Enamelling technique and application in jewelry

The main purposes of this study are to investigate the usage of enameling in jewelry, to determine the basic techniques adopted in this art and to produce original works based these basic techniques of enameling. Within the scope of these purposes, first of all, the history of enamel art was examined. In parallel with the world art history, the changes and developments in the enameling were examined. The use of enamel art was prioritized and the special techniques and materials used in enameling jewelry were determined. Four of these techniques, which are frequently used, were introduced in detail. These techniques are Cloisonné, Champlevé, painting enamel and Plique-â-Jour. Upon the detailed literature review of enameling, 20 works, which were accessible by printed sources, were examined. For these works, the information cards were prepared in which technical characteristics of these works were defined. It has been observed that the techniques frequently used in these works are the same as those determined in the literature review phase of the study. The first phase of the study was ended with the work examination and the second phase of the study, the artist created four different products based on the pre-determined basic techniques of enameling. All of the production stages of the ring, which was produced based on the Champlevé technique, were presented in detail with the photographs. The information cards were prepared for these works, too. In the works production process, several difficulties were met. The first of these issues is the high- sensitivity and extremely fragile structure of the enamel. The other difficulty is the inability to carry out the necessary heat treatments to finalize the product after the enamel application. This issue has resulted in a narrow usage area of enamel in jewelry. Based on the literature review and observations in this study, it has been determined that enamel is a difficult and sensitive material that may not allow a substantial change. In summary, it has been concluded that there are not enough applied studies in the field. It has been determined that more applied studies are needed for more qualified enamel applications in jewelry.