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All
the handpainted ceramic bathroom tile in these series are
painted with the unique technique of under glaze ceramic hand painting.
The tile pattern is first outlined with the black colour and then the
rest of the colors are hand painted on the tile. Once all the colors are
applied the tile is glazed with a transparent lead free glaze and placed
in a ceramic kiln. The kiln is fired up to a temperature of 1000 degrees
centigrade (red hot) whereby the ceramic colors are sealed with the
melting of the transparent glaze on the surface of the tile. The firing
usually takes a cycle of about twenty four hours from start to finish.
A
second type of decoration which we use is that of in glaze handpainted
ceramic bathroom tile decoration. In this case the black outline is
applied to the surface of a glazed and fired tile and then the colors
applied by hand. The tile is again fired to a temperature of about 1000
degrees centigrade where the colors melt into the glaze of the tile.
All
of these techniques have been handed over to us throughout more than 80
years of the Balian Tile history from father to son and to daughter.
There are very few other tile studios worldwide which match the
intricacy and brilliance of the patterns which we handpaint to this
present day.
The hand painted ceramic bathroom tiles
and designs of Balian Armenian Ceramics have been exhibited all over the
world in various museums and institutions. The zenith being the solo
exhibition at the Smithsonian Museum of Washington D.C. in 1992 and at
ALMA (The Armenian Library and Museum of America in Boston MA).
Our pottery has also been the subject of numerous articles in magazines and newspapers worldwide. These include The New York Times , The Washington
Post, The Irish Times and The Chicago Tribune. Some copies of these articles can be seen on this web site at the What They Write About Us
pages. Original and authentic Balian Armenian Ceramics is sold only at our factory and retail outlet on 14 Nablus Rd. East Jerusalem( and now on our web site). The present location of our factory is where the true form of art known as Armenian Ceramics of Jerusalem was born. We are the only studio in Jerusalem producing our own ceramic ware and
bathroom tiles by methods handed over to us by our grandparents and parents. |
