How is grisaille enamel painting made on a dark enamel ground?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Samson killing Philistines — Enamelwork Standing dish depicting Samson crushing the Philistines with the jawbone of an ass, enamel on copper by Pierre Courteys, c. 1580; in the Taft Museum of Art, Cincinnati, Ohio. Height 9.8 cm, diameter 22.9 cm.

In the technique of grisaille enamel painting, the process begins by creating a paste from pulverized white vitreous enamel mixed with a medium such as water, turpentine, oil of lavender, or petroleum oil.1

This paste is then applied to a dark enamel ground, which is typically colored black or blue. The artist creates the design through varying the thickness of the application:1
* Lighter areas: These are created by applying the white enamel in thick layers.1
* Gray areas: These are achieved by applying thinner coats of the white enamel, which allows the dark background color to show through and tone the white pigment.1

Developed in 16th-century France by the Limoges school of enamelers, this method creates a dramatic interplay of light and shade, resulting in a pronounced three-dimensional effect.1