Cloisonne
(pronounced cloy-zon-ay, French for ”partition”)
What is Cloissone?
Cloisonne is an ancient jewelry making technique. It uses tiny gold filaments and brightly colored glass enamel to create gorgeous jewelry. The artist bends small metal wires into shapes, creating tiny cells (partitions). Then, they add multiple coats of a fine glass enamel powder to create the brilliant colors.
Once the piece is fired, you have a unique, handmade piece of wearable art. Cloisonne is the metal and enamel jewelry making technique that Shirley uses to create her fine silver jewelry.
You can read more about how the Cloisonne technique was used in ancient China here.
Cloisonne Art
Being involved in the world of art all my life, many media have crossed my path, but cloisonne enameling has stayed with me for many years. I believe not only because of its beauty but its ability to stretch and grow into lots of different aspects of creativity.
The ability to take an idea put it into a sketch and mold it into a jewel to be worn, to me is amazing. I have done this many times, not just for my pleasure, but also giving birth to someone’s idea who trusted me to work with them.
-Shirley
The Cloisonne Process
has become my newest crayon.