The Precision of Porcelain To look at the work of A. Asel is to confront the rigid demands of nineteenth-century portraiture rendered on a difficult medium. While many painters of the era sought the fluidity of canvas, Asel worked with glazed porcelain, a choice that dictates a specific level of technical discipline. The medium leaves no room for error; once the pigment is applied to the glazed surface, the artist's hand is locked into a permanent, unyielding record. This was not a pursuit of loose brushwork, but a commitment to the sharp clarity required by the material. The most significant…