#593 (1971). Electroformed

copper foil, plique-a-jour blue,

and silver enamel. 5” h. x 9 ¼“

diam. Image courtesy of the

artist andthe Mingei Inter-

national Museum.

^{Photo by M. Lee Fatherree}

Cut a color field painting by Mark Rothko from its frame; then crumple it up into a ball. That is what many of June Schwarcz enameled vessels look like with their rich hues and rumpled creases. The work of one of America’s most notable enamellists, some of Schwarcz’s other vessels appear to have been bejeweled with disfiguring warts. A large exhibition of over 90 artworks by this 91-year-old matriarch of the enameling world is currently on display at the Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park.

#2282 (2005).

Electroplated copper

foil, enameled yellow

and lavender interior,

brown patina on exterior.

4 ¾” h. x 12 ¼ “ diam.

Image courtesy of the

artist and the Mingei

International Museum.

^{Photo by M. Lee Fatherree}

Like the painter Mark Rothko, June Schwarcz is a master of a craft process that she is able to transform into a specific vocabulary that speaks with an original, unique voice. In her solo exhibition Transformed by Fire—June Schwarcz Enamel Vessels from the Forrest L. Merrill Collection she uses the language of color, form, shape, and texture to communicate specific ideas that can evoke complex concepts and emotions within a viewer of her work. Both her electroformed and her enameled vessels are captivating to look at because of their elegant surfaces encrusted with multicolored layers of melted glass or their unusual forms made by a process of electroforming both copper and copper wire mesh using a chemical bath and electric current to literally grow atom by atom an ornate metal surface.

One such vessel was made by sewing together sheets of fine copper then electroforming the whole with gold. The cylindrical golden vessel #2271 with a blue-gray interior was made in 2005. It has many vertical seams looking like folded paper that are carbuncled with an unpredictable matrix of golden growths, which sprout during the electroplating process. The vessel is interesting because of its peculiar organic bumpy surface juxtaposed with the architectural paper-like folds and unique matte gold hue.

Another vessel is made from copper mesh. Vessel #2332 (2007) has a delicate translucent skin webbed with a crumpled surface of wrinkles and finished with a smoky black patina. It is small-scale contemporary architecture made from materials that are as fine as woven silk. It is an impossible vessel that holds a viewer’s gaze

#2282 (2005). Electroplated

copper foil, enameled yellow

and lavender interior, brown

patina on exterior. 4 ¾”

h. x 12 ¼ “ diam. Image

courtesy of the artist and

the Mingei International

Museum.

^{Photo byM. Lee Fatherree}

Luscious and awkwardly handsome are Schwarcz’s vessels that combine both electroforming and enameling. A prime example is vessel #593 (1971). It looks as though hardy welded seams hold together pieces of fragile blue opalescent Tiffany glass. Its opposing characteristics complement each other.

This exhibition is based on an original exhibit (albeit with a much better title), June Schwarcz—Expressionism’s Fire and the Resonant Form, that was curated for the Fresno Art Museum by Jacquelin Pilar in 2008 but installed at the Mingei in an expanded form. It is a fine viewing experience. Other exhibits at the Mingei include Sonabai—Another Way of Seeing, which features artwork by Sonabai Rajawar from India and an exhibition of Mexican folk art entitled ¡Viva México!.