Merry-Lee Rae's Classroom

I have been enamored with the lifework of Martha Banyas since the late 1970's. When I first saw her work, it was at that moment that I realized that enamel was not just a technical craft but also a way to create art. Enamel as Art Over the decades Martha has relentlessly pursued the ability to fuse glass to metal. In the beginning, she chose cloisonné as a method for expressing her artwork but was hampered by the limitations of the wirework. In her quest to explore the world of enamels found Bill Helwig who was incredibly knowledgeable and also passionate about sharing his vast accumulated familiarity with enamels. He introduced Martha to Underglaze materials and techniques opening a whole new world for her to express her artistic voice. She proceeded to explore underglazes over the next decades including introduction to Mason Stains suggested to her by Carol Schaffer. (Coral was founder of Enamelwork Supply which is now Enamel Art Supply in care of my daughter Mack Rae Watrous) Martha's years of underglaze research can be found in her two Workshops here. The Coat and The Mask. She has now shared the years of Blackboard research for all of you. The enamelists of the future. This information is presented here as a lecture by Martha. It is not a project based workshop but rather her generous sharing of countless experiments and their results. It is her hope that some of you will be able to build on this information and make this an art of your own. Martha Banyas- I have loved this woman such a long time. This is such an amazing gift from her, to all of us.