Cherie Beatty paints a flower on a porcelain platter during a recent meeting of the East Texas Porcelain Art Guild at Tyler Senior Citizens Center. Guild members meet once a month. SCHUYLER WICK/CORRESPONDENT

In a corner of a room at the Tyler Senior Citizens Center, Cherie Beatty looks at an image of a flower in front of her, dips her brush into a blob of paint and applies the paint to a white porcelain platter.

She begins forming a red rose with delicate-looking petals.

Sitting next to her at the table is an artist new to painting on porcelain whom she is giving pointers to on forming flower leaves.

Ms. Beatty takes a tissue and wipes away a leaf that needs a little work.

“That’s the good thing about painting on porcelain,” she said. “If you mess up, you can just wipe it off.”

Nearby, several artists were visiting with one another and sharing stories about their latest projects.

All are members of the East Texas Porcelain Art Guild. The guild meets the first Wednesday of each month at the center for show-and-tell and to share pointers.

The club was founded in 1957 and has members throughout the region.

Jackie Phillips said creating art on porcelain is a labor-intensive process.

“The paint we use is made of a mineral pigment that is ground until it is really fine,” she explained. “It is mixed with oil so that it will stick to the slick surface.”

After the first layer of paint is applied, the artist uses a kiln to bake the image into the porcelain surface.

“And then you paint and then bake and paint and bake some more,” she said. “The paints we use are very translucent. … It is color upon color upon color.”

During a recent meeting, tables were covered with members’ work: porcelain saucers, cups, platters, tiles, eggs and keepsake boxes covered with images.

“It’s not just painting flowers,” Adriene Barnett said. “We do animals and a lot of other things.”

Ms. Barnett said she has been painting on porcelain for about eight years and often gives her creations away as gifts.

East Texans can browse and buy from among some such items at the East Texas Porcelain Art Guild’s annual show and sale hosted during the Tyler Azalea & Spring Flower Trail.

This year’s show is 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, at First Presbyterian Church, 230 W. Rusk St. Admission to the show is free.

Patrons will be able to register to win a basket full of hand-painted porcelain objects.

 

If you go

What: East Texas Porcelain Art Guild Show & Sale

When: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday

Where: First Presbyterian Church, 230 W. Rusk St.