A studio in Woodbury offers original art tiles and pots
by artist Linda Boston and other artisans
The art of tiling has been around since the earliest days of civilization. Tiles have had many uses—from adorning the rooms of a royal palace, or commemorating a historical event, to covering floors, walls, or the bottom of swimming pools. Most of us are familiar with field and border tiles, decorating our backsplashes, mantels, and showers with them. But art tile is in a class by itself. Art tile almost always has a hanger, to give the option of hanging it like any other piece of art. But it can also be installed in backsplashes, hearths and fireplaces, floors, fountains, and anywhere commercial tile is used. Art tile often looks really wonderful when paired with tumbled marble, too. While a few tiles are within everyone’s reach, an entire large fireplace of all custom-made tile gets expensive fast, so using a choice like tumbled marble, from a tile shop, with a few accent art tiles, or perhaps an art tile border, can be very effective and affordable.
We went to visit Linda Boston at her art studio, Boston Pot & Tile in Woodbury, where she creates beautiful art tiles and pottery, and carries pieces by other artists, both local and from the midwest. Her showroom features a wide variety of tile and pottery that can be purchased, ordered, or commissioned. The studio is in a lovely building with ample space for her kiln, glazing kitchen, work area, showroom, and other areas designed specifically for pottery and tile making. As she gives us the studio tour, we realize how deep her knowledge is of the art form and how talented and experienced she is. The showroom features displays of her stunning tiles and pots, as well as the works of the artists that she represents. There are some big names from the ceramics world, including John Glick from Farmington, Michigan. He did the commission for Rosalyn Carter’s state dinner at the White House. He is just one example of the caliber of artistry found at Boston Pot & Tile.
Linda Boston grew up immersed in the world of art, having artists for both of her parents. Her father was a professional illustrator and her mother was an interior designer, who was passionate about sewing, knitting and crochet. By the time Linda earned a Bachelor of Art from Michigan State University, she had become proficient in design, illustration, and several fiber arts, and conversant in clay, etching, painting, and art history. While working as an art director on advertising, in the Detroit metro area, she studied ceramics at Detroit’s historic Pewabic Pottery off-and-on for 20 years, and developed a deep appreciation for art tile.
She volunteered on the board for the Royal Oak (MI) Art Fair, which sought ways to commemorate the 25th anniversary of their outdoor art fair. She suggested an art tile, for which she could volunteer the design and sculpt, and advised production by Pewabic Pottery. This became her first commission. The effort was very successful, and the work was featured in “500 Tiles,” all very encouraging. Then came a commission for a large fireplace with a custom theme, which was featured in the publication “Ceramic Art Tile for the Home.” But this was still years before she would move to ceramics full-time.
Linda relocated to Connecticut in 2001 for an art direction job with a magazine publisher. When that position was eliminated a few years later, she made ceramics her second career, and built a studio designed for workshops with visiting artists, as well as for her own projects in tile and pottery. Linda says, “The presence of art tile is much stronger in the midwest, where the arts and crafts movement was more prevalent 100 years ago, giving rise to a strong ceramic industry. So my hope is to introduce many of the best tile artists working today to the Connecticut market, inviting them to teach workshops in my studio and offering their work in my display area.”
Linda’s art pieces come in many forms and finishes, but her most distinctive feature is her naturalistic style. Her handmade tiles are sculpted, like stone carvings, using elements from nature. They seem to come alive, projecting from their frame. Other pieces have indented medallions, with tiny details and small lettering recessed into the clay. Linda says she likes to combine tile making with pottery, and she enjoys using medallion motifs in both. “Most of my pottery is stoneware, and that means it’s non-porous, and suitable for vessels intended to hold water. I would like to do more terra cotta for garden pieces,” she says.
One project of Linda’s that stands out is a fireplace that was made completely with custom tile. The photographer who commissioned it wanted a Michigan theme. He hunted and fished, so there were images of grouse, trout, and depictioss of water as ice as well as liquid. The seasons change as your eye travels around the tile. In the spring quadrant, there are cherry blossoms on intertwining branches; as it turns to summer in the next quadrant, those same intertwining branches are laden with cherries, for which Michigan is famous. “This is the sort of thing you’ll never find in a commercial tile store, as lovely as they are around Connecticut,” Linda points out. For a commissioned installation, Linda can treat the back of the tile differently, putting a rough texture instead of the hanger, so it makes a better join with the mortar. “You get to customize like that, structurally as well as aesthetically, when you make it,” she says.
Another beautiful art piece is a commission Linda worked on a few years back when she was on the board of the Northwestern Connecticut chapter of the Alliance Francaise. “They ordered 300 small bowls to commemorate the Washington/Rochambeau march, which went through something like 9 states and turned the tide of the Revolutionary War in our favor. I used stamps of 2 uniform buttons, one French and one American, on opposite sides of the rim.” These bowls were recently presented to Gov. Malloy, Senator Blumenthal, and Rep. Larson at another event for the march.
In recent years, Linda travelled quite a bit for the study of clay arts, participating in anagama firings in Arizona as well as here in Connecticut, and helping in five kiln builds in Michigan, North Carolina, and Virginia. She spent two weeks in LaBorne, France, a tiny ancient town which sits on a vein of lustrous black clay and has been a ceramic center since the 10th century — after a few days traveling through Somerset, England’s potteries. Last February, Linda spent two weeks studying mosaic technique in Ravenna, Italy. “Tile conferences and workshops throughout the states have taught me to always have a few tiny bisque pots to pack in a pilot’s case, ready to guest fire anywhere I may be visiting, should I be able to participate in a wood firing,” she says, smiling. “This experience, and these travels, support a life in design which has enabled me to help people realize a vision. Design is communication, and I’m able to interpret, and then convey, a message. My studio is very close to completion, and once it’s done, I look forward to work on public and private commissions.”
Linda Boston expects to open her studio in late spring. Her shop will be open to the public and she will be offering workshops run by guest artists. Check back with us for details on the classes and workshops.
For more information regarding Linda and her studio, Boston Pot & Tile, visit www.bostonpotandtile.com.
