Pat Musick - Portfolio - Gallery - Enamel Art For Walls

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Medano Morning

Medano Morning
Enameled copper, 14" x 11"

A bright October morning at Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve inspired this piece. Frost and fallen cottonwood leaves nestle in deer tracks deep in the sand of the dunes by the bank of Medano Creek.

Red Rock Rhythms

Red Rock Rhythms
Enameled copper, 8" x 10"

This piece, inspired by Red Rock Canyon near Pikes Peak, Colorado (a property protected as open space), was created for the Palmer Land Trust "Art for Land's Sake" benefit art sale.

Archivist

Archivist
Enameled copper; 8" x 8"

This chuckwalla and petroglyph rock seen in Grand Canyon inspired this piece in which translucent amber enamels allow the color of the copper to shine through, contrasting with the sandy opaque enamels of the petroglyph rock. The opaques were mixed with adhesive, dried, and scratched through (sgraffito technique) to reveal the underlying enamel from previous firings, then under-fired to the point of glass grains fusing to the metal but retaining a sandy, rough appearance and texture ("sugar fired").

Canyon Heart

Canyon Heart
Enameled copper, silver foil, 10" X 8"

Reflections in a pool in North Canyon, Grand Canyon. Smooth, brilliant reflections shine among shadowed sandstone. In this piece, the powdered glass depicting the surrounding sandstone is underfired, giving a rough, grainy texture, while the enamels depicitng the pool and reflections are smooth and translucent.

Benediction

Benediction
Enameled copper, 9" X 12"

Inspired by Deer Creek Falls, Grand Canyon. The enamel depicting the foreground cliffs was scratched through (sgraffito technique) before the first firing, exposing the underlying copper; in firing, the copper oxidized to black. The ridges and crevices in the cliffs create physical variations, giving a slight relief surface.

Granite Rapid, Evening

Inner Canyon Evening
Enameled copper; 10� x 8�

In this piece, inspired by camping at Granite Rapid on a Grand Canyon river trip,the glow of the higher cliffs catching the last sunlight is captured in copper under transparent enamels. Water details were made using painting enamels (the glass ground very finely, to consistency of paint; painted on and fired).

Jaguar Night

Jaguar Night
Enameled copper; 16� x 20�

Garden Party

Garden Party
Enameling on steel; 20� x 16�

Contemplation

Contemplation
Etched and enameled copper; 12� x 18�

This desert iguana's skin texture was created by etching the copper before applying any enamel. Transparent gold-tone enamel was applied over the entire etched area, so one looks through the enamel to see the different layers of metal that were etched (basse-taille technique). The green tint seen on the iguana and branch is an oxide of copper that forms under thin, highly-fired enamel. The black immediately surrounding the iguana and branch is bare copper, deeply oxidized from multiple firings. Opaque red and yellow enamels were used for the bright prickly-pear cactus blossom.

Pathfinder

Pathfinder

8" x 10" Enameling on copper, oxidized copper

Inspired by rattlesnake, petroglyphs, and rock textures at Petrified Forest National Park.

Waterpocket

Enameling on copper; 11" x 14"

On desert slickrock surfaces--such as the Esplanade in western Grand Canyon--eroded pockets (tinajas) hold water that sustains life and mirrors the sky.

Pat Musick - musickstudio