Michael Cullum

Shop Owner, Metalsmith, Enamelist & Designer

In the art of enameling, any accident you can repeat is called a technique.

Several years ago, I was looking for a source of creativity that didn’t rely on computers and I found the art of enameling. Its an ancient tradition that fits naturally with the warm and textured modernism I’ve loved since the beginning of my career in architecture. It’s the modernism of Alvar Aalto and Carlo Scarpa; embracing clean lines with purpose but is also richly tactile. It’s more about the intense attention to detail of the handcrafted and less about the precision of the machine. 

Enameling finds beauty fusing glass to metal with fire. The process can be guided but is fundamentally unpredictable. Each firing in the kiln is unique. There is no cut-and-paste. There is no Undo.