Ceramic Slip Sgraffito

Sgraffito in italian to scratch is a decorating pottery technique produced by applying layers of color or colors underglazes or colored slips to leather hard pottery and then scratching off parts of the layer s to create contrasting images patterns and texture and reveal the clay color underneath.

Ceramic slip sgraffito.

Sgraffito carving an. This allows for a relatively even coating of slip yet it dries a bit slower giving me time to complete my sgrafitto before the slip starts to chip when scratched. I slip my pots when they look dry but have a small bit of moisture in them. Lightly draw a grid on the piece using a soft pencil like a 2b.

The decorative layer can be underglaze slip or engobe. 11 responses to creating subtle layers with sgraffito slip and multi toned glazes. I remade this video because of a camera issue. Decorating with slip and sgraffito.

So the first place to start with sgraffito is choosing which clay to make your piece from. To make the tip cut a piece of spring heat it with a small torch and bend it to the shape you want. I no longer use the school camera which can lose focus. If you find spots where slip has bled under your cutouts use a sgraffito tool to scrape the clay body clean.

Once all stencils are removed add final sgraffito details or any other cutouts to the surface figure 15. Thomas born getty images creating sgraffito. The spring metal is thin and strong doesn t have to be sharpened and keeps the same feel as it wears away. Making sgraffito pottery involves scratching through a top decorative layer to expose the underlying clay body.

Scratch through the slip so that the tool just barely digs into the underlying clay. Clay incising leather hard resist sgraffito slip underglaze engobe wax resist. However the sgraffito technique can be used on bisqueware too. Often the underglaze slip or engobe is applied to leather hard clay before being incised.

Comments 4 responses to using slips sgraffito and inlay techniques to create a new twist on oribe. As a basic rule fine clays work much better as anything rough or with too much grog in won t create a smooth finish when you re scratching off the topcoat of slip or underglaze you can of course use the sgraffito technique on any shape or size of pot. Alternatively use a small brush with water to erase any areas of unwanted slip.