TILE ENVY

It’s Tile Salon – July 2010 and I’m pleased to say that I think I’m getting better at digging up monthly tile news. Key word- better. Now this doesn’t mean that there’s more of it- but it’s just not as grueling trying to find it.

And speaking of news, Uncle Rey has been so over me this month as I’ve requested a bunch of his assistance just to get facebook and twitter set up for Tile Envy. Regarding social networking, the gap between what he knows and what I DON’T KNOW-  knows no bounds. But if you look just to the right you’ll see the latest icons you can click if you’d like to follow me on either or both. (I’m still figuring out what that means)

For now, all the best tile news for July 2010 happens to fit in perfectly with my “art month” -

From Inhabitat -

Anonymous utility buildings dot our cities, keeping the other buildings humming — but they’re almost never part of the aesthetic fabric of the urban scene.

Inhabit featured this unique addition to the cityscape of Roombeek. Named Stadshaard  – dutch for “city hearth” – the building is the towns’ power plant providing light and heat while whimsically clad in 1 square meter Delftware tiles. Created by design firm Cie in collaboration with artist Hugo Kaagman, it is a celebration of the city’s delftware heritage.

(the building)

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(the tiles)

(the installation)

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(tile detail)

From Yanko Design-

Yanko Design featured these tiles from designer Yigit Ozer, proving there’s more to tile than being square.

Like an M.C. Escher drawing that has no end, neither will your design ideas with the Versatile Wall Tiles Collection by designer Yigit Ozer. This design concept is essentially a wide V shaped tile that has just the right proportions to allow for a multitude of pattern ideas to be arranged.

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(some of the possible patterns)

From designboom-

We’ve seen the combination of  “stone and moss” laced into many a lyric and poem, however, I believe this is a first for the tile industry.

‘mosstile’ by italian company benetti stone is a vertical maintenance free garden.
it is made using a stabilized tile of lichen placed over top of an ecologically sound resin base,
ready to be installed on any kind of surface. it does not require irrigation or fertilization,
nor does it need to be pruned. ‘mosstile’ can be placed in rooms without natural light as
it is not dependent on any particular environmental conditions.

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From Mocoloco -

Work by Québécois ceramicist Pascale Girardin can be found in a variety of high-profile spots all over North America, but for this month only a themed selection will be available in a pop-up shop in Old Montreal.

This was my favorite bit of news from July. First, I love these pop-up shops that have been the recent rage. But when I got a look at Pascale Girardin’s work, especially these special edition commemorative tiles celebrating retro Quebec, I had to do more research and have now become a new fan of the artistic ceramics from this celebrated artist.

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I was so pleased to see that this month’s tile salon complied with my art month theme. I’m surprised with the level of artistry that has been bubbling up this year. With a bit of digging, I think it’s clear that there are some truly artistic notions that are making their way into the world of tiles.

This mantra probably rings true for all of us these days as we are reeling from the disaster caused by those lousy financial crooks on Wall Street. Don’t get me started!! So when I saw this post from If it’s hip, It’s here, I knew it was  just the medicine for those times when one can feel a bit wobbly.

Here, the Gowanus Studio Space 2010 Jello-Mold Design Competition features some of the most creative Jello creations this side of mom’s lime-marshmallow surprise. Mmmm….

This year’s winning “entree’” by artist Shelly Sabel-

(aspic ascension – tastes like heaven)

Choosing to impress the judges who may religiously imbibe on a strong Bloody Mary to get their Sunday’s rolling, Shelly created her tomato aspic with a superior twist. OK, I’m having a bit of fun with this- but how can I not given the subject matter??

You’ve got to click here to check out the entire competition and meet all the winners and see all the fun. The creativity only begins with Shelly’s winner.

And if that’s not enough Jello fun for this hot, hot summer- how about cooling down in San Francisco where you’re always sure to need a sweatshirt and blanket even in the midst of July?

(san francisco skyline in Jello)

Here, Liz Hickok’s famous and ongoing Jello-by-the-bay reproduction in electrifying Jello shades is being filmed for future viewings.

(mission district being filmed)

I encourage you to read all about Hickok’s shaky San Francisco concoction- click here. The quality and magnitude (there I go again) of her work deserves more attention.

All that jiggling and no earthquake required!!

As shared in yesterday’s post featuring Bernardo Paz’s celebration of his wife Adriana Varejao and her artistic vision- Instituto Cultural Inhotim is a marvel of contemporary art.

A recent New York Times article reminds all of us that there is a magical opportunity to behold this new creation before the world has discovered it- and that time is now.

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(views of olafur eliasson’s “pleasure dome”)

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Completely private and not for profit, the institute was meant to house contemporary works that would normally not be collected due to their sheer physical enormity. That idea was fascinating to me.

Below, more of the works that are currently gracing the mysterious wilds of Brazil-

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(sonic pavilion by doug aitken)

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(helio oiticica and neville d’almeda, photo eduardo echenfeis)

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(matthew barney pavilion exterior)

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(matthew barney pavilion interior)

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(chris burden installation)

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(doris salcedo)

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(helio oiticica)

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(edgard de souza)

How romantic is this?

(click photo for video tour)

Bet you were all wondering when I would get around to exploiting the romantic nature of tiles. This post, I didn’t even have to try. Just loving tile does not constitute a full-fledged romance. But how about this-

A Brazilian industrialist named Bernardo Paz is a bit of a modern day Fitzcarraldo who, instead of bringing  opera to Amazonia, has brought his serious passion for contemporary art to an historic region of Brazil (Brumadinho, to be exact).

Brumadinho, Brazil

His 3000 acre mega-campus is called the Instituto Cultural Inhotim and exhibits one of the most significant collections of contemporary art including the works of 500 artists such as Helio Oiticica, Cildo Meireles, Chris Burden, Matthew Barney, Doug Aitken and Janet Cardiff.

(the grounds)

So that’s a lot of love of art. However here’s the romantic/tile connection. One of the more significant pavilions in the instituto has been dedicated to his wife, the renowned Brazilian artist Adriana Varejao. And Adriana’s work uses ordinary tiles as her medium and her canvas. They have largely been a vast and sometimes macabre exploration. But the work featured in the top floor of her striking pavilion is beyond beautiful.

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I’ve always been enchanted by the classic tile standard- majolica.

Adriana’s pavilion is a giant deconstruction of majolica tiles and her subsequent reconstruct creates a “landscape tsunami” allowing the viewer to swim in the brushstrokes and celebration of pattern that can often be taken for granted when viewing a typical majolica installation.

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All that to say- this space is a modern majolica cathedral.

Check back tomorrow for a tour of some of the other pavilions and grounds of the Instituto Cultural Inhotim.

…yep, along with some of the most offbeat and artful retail merchandising, Anthropologie also wins the award for one of THE most artful retail catalogs. They pull off this wonder-in-print, 12 months a year.

Lucky us!

My soul-sista, Judite, was recently recounting to me her newly developing tile-crush. Seems she’s been spotting the darned repetitive squares more than ever. She had just been wowed by photos in her recent Anthropologie catalog, but upon closer inspection, she noted a distinct tile focus-

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Tile and fashion? Sounds familiar…

Love this pic from Seattle artist Jenny Vorwaller -

Happy Weekend-

(courtesy a picture is worth a thousand words)

Doing what Naoto Fukasawa does best, he has taken the idea of the Paris Metro and created a vase that takes this classic subway experience and recreates it into an everyday object.

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Vase Metro by Naoto Fukasawa

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(designboom.com)

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Naoto Fukasawa is possibly the best known industrial designer in Japan. Alice Rawsthorn of the New York Times describes him as the Charles Eames of contemporary Tokyo.  Naoto’s design resume begins in San Francisco with the well-known design think tank, IDEO, but circles back to Japan where he currently man’s his own firm designing for the likes of Boffi, Muji, B&B Italia, to name a few.

I think his works are nearly “cuddly” in nature, which isn’t easy in a world of plastics and LED. Check out Rawsthorn’s story and see for yourself. If you haven’t heard of Naoto Fukasawa, it’s a great time to get to know him.

Recently, whilst chatting with my tile pal, Paul, he mentioned this Chanel No. 5 ad and I realized it was my very first art film. I believe it was other than that for Paul .

(click for video)

He and I chatted about how revolutionary it was for television at the time (1979) and how everything in the room would stop the moment that ad hit the ether. What I didn’t realize was that it was directed by Oscar winner, Ridley Scott long before his Gladiator fame.

Paul is one of my favorite tile snobs and commandeers Ceramic Tile Design in San Francisco. If you haven’t been by his “art happening” of a showroom, you’ve got to check it out. He’s created some of the most unique vignettes ever to hit the tile shores. I always applaud his bravery.  Along with Ira, my BFF, their showroom carries the best of the best.