Eric Astrachan
Eric Astrachan is the Executive Director of the Tile Council of North America and present Chairman of the Tile Council of North America Handbook Committee, Co-Secretary of the ANSI (American National Standards Institute) Accredited Standards Committee A108 and Head of Delegation representing ANSI’s vote in ISO TC-189 (the International Organization for Standardization Technical Committee on ceramic tiles). He is the Convener of ISO TC-189 Working Group 2 on ceramic tile standards and a member of many industry technical committees. Additionally, he is a member of the Board of Directors for the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation, the board of the Porcelain Tile Certification Agency and the Board of Governors of the international tile trade show Coverings. Astrachan is a recognized industry consultant and keynote speaker regarding the ceramic tile industry on issues relating to tile standards, tile installation, international tile trade and slip/fall litigation. He is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a degree in Chemical Engineering.

Josh Blanc
Josh has been a professional artist since 1994. He holds a B.F.A. in Ceramics from Columbus College of Art and Design and has been working in ceramics since 1985. His main focus is on handmade tile; his artwork represents modern tile design, conceptually expressive yet contemplative in nature. Josh is the co-owner of Clay Squared to Infinity, which is his shared studio and showroom with his wife Layl McDill. The space is also a meeting place for artists who come to discuss art and the community. Josh has lived and worked in NE Minneapolis since 1995. He has volunteered with Art-A-Whirl since 1996 and served as board president of the Northeast Minneapolis Art Association, which produces Art-A-Whirl, from 2003 to 2005.
In 1999 he founded the Handmade Tile Association, which brings together tile artists, creating a community of people who learn from each other artistically. The organization assists in developing business skills while promoting handmade tile and mosaics. As president Josh oversees, develops and publishes the annual Handmade Tile Association Directory, which is distributed nationwide. His main goal in working with handmade tiles is to develop concepts that create dynamic possibilities with color, design, form and pattern.


Lesley Goddin is the Editorial Director and Senior Writer for TileLetter and TileLetter ARTISAN. She has been writing and journaling since her first diary at age 11. Her journey has taken her through a career in publishing and publicity, landing her the editor position of TileLetter and its special publications in 2006. Her goal is to educate, inspire, recognize and encourage those in the tile industry -- especially the tile and stone contractors.

Katia McGuirk
"All things Tile with a smile" . For 43 years, I have had my hands in clay! As a maker, my work includes small batch artisan made tiles, custom tiles, donor and event tiles, and complete tile systems for the home. In the classroom and community, I champion entrepreneurial projects, micro enterprises and community built murals.
My personal interest lies in restoring and preserving historic tiles and keeping the craft alive. The sociology, archeology, science and architectural relevance of this age old medium lives on. Clay is not dirt!
Today as Executive Director of TileWorks of Bucks County, at The Moravian Pottery and Tile Works in Doylestown, Pa, I am building bridges not walls. Creating a culture of caring, and thinking about what we do, why we do it and how we do it is our human connection to the traditional methods of the past and our contribution to our future selves.

Kathy Meyer
Kathy Meyer is Director of Marketing at Tile Council of North (TCNA), a trade association representing manufacturers of ceramic tile, tile installation materials, tile equipment, raw materials and other tile-related products. In her current position at TCNA, she is also responsible for the new laboratory building expansion project. Kathy is also an active member on the CTEF and Coverings Marketing Committees. Kathy regularly speaks at industry events and webinars, and authors articles for multiple publications. Prior to joining TCNA in 2017, Kathy served as an executive in both marketing and operational roles at Kodak Alaris, Eastman Kodak Company, NexPress Solutions, and Heidelberg Digital.

Sheila Menzies
Sheila A. Menzies has had an affinity with tiles since childhood. Having grown up in Scotland she entertained herself as a child with the beautiful floral tiles surrounding her grandmother's best room fireplace and later with the "wally closes," the Victorian art-tiled wainscot entryways in Glasgow. In 1987, as a result of her personal affection for tiles and other ceramic surfaces, she was inspired (in union with Joseph Taylor) to create the Tile Heritage Foundation. Currently she the Executive Director as well as Treasurer of the board. Sheila is a craftswoman, a mixed media artist, with a background in stage-set design and theater costuming. She has traveled extensively in the United States, Great Britain, Portugal, Italy, The Netherlands, France and Mexico documenting historic and contemporary tile installations. Today, she is the primary designer of Tile Heritage publications and the coordinator of educational events including symposiums, regional exhibitions and tile making and mosaic workshops nationwide. In October 2003, the Tile Contractors' Association of America distinguished her with the prestigious Carl V. Cesery Award. In 2007, Tile Council of North America distinguished her, along with Joseph Taylor, with the Tile Persons of the Year Award. These are among the highest honors granted by American trade, industry and professional groups.
Ron Nash has over 20 years of experience in the building materials industry, he is the President and COO of Laticrete International's North American operations, where he leads a high-performance team of over 800 professionals across sales, marketing, finance, operations, and customer service. Ron is a graduate of the Yale Global Leadership Executive Program and a holder of a Bachelor of Science in Botany/Plant Biology from Brigham Young University. He's received multiple awards for outstanding leadership and customer service skills.
Ron's mission is to create and sustain a thriving organization that pursues shared goals, fosters a culture of innovation and AI adoption, and maximizes the potential of emerging technologies.

Joseph Taylor
Joseph A. Taylor left behind a Tiffany tile fireplace when he moved west from his childhood home in Rochester, New York. He was initiated into the world of tiles when he worked as Director of Sales at McIntyre Tile Company in Healdsburg, California from 1973 to 1985. With Sheila Menzies, he co-founded the Tile Heritage Foundation in 1987 and serves as the Foundation's president. A frequent writer and lecturer on tile history, Joe has focused much of his research on the evolution of tile manufacturing in California. He has been a principal contributor to More About Malibu Potteries 1926-1932, Catalina Tile of the Magic Isle, The Arts and Crafts Movement in California: Living the Good Life, Batchelder Tilemaker and California Tile: The Golden Era 1910-1940, published by Schiffer in 2004. He too was honored by the Tile Contractors' Association of America, receiving the Carl V. Cesery Award in October 2003. In 2007, Tile Council of North America distinguished him, along with Sheila menzies, with the Tile Persons of the Year Award. These are among the highest honors granted by American trade, industry and professional groups.

Irene De Watteville - Tile Heritage Board Member Emeritus 2014
Irene de Watteville was born in the Alsace region of France. Sitting on her grandmother's tiled stove started her love for tiles. In 1963 she moved to Boston where she completed a four-year diploma at the Boston Museum School of Fine Arts, majoring in painting and graphic art. In 1983 she became interested in making tiles in the style of European 17th and 18th century majolica. She joined the board of directors of the Tile Heritage Foundation in 1998 and a year later began offering majolica classes at her studio in Solana Beach, California as part of the "Keeping the Craft Alive" program. Recently, Irene became the chairperson of the Public Arts Advisory Committee of Solana Beach where she has been responsible for three tile installations. The city council rightly accuses her of wanting to tile the whole town.

Tags: Eric Astrachan, Sheila Menzies, Joseph Taylor, Katia Mcguirk, Josh Blanc, Kathy Meyer, Lesley Goddin, Ron Nash