clé introduces metallic tiles in porcelain, ceramic and limestone that have been painted, glazed, and printed with the glimmer of silver, gold, iron, platinum and copper. The tiles are produced by different international tile artists. Along with gold, the Byzantina rectangle series by Italian artist Adriano Ricchetti of Il Monile, includes iron, platinum, and silver.
Brenda Bates creates her Welbeck tile in her potter’s studio in Cornwall, England. Fascinated by aquatic life in the Celtic Sea, Bates has created the Coast Collection, immortalizing sea stars in hand made tile, delicately painted in 24k gold and platinum. Her Platinum Collection is a study in abstraction, using metallics to define irregular shapes.The weight of the precious metals against the delicate translucent glaze causes the random crackled surface.
The clé Classic Tile Collection has taken the traditional material of porcelain and rendered it modern with faux metal finishes of oxidized steel, iron and copper.
The Metallic Porcelain series allows for installation of a tile where weight or temperature would be problematic for metal. The tile slabs are 13 by 40 inches and can be installed on floors and walls, indoors and out.
The Dutch artist Hanneke Steenmetz silk screens her Shakespeare inspired graphics onto limestone tile for her Studio H. All of her images are available in gold, silver and copper.
