Perennial "Quince Tree"
I spent the early years of my career as a ceramic artist trying to get every mosaic commission I could - not only to make a living but also to practice and improve my skills, my eye, my expression. In the late 1990s I became interested in design and specifically in repeating designs. Antique wallpapers and vintage textiles from around the world had inspired me for years and I wanted to capture and translate the natural repeating movement inherent in both forms of decoration into ceramic tile.
By MARTINE, "Les Eucalyptus" 1912
William Morris, "Willow Leaf" early 1900s
I focused primarily on leaves, plants and nature inspired imagery - which is in keeping with most of my work - to explore making tile “wall paper”.
Perennial "Samos"
I worked on this as a side project teaching myself to design these kinds of forms and practicing making them in clay. I learned that there were reasons people didn’t generally make these kinds of designs in tile - there are a million and one ways that the chemical changes that occur during firing makes clay a very difficult medium for this kind of precise mosaic.
Perennial "Climbing Leaf"
I stuck with it and in 2006 I had a group of repeating designs in tile that I was proud of and I chose 9 of my favorites to bring to a high end distributor (Kohler). Because of the timelessness of the aesthetic and the imagery, I named this line the Perennial Collection — tiles that evoke the past, are on point today, and I hope will still look fresh in 100 years.
Perennial "Poppy"
My designs pay homage to English Arts & Crafts textiles, Chinese Brush painting, Chinoiserie and wallpaper from 1600s-1900s, and are adaptable to many kinds of spaces and homes from contemporary to traditional.
All 9 designs are scaled thoughtfully and many of them repeat diagonally, allowing for a fluid aesthetic that tricks the eye making the room feels more spacious. A diagonal repeat is a huge benefit and rare in the tile world since it’s far too labor intensive for mass-production.
Perennial "Quince"
Me in front of a Quince installation last winter
With this endeavor I had stepped into production for the first time. I had put myself through a kind of design bootcamp of my own making to learn to design for production and to learn how to produce efficiently and to this day, I have continued to keep production as an important part of my creative work.
Perennial "Peacock"
Perennial "Tulip"
I enjoy designing for production and I love working with the talented craftspeople and artists on my team. One of the most significant benefits that production brought to my business is a more consistent work flow.
Mosaic is very labor intensive and initially with my commissions, I’d hire people on a project basis and train every new group. This is a very inefficient and expensive way to run a business! Now with a more steady work flow, I train people and keep them employed allowing their skills and technique to grow. It’s a mutually beneficial situation and I’ve had people stay for as long as 10 years and become highly skilled.
Although my interest in repeating designs isn’t as prodigious, this intense 10 year focus on design made me a MUCH better artist and designer in all the work I do.
Perennial "Wheat"
Perennial "Champagne"
Perennial "PomPom"
Thanks for reading, come back again soon!