Border Tile 1882

This border tile was made by J. and J. G. Low Art Tile Works, using clay and glaze. Not exactly high art materials, but quite effective nonetheless. Focus on the surface and the ways in which the lustrous glaze pools around the crisp edges of the pattern. Note the fine crazing, like tiny lightning bolts frozen in place. These are not imperfections, but rather the results of careful management of the ceramic process. These tiles were made at a scale to fit the rhythms of the industrial age, but required a careful choreography of labor: design, mold-making, pressing, glazing, and firing. Decoration, especially in ceramics, has often been regarded as a secondary pursuit. But this tile shows the dynamism and vitality that could be achieved when intelligent design met industrial production. By looking closely at its materiality and manufacture, we can begin to see beyond conventional distinctions of fine art and craft.