Hans van Lemmen – författare

During the Middle Ages decorative floor tiles were used in abbey churches, royal palaces, parish churches and the homes of wealthy citizens. Tiles were durable and hygienic and added a new decorative element to the interior. Despite their simple tools and kiln equipment, the medieval tile makers proved extremely skilful in the production of different types of tile. They ranged from variously shaped plain tiles, which were assembled into complex mosaic floors, to two-coloured inlaid tiles, and stamped-relief and line-impressed tiles, all decorated with a wealth of different patterns and designs. Many medieval tiles disappeared during nineteenth-century restorations but the designs lived on in the copies made by Victorian tile manufacturers. Throughout Britain, tiles can still be seen 'in situ' on the sites of former abbeys as well as in medieval cathedrals and parish churches, and the British Museum has an extensive and important collection.

This book describes how nineteenth-century decorative encaustic tiles derived from medieval church tiles, how they were made, the designers and manufacturers.

This book charts the history of architectural ceramics, focusing on practical and decorative applications, on architects, designers and manufacturers, and on styles and techniques of production and decoration.

Italian potters brought the art of making tin-glazed tiles to the Low Countries in the early sixteenth century. Native potters copied the technique and in the seventeenth century they began to manufacture the distinctive blue and white Dutch tiles. Huge quantities were produced during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, first in the Netherlands and later in Britain. Because the best tiles and other tin-glazed pottery came from Delft, the name of the town became associated with this ware. This book traces the history of delftware tiles, describes how they were made and explains the differences between Dutch and English delftware tiles.

The Coade stone factory in London, which was active between 1769 and 1840, was owned and managed by Mrs Eleanor Coade, a remarkable Georgian business woman. Her firm produced all kinds of architectural ornaments and statues, which were used by leading Georgian architects of the day for the embellishment of town and country houses and other important buildings. Coade stone was fired clay made using a special formula, but it was marketed as 'artificial stone' since at that time stone was the preferred material for architectural decoration. This book charts the history of Coade stone, the techniques of production, the sculptors who provided designs, and the architects who used it.

At the turn of the last century, Art Nouveau, characterised by its richly ornamental curvilinear design and use of sinuous line and vibrant colour, held sway as the dominant style in architecture and design - a style that defined the Edwardian period, with its departure from more formal Victorian styles. This book charts the impact of this sensuous new style on the tile industry in Britain, showing how tiles were made and decorated, and using photographs of tiles, individually and in situ, to examine the diverse range of floral, animal and human subject matter found on Art Nouveau tiles that make them now so appealing to collectors and design historians.