64 
RERAMIC STUDIO 
No. 1. Primitive Process. Santa Clara Pottery (Pueblo Indians, New Mexico)- 
Pottery blackened by smoke. In the National Museum, Washington, D. C. 
TECHNICAL STUDY ON THE DECORATION OF ART 
CERAMICS 
Louis Franchet 
AMONG the many decorative processes used in ceramics, 
some are exclusively mechanical industrial processes, 
others are special to art work and these will be the subject of 
our study. 
Artists have often called my attention to the fact that, if 
some of the decorative methods employed in the old times 
were better known, modern decorators would derive from them 
many useful indications. 
I will then examine some of the methods which have been 
in use from the most remote times and show that some processes 
which have made possible very remarkable works of art, are 
entirely neglected to-day, and are even absolutely unknown 
to artists. 
In order to show all the resoui-ces which the cei-amic 
technique offers them, I will group in the following classes all 
the decorative processes which have been in use since the time 
when men had no other tools than stones or the bones of 
animals. 
A — Primitive Processes 
Not all the methods used by primitive potters are of use 
in modern art, but nearly all, if better known and understood, 
would give important suggestions for the decoration of our 
ceramics. 
Among old processes, which were used before the discovery 
of glazing, I will mention the following: 
1st. Polishing— which the potter does with his wet hand; 
this requires very fine bodies. 
2d. Glossing — obtained by rubbing the piece, while it is 
still slightly damp, with a tool made of wood, horn or bone. 
For this also bodies must have a very fine grain. 
3d. Smoking — which colors the piece black. The piece 
is simply fired in an extremely reducing atmosphere, at a low 
temperature (600° to 700° C.) 
4th. Varnishing — which is obtained by covering the fired 
pottery with vegetable varnishes, generally colored. In the 
Congo, natives have produced by this method remarkably 
artistic works. Some of these varnishes are mat, other bright, 
and they are used either alone or combined, and often to bring 
out some incised ornament, effects also are varied by making 
the application either cold or warm. Because this decoration 
has been practiced by negroes, it should not be concluded that 
it presents no difficulties. On the contrary it is very difficult 
to carry out sucessfully, and, as it is very durable (more than 
some of our glazes which crease and shiver), it could very well 
be adapted to the decoration of modern art work, especially 
as modern chemistry ofll'ers us the most varied resources. 
5th. Incised decoration. 
6th. Excised decoration. 
7th. Inlaid decoration. 
These three processes have been used in primitive times, 
but I will describe them at length later on and will show how 
they can be adapted to modern work. 
8th. Relief decoration — This process is so well known 
that it is not necessary to say much about it. It can be ob- 
tained either by directly modeling ornaments in the paste, or 
by applying ornaments which have been previously modeled or 
made in moulds. 
A variety of this decoration, which might be called drop 
decoration, was used in very remote times. It consisted in 
PrimiUee Pi 
ochres. 
Kcss. Large Jar (Ancient Peruvian). Painting with 
In the Metropolitan Museuiu of Art, New York. 
