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The American Art Tile, 1880 - 1940

April 7, 2012 - January 6, 2013

 

The popularity of art tiles for embellishing American architectural settings dates to the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, where visitors had an opportunity to see superb examples of the form. For the remainder of the nineteenth-century, many middle-class and wealthy consumers modeled their homes in the latest fashions with art tiles. Mass-produced tiles with refined details often featured famous portraits or vignettes of characters in period costume. By the turn of the century, trends shifted, favoring the hand-made aesthetic of the Arts & Crafts Movement. American art tile companies enjoyed success for about 50 years until the economic strain caused by the Great Depression and restrictions imposed during World War II forced many companies out of business. (right: Tzadi Turrou. American, born 1944, Tile Set of Mount Pisgah (detail), 2011, earthenware. Gift of Daisy Wade Bridges)

The Mint Museum will present a diversity of tile types in the American Decorative Arts Gallery while highlighting the Gallery's permanently installed fireplace surround, Arkansas Traveler, modeled and designed by Henry Chapman Mercer of Moravian Pottery & Tile Works. A few of the other companies in this exhibit include J.G. & J.F. Low Art Tile Works from Chelsea, Massachusetts; American Encaustic Tiling Company and Mosaic Tiling Company from Zanesville, Ohio; and Newcomb Pottery from New Orleans, Louisiana. Major themes in this exhibition, which features over thirty tiles, include artistic figures, geometric and stylized patterns, nature studies, handcrafted (or Arts & Crafts), and a step-by-step on tile making.  

The American Art Tile, 1880 - 1940 features tiles drawn exclusively from The Mint Museum's permanent collection. These tiles were chosen both for their artistic quality and diversity of subject matter. All of the tiles on view were gifts to the museum from collectors and organizations. As the Mint celebrates its 75th Anniversary, this display provides the museum with an opportunity to thank its donors, past and present, for their dedication and generosity.

 

Gallery labels for the exhibition

 
The decades surrounding 1900 were the golden age of the American art tile. Whether glazed or unglazed, molded in relief or smooth-surfaced, decorative tiles were a popular medium among many affluent consumers wishing to furnish their homes and businesses in the latest fashions. Tiles were used as fireplace surrounds, wall hangings, and a variety of other ornamental purposes, both interior and exterior. There were manufacturers across the country: J. G. & J. F. Low Art Tile Works in Chelsea, Massachusetts; U. S. Encaustic Tile Company in Indianapolis; and West Coast Tile Company in Vernon, California, to name a few.
 
Potteries often hired the most talented designers and modelers of the day to invigorate their product lines. Trent Tile Company of Trenton, New Jersey, hired the Canadian sculptor, Isaac Broome (1835-1922); American Encaustic Tiling Company of Zanesville, Ohio, employed Herman Mueller (1854-1941), born and trained in Germany; and the Staffordshire ceramist, Frederick Hurten Rhead (1880-1942), worked for a number of American potteries before opening his own firm in Santa Barbara, California. The designers created innovative products that helped to ensure the American art tile's success for more than fifty years. The economic strain of the Great Depression and material restrictions imposed during World War II eventually forced many companies out of business.
 
The American Art Tile, 1880 - 1940 features tiles drawn exclusively from The Mint Museum's permanent collection. These tiles were chosen both for their artistic quality and diversity of subject matter. All of the tiles on view were gifts to the museum from collectors and organizations. As the Mint celebrates its 75th Anniversary, this display provides the museum with an opportunity to thank its donors, past and present, for their dedication and generosity.
 
 
Artistic Figures
Elegantly modeled in low relief, these tiles include figurative themes inspired by literature or historical motifs.
 
J. G. & J. F. Low Art Tile Works. Chelsea, Massachusetts, 1883-1902
King Lear Tile 1885
Earthenware
Gift of James P. and Susan C. Witkowski. 2004.102.1
 
William Shakespeare (1564-1616), wrote his tragedy, King Lear, in 1604-1605. The tile captures a crucial moment in Act III, when Lear realizes that his daughters betrayed him. He yells into a fierce storm, "Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage! Blow!"
 
J. G. & J. F. Low Art Tile Works. Chelsea, Massachusetts, 1883-1902
Ophelia Tile 1885
Earthenware
Gift of James P. and Susan C. Witkowski. 2004.102.4
 
In Act IV of Shakespeare's Hamlet, written1600-1601, the tragic heroine, Ophelia, mad with grief, mourns the loss of her father, singing: "He is dead and gone."
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Herman Mueller (attributed). German (worked in America), 1854-1941
Framed Tile Sets with Lady and Gentleman circa 1887-1894
Earthenware
Gift of Betsy Tate Freeman. 2003.23.1A-C, 2003.23.2A-C
 
In the late 1800s, many affluent Americans sought works of art that evoked Europe's past, such as these figures in seventeenth-century dress, as a way of demonstrating their cultural sophistication and good taste.
 
Trent Tile Company. Trenton, New Jersey, 1882-1939
Tile with Classical Figure of Spring circa 1900-1910
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.214
 
International Tile and Trim. Brooklyn, New York, 1882-1888
Tile with Face in Right Profile circa 1885
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.238
 
International Tile and Trim. Brooklyn, New York, 1882-1888
Tile with Face in Left Profile circa 1885
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.239
 
Inspired by Nature
 
Floral and other natural motifs were extremely popular in American ceramics in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Parks, botanical gardens, and greenhouses established during this period provided ample inspiration for artists and designers.
 
Unknown American Maker
Tile Set with Bird on a Branch circa 1900
Terra cotta
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.215.1-3
 
U. S. Encaustic Tile Company. Indianapolis, Indiana, 1877-1886
Tile with Bird circa 1880
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.240
 
Kensington Art Tile Company. Newport, Kentucky, 1885-1893
Tile with Water Lily circa 1900
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.243
 
Providential Tile Works. Trenton, New Jersey, 1886-1913
Tile with Apple Blossom circa 1886-1890
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.244
 
Cambridge Art Tile Works. Covington, Kentucky, 1886-1985
Tile Set with Hunt Scene circa 1900
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.242.1-3
 
Making a Tile
Henry Chapman Mercer (1856-1930) came from a prominent Pennsylvania family and worked as an archaeologist before becoming interested in ceramics. He designed all the tiles produced at his manufacturing company, Moravian Pottery & Tile Works. As the first step in production, workers then created a model of his design, usually in clay.
 
Moravian Pottery & Tile Works. Doylestown, Pennsylvania, 1898 - present
Henry Chapman Mercer. American, 1856-1930
"Musician Playing a Dulcimer" Mold circa 1970
Plaster of Paris
Gift of Moravian Pottery and Tile Works. H1979.315.5
 
The second step in the process was to encase the model with plaster of Paris to form a mold, as seen here.
 
Moravian Pottery & Tile Works. Doylestown, Pennsylvania, 1898 - present
Henry Chapman Mercer. American, 1856-1930
"Musician Playing a Dulcimer" Tile circa 1979
Earthenware
Gift of Moravian Pottery and Tile Works. H1979.315.7
 
After the mold dries out, clay is pressed into its hollow recess. The clay tile is then removed from the mold, and its edges are cleaned up.
 
Moravian Pottery & Tile Works. Doylestown, Pennsylvania, 1898 - present
Henry Chapman Mercer. American, 1856-1930
"Musician Playing a Dulcimer" Tile circa 1979
Earthenware
Gift of Moravian Pottery and Tile Works. H1979.315.8
 
Colored decoration is then applied to the still damp clay. The tile is then fired at a low temperature.
 
Moravian Pottery & Tile Works. Doylestown, Pennsylvania, 1898 - present
Henry Chapman Mercer. American, 1856-1930
"Musician Playing a Dulcimer" Tile circa 1979
Earthenware
Gift of the Hezekiah Alexander Homesite Auxiliary. H1979.316.11
 
Finally, a worker applies a glaze, and the tile is fired again, this time at a much higher temperature. The tile is now finished.
 
Tiles and the Arts & Crafts Movement
The height of art tile production in the United States coincided with the Arts & Crafts Movement, popular in America from about 1875 to 1920. A basic tenet of the movement was that everyone deserved to live with beautiful, affordable things in their homes. One way in which consumers could realize this goal was to incorporate tiles made by the manufacturers represented in this case, and throughout the gallery, into their residential interiors.
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Tile with Fish circa 1900-1920
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.226
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Tile with Fox circa 1900-1920
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.231.4
 
The subject of this tile was probably inspired by The Fox and the Grapes, one of Aesop's Fables. Other tiles in this series may have similarly been inspired by tales from the same source.
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Tile with Goose circa 1900-1920
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.231.3
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Tile with Stork circa 1900-1920
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.221
 
Mosaic Tile Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1894-1972
Tile with Water Lily circa 1900-1920
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.228
 
Pewabic Pottery. Detroit, Michigan, 1903 - present
Tile 1935
Earthenware
Daisy Wade Bridges Collection. H1980.235.12
 
Pewabic Pottery produced this tile to commemorate the 1935 convention of the General Federation of Women's Clubs, held in Detroit.
 
Flint Faience and Tile Company. Flint, Michigan, 1921-1933
Tiles with Crystalline Glazes 1929
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.223, 2006.102.224
 
Design Adaptability
Many tile companies included among their products tiles with stylized floral or geometric patterns, as they could easily be incorporated into large design schemes that covered a wall or fireplace surround, or used in smaller settings as decorative highlights.
 
U. S. Encaustic Tile Company. Indianapolis, Indiana, 1877-1886
Tile Set with Large Diamond Pattern circa 1880
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.234.1-4
 
U. S. Encaustic Tile Company. Indianapolis, Indiana, 1877-1886
Tile with Rope Border circa 1880-1885
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.245
 
U. S. Encaustic Tile Company. Indianapolis, Indiana, 1877-1886
Tile with Stylized Flower circa 1880
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.222
 
J. G. & J. F. Low Art Tile Works. Chelsea, Massachusetts, 1883-1902
Tile with Central Rosette circa 1885-1890
Earthenware
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. B. Keith Gray. H1981.37.2
 
Beaver Falls Art Tile Company. Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, 1886-1927
Tile with Large Flower circa 1900
Earthenware
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. B. Keith Gray. H1981.37.4
 
Indianapolis Terra Cotta Company. Indianapolis, Indiana, 1883-1918
Tile with Flower Surrounded by Leaves circa 1900
Earthenware
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. B. Keith Gray. H1981.37.5
 
Providential Tile Works. Trenton, New Jersey, 1886-1913
Tile with Scrolling Tendril circa 1890
Earthenware
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. B. Keith Gray. H1981.37.9
 
Trent Tile Company. Trenton, New Jersey, 1882-1939
Tile with Leafy Vine circa 1900
Earthenware
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. B. Keith Gray. H1981.37.8
 
Portraits
Various manufacturers made tiles to commemorate public figures, both historic and contemporary.
 
Grueby Faience and Tile Company. Boston, Massachusetts, 1909-1920
Portrait Plaque of Mary Baker Eddy circa 1913
Stoneware
Gift of Daisy Wade Bridges. 2010.20.20
 
Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910) was an influential author and religious leader who in 1879 founded The Church of Christ, Scientist.
 
Mosaic Tile Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1894-1972
Portrait Tile of President Abraham Lincoln circa 1900
Stoneware
Gift of Daisy Wade Bridges. 2010.20.23
 
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) was the sixteenth President of the United States.
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Portrait Tile of President William McKinley circa 1901
Earthenware
Daisy Wade Bridges Collection H1979.340.23
 
As Governor of Ohio, William McKinley (1843-1901) attended the 1892 dedication ceremony for American Encaustic Tiling Company's new Zanesville factory. In 1897, he became the twenty-fifth President of the United States.
 
Product Diversity
While many American art potteries-including Rookwood Pottery in Cincinnati, Grueby Faience Company in Boston, Newcomb Pottery in New Orleans-that made vases and other hollowware forms also produced tiles, it was less common for tile manufactories to expand their production to include other ceramic forms. The American Encaustic Tile Company in Zanesville, Ohio, was an exception, however, thanks to Frederick Hurten Rhead (1880-1942). From 1917-1927, Rhead worked at the factory, where he designed tiles and other objects, including the candleholder on view here.
 
Newcomb Pottery. New Orleans, Louisiana, 1895-1940
Anna Frances Simpson. American, 1880-1930
Round Tile 1929
Earthenware
Daisy Wade Bridges Collection. H1982.214.8
 
In 1894, the H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College added pottery to the curriculum. One year later the college began production as Newcomb Pottery. Many artists such as Anna Frances Simpson began as students and continued to work there for many years.
 
Newcomb Pottery. New Orleans, Louisiana, 1895-1940
Jonathan Brown Hunt (modeler). American, 1876-1943
Sarah Agnes Estelle Irvine. American, 1887-1970
Vase with Moss-Draped Live Oaks 1931
Earthenware
Daisy Wade Bridges Collection. H1982.15.2
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Tile circa 1890
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.216
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Frederick Hurten Rhead. English (worked in America), 1880-1942
Candleholder circa 1925
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.169
 
American Encaustic Tiling Company. Zanesville, Ohio, 1875-1935
Calendar Tile with Masonic Emblems 1911
Earthenware
Gift of the American Ceramic Society. 2006.102.232
 
Factories occasionally produced tiles that served as promotions for themselves, such as the calendar tile made by the American Encaustic Tiling Company.
 
Moravian Pottery & Tile Works. Doylestown, Pennsylvania, 1898 - present
Henry Chapman Mercer. American, 1856-1930
"Arkansas Traveller" Fireplace Surround circa 1916
Earthenware
Daisy Wade Bridges Collection. H1978.176.4A-D
 
The fireplace surround illustrates scenes from "The Arkansas Traveller," an American folk tale set to music that first appeared in the mid-nineteenth century. A traveler from the city seeks food, shelter and directions from a fiddler and his family living in a backwoods cabin. The traveler first receives a cold reception from the fiddler, but after the traveler plays the second half of a tune to which the fiddler knows only the first part, the fiddler happily shares his hospitality.
 
"Arkansas Traveller" is an example of what Henry Chapman Mercer, the founder of Moravian Pottery & Tile Works, called his brocade style: a series of high-relief tiles in which each tile depicts a separate scene of the same story.
 
Currier and Ives. New York, New York, 1834-1907
The Arkansas Traveller 1870
Hand-colored lithograph
Museum Purchase: Funds provided by Ron and Evelyn Oman in memory of Anne Marie Kresich. 2002.105.1
 
Tzadi Turrou. American, 1944-
Tile Set of Mount Pisgah 2011
Earthenware
Gift of Daisy Wade Bridges. 2011.59.2A-C
 
Tzadi Turrou studied ceramics in Massachusetts and Colorado before establishing a studio in Burnsville, North Carolina, where she specializes in tiles made in the "cuerda seca" technique. In this technique, wax-resist lines are used to create the pattern and keep the applied colors from blending together.

 


(above: J. G. & J. F. Low Art Tile Works. Chelsea, Massachusetts, 1883-1902.Ophelia Tile, 1885, earthenware. Gift of James P. and Susan C. Witkowski)

 

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