uses an electric current to move positively charged metal particles through a solution and deposit them on an object. About 1962 Schwarcz's husband built a thirty-gallon plating tank in their home and asked a colleague to teach her the process. With a few basic instructions, she began her pioneering experiments. After etching the surface of her plaques and vessels, she coated the etched areas with a masking agent. She then submerged the piece in the tank, and, over time, the areas of exposed metal were built up. She often repeated the process, covering built up areas and re-submerging the piece. Once she had achieved the desired effect, Schwarcz cleaned the piece, applied enamel color, and fired it in her kiln. |