Voysey’s tile designs: catalogue of Voysey’s tiles

Peart, Tony ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6367-1387 (2019) Voysey’s tile designs: catalogue of Voysey’s tiles. The Orchard, 8 . p. 83.

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Abstract

Britain was the leading producer of tiles from the mid-19th to the early 20th century, satisfying a huge worldwide demand. The Victorian and Edwardian boom in housebuilding saw tiles used to decorate everything from floors, walls, and bathrooms to kitchens, fireplaces and furniture. In the public sphere, tiles rapidly became mandatory in all contexts where public health and hygiene were of paramount concern such as: hospitals; swimming pools; laundries; dairies; restaurants; public houses etc. Where serviceability or decoration were key, tiled interiors were to be found in public buildings; from town halls and churches to theatres and hotels.

Tiles first became subject to popular fashion with those designed by the architects of the Gothic Revival and in particularly AWN Pugin (1812–1852). Later, the motifs of the Aesthetic Movement proved popular with progressive manufacturers and the public alike as, in turn, did those of the Arts and Crafts movement. As one of the leading architects and designers of his generation, it is unsurprising that Voysey became involved with tile design.

Although Voysey’s tiles constitute only a small proportion of his total design output, they demonstrate the essence of his design vocabulary and many of these tiles have become well-known and highly collectable. However, as this area of his professional life is relatively little documented, much confusion has arisen among curators and collectors alike over which tiles are (or are not) by Voysey. With that in mind, the primary aim of this article is to chronologically catalogue and illustrate all the known tile designs for the six companies with which he worked commencing with Maw & Co. in the late 1880s through to his final designs for Dunsmore Tiles in the 1930s.

Item Type:	Article
Journal / Publication Title:	The Orchard
Publisher:	The C.F.A. Voysey Society
ISSN:	2050-2400
Departments:	Institute of Arts > Graphics and Photography
Depositing User:	Christian Stretton
Date Deposited:	10 Mar 2020 11:52
Last Modified:	13 Jan 2024 09:49
URI:	https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/5442

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