(Available each month to Tile Heritage members who e-mail the Foundation from the address they
would like
E-News sent to. Contact: foundation@tileheritage.org)
PRINTED VERSION
Here’s What’s Below:
Smart Cards Fund NPOsNational Tile Conference Taking Shape
Coming next month: History of Brickmaking
By March each year enough water has saturated the earth here on Fitch Mountain to expose the natural flow above ground. Directly above us on the mountain, when we’re lucky, there’s a cascading waterfall about 30 feet in height. It’s a delight to experience, yet always a bit too chilly to step under!
COMMUNITYsmart is a national organization that enables you to contribute dollars to your favorite non-profit (Tile Heritage!) at absolutely no cost to you. Whenever you shop at a participating merchant, paying with cash, check or credit card, you simply hand over your Smart card with your payment. The rest is taken care of automatically. Tile Heritage received its first check ever this week ($36!) so we can vouch for it. Go to www.communitysmart.com and “sign up.” It takes about 10 seconds; your card will be sent to you in the mail. It’s that easy. Whether you choose to designate Tile Heritage as your NPO of choice or some other group, the benefits remain the same. It’s a win win win! And in advance, we thank you!
We reported last month that the Hans Sumpf Company would be closing
after 70 years of fruitful operation. In recent days we have heard
that Handcraft Tile in Milpitas, California, north of San Jose, will
close its doors as of the end of April. Handcraft has been in
business since 1926 and continues to make tiles today as it did 80
years ago under the skillful management of Shirley Dinkins and Frank
Patitucci, who have each decided to take different directions in
their lives. It is a tragedy when companies must close, all the more
so when they remain steeped in tradition. Visit www.handcrafttile.com.
For these companies whose fate is still in the balance, we would like
to put out a clarion call for potential buyers, future owners or
investors, anyone with interest wherever you might be. In the not too
distant past we witnessed the demise of several larger American tile
manufacturers; now it seems that more moderate-sized companies are
being affected. We realize that the crisis has much to do with world
economic forces, especially with the larger operations, but now for
the first time there is a serious question as to just how many
handmade tiles can be profitably produced in the U.S. We are reminded
of Michael Golden’s presentation at Coverings last year where he
declared that, looking down the road, handmade tiles were not in the
picture.
Tile Heritage has one of the best tile networks of connections and
communication in the country. Take a minute and let us hear your
perspectives.
At this point we can safely recommend that you can book plane
reservations into Minneapolis on the 12th with an expected departure
of Sunday, the 17th. You may have to rent a car to get to Duluth or
we may have a bus; you’ll have to wait and see about that. But you
may want to arrive earlier or stay later if you have the time and
want to see more than our program offers. There are incredible tile
sites to see in Owatonna, Rochester and Winona to name just a few.
Just remember that in mid-September it probably won’t be necessary
to bring your snowshoes or carry chains! More details will be
forthcoming….
The Handmade Tile Association has released its sixth annual 2006 Tile
Directory, a free guide featuring full color images of twenty-nine
handmade tile makers, mosaic artists and other tile resources in the
Upper Midwest. The directory is designed to help designers,
architects, contractors and the public at large exposed to a wide
array of creative and original ceramic art work and quality
resources. For a free copy contact the Handmade Tile Association, 34
13th Ave. NE, Suite 109, Minneapolis, MN 55413, call 612 781-6409 or
email josh@claysquared.com
Coverings is right around the corner (April 4-7), and we’d like to
encourage you to take a nice long look at our “big” screen
presentation, “Historic Tiles in Architecture.” You’ll find it
in the main lobby of the convention center either adjacent to the
escalators that take you down to the convention floor or beside the
Coverings store (we’re still negotiating with the Fire Marshall).
There are 23 sites pictured in 7 different countries; 163 images in
all. Sponsored by Coverings with the technical expertise of Audio
Visual Innovations (AVI), the show is likely to distract and dazzle
even the most preoccupied among us. In the meantime, we’ll be
“surfing” with hot dogs at Booth 2816. Let us know how you like
the show!
The challenge: flocculate. In a recent issue of Ceramic Industry
magazine we read “Epsom salts added to the clay body increase the
attraction of clay platelets in the moist clay state and cause the
clay to become flocculated.”
What’s flocculated all about (admittedly NOT a word one would
commonly use at the dinner table!)
The answer: to flocculate means “to form masses.” Well, we learn
something new every day.
Tile Factory Closures
We understand as well that Anna Salibello, founder of Terra Designs
Tileworks in Dover, New Jersey, is seeking a buyer for her business
that has been producing a wide variety of beautiful tiles of her
design since the early 1980s. We have no particulars, but I’m sure
she would happily entertain a call from anyone who may be interested
in details. Phone 973 328-1135.
National Tile Conference Taking Shape
For all of you who’ve been tempted to join us in September for
“Tiles of the Northern Plains: Building on Tradition” here’s
some exciting news. The first half of the program will be held in
Duluth, from Wednesday morning, September 13th until the afternoon of
Thursday the 14th when we’ll return to Minneapolis for a reception
hosted by Clay Squared to Infinity, the location of a major
contemporary tile exhibition. The program in Duluth will feature an
after hours special tour at Glensheen, complete with special tile
tours and an in-house dinner. Glensheen, now a museum and historic
site, is the former estate of Chester and Clara Congden. On the shore
of Lake Superior the home was designed by Clarence Johnson of St.
Paul and completed in 1909. We won’t tell you how many tiled
fireplaces there are; we’ll leave it up to you to count them!
Minnesota Tile Makers
& Mosaic Artists
"Historic Tiles in Architecture"
Playing with Clay…Words
