Posted 10 years ago
cogito
(124 items)
British Art Nouveau tiles are often very difficult to attribute. This 4-piece tile set depicts a maiden in Beardsley-type elongated form with lovely colors ranging from brown to light blue. The facial features are hand painted, as is the tube lining on the tiles. The set was purchased framed with a very secure backing. I took a risk and separated the frame so I could get a better look at the back of the tiles, which maddeningly are only marked "England," but do provide confirmation of their age (i.e., circa 1900s). Dimensions: Each tile is a standard 6" square; overall framed dimensions are 25.5”(H) x 7.25”(W).
Any attribution help or suggestions would be most appreciated. Thanks!
So many interesting and exquisite things you have posted recently! You are right; there's something Beardsley about this...
Thanks, Jensen. I'm not done yet! ;)
I love them Cogito!! There were so many tile makers arount the time these were made !!! Off the top of my head the three main ones to me are
Minton, Doulton, one I thought it may be is Johnson bros but ive had a quick look and couldnt find them..
sometimes if you go into a tile factory you can find repro tiles that are similar that might give you an idea of who made them or even have a chat with the shop manager who may know !!
I have a set of nine minton & co 1880s floor tiles that make an 18" square x 1" thick panel in tri colours , ill list them when I go up in my attic sometime.. good luck with your searching ;-) sd
Thanks for the information, Surfdub66! I ruled Minton out given the lack of their mark on the reverse. Did Johnson Brothers use the simple "England" press mark?
Craven Dunnill tile works is a possibility based upon similar hand tube-lined work, but I'm uncertain of their marks. See here: http://www.darwincountry.org/explore/013327.html
She's so pretty, love the colors!
Tube lining the method used here was a specialty of the Rhead family who did have many designs executed on tiles by several companies .
see somne here
http://www.rheadpottery.com/charlotte-rhead/the-rhead-cronin-collection-tiles/
Oz, I think you might be on to something! The style/rendering are very similar.
Hi Cogito , it may be well asking Peter Mason his opinion . I have found him to be very helpful and a true gentleman .
It is his site that I sent a link to .
Oz, we think alike. Already shot off an email. Fingers crossed!
Thanks for the information, Jewels1900. Do you know how Pilkington tiles were marked from that period? I was under the impression that Pilkington had a distinctive impressed P/rose type mark, plus since they were a high volume producer it seems odd that they would create something so inefficient as tubelined tiles. That being said, I can also see some design aspects that might harken to later periods (i.e., Peter Max "feel").
stunning!!! shes very beautiful!!!
Cogito, Pilkington has always made tiles. The marks depend on the period. Earlier pieces were marked with a painted designers & date marks, later bits with the rose mark. My tile has Pilkington written on it. It was sold to me as an antique one (online) but when it arrived it was pretty clear it was a more recent copy. It has a tube line peacock nouveau design on it.
Hi Cogito. Ive just posted some photos of my later Pilkingtons tile & also a period maiden tile.
On my later tile, you can clearly see from the back that it's more modern. It's very clean (mind you, it would have been a closed back). Your's is a little more difficult to tell.