You can’t walk down the aisle of your local home and garden center these days without virtually tripping over the vast assortment of tiles and tile-related items for the enthusiastic do-it- yourselfer. Whether it be flooring, kitchen countertops, bathtubs, shower enclosures, patios, address plaques or and pools, ceramic tile is now the material of choice for home improvements. Modern-day consumers are paying more and more for “aged and worn” looking tiles, even though these same ancient “look-alikes” just rolled off of the conveyor belt last week.

A Look Back

Tiles are nothing more than pieces of “baked earth:” clay from the ground dampened and formed. In earlier times, these “slices” of tile were baked either in the fire or by the sun. Ceramic tiles can be traced back in history to at least 4,000 years ago. Tile fragments have been discovered in areas of Greece, China, Egypt, Spain and Italy. Tile fragments have been excavated at the Great Egyptian Pyramids as well as the ruins of disheveled Grecian and Babylonian cities.

Early tiles that have been found were not glazed as we know today, but were nonetheless colorful. Unglazed tiles were usually “fired” or baked only once. Some of the earliest tile pieces found exhibit stripes of white and blue (this seems to be a common color and design configuration of the time). These pigments were readily accessible and affordable, hence their popularity.

The mid 10 th and 11 th centuries saw a new development in tile-craft. In Persia and Egypt, tile makers were placing a glassy surface layer over the top of the clay tile (a primitive type of glaze). Thus was produced the first “glazed tile,” which became more and more popular in homes as well as bathhouses, churches and meetinghouses. Although glazing tile was very beneficial (easier cleaning, water resistance, brighter surfaces), it also slowed down an already snail-like process. Now, the tile had to be fired twice: once unglazed, then again after the glazing. Before 1840 A.D., every tile that was in existence was hand-made, one by one, with skills passed from master to apprentice, father to son. The secrets of the trade were so safeguarded that there are very few patterns or crafting techniques from this period available for ascertaining the materials of the glaze or the glazing and baking techniques.

Europe Bound

It is generally accepted that the families of these Persian and Egyptian tile makers later moved to Spain (particularly, the Andalusian Hub). The crafting and glazing of tile was introduced to various cultures during this period and quickly spread throughout Europe. Obviously, due to the limitations and time constraints of hand-crafted tiles, tiles become more expensive and harder to come by. Eventually, only the well-to-do were able to afford and enjoy this exclusive, functional art form.

Fortunately, this all changed during the 1840s when the entire tile industry was altered. A new procedure called “dust pressing” was invented. This process involved compressing damp clay between two metal sheets. Dust pressing easily and quickly replaced tile crafting by hand and helped revolutionize the mechanization of tile-craft. This process allowed for more complex designs, brighter, more vibrant colors and good news for tile consumers: cheaper costs!

Mass-Produced vs. Hand-Made

Trends change and as always, once something becomes commonplace, people yearn for exclusivity; thus the introduction of the term: Art Tile. Art Tile is a designation meant to differentiate mass-produced tile with that of the tile artist. With Art Tile, each tile is made by hand, fired and glazed by hand, decorated and painted by hand. Duly, these Art Tiles are costly, and maintain limited availability. These pieces are not made to compete with cheaper, machine produced tiles but are actually expressions of the artist meant to highlight and accent indoor or outdoor living spaces.

Research taken from the following sources:

Read, Philip. “Art Tiles: Aesthetics of Pleasure,” Mountain Path Studio. 2006

Grimmer, Anne E. and Konrad, Kimberly A. “Historic Ceramic Tiles,” Old House Web. May 24, 2006

Copyright 2006 www.OutdoorDecor.com
Kay Stone, OutdoorDecor.com Staff Writer