TILE HISTORY - HERRINGBONE PATTERN

My imagination takes me to the person who after eating several helpings of herring, lays the bones out on a table and she, or he..... invents the layout pattern for a new floor! I'm betting the floor design came before the pattern made it's way into woven wool that is primarily used for suits and outwear. This pattern is known by several names; Herringbone, Chevron, Zig-Zag and Feather. The herringbone pattern also evolved in floor and wall coverings, fabrics and rugs through many other countries, notably Japan, India and Morocco.

15th Century Bohemian Heraldic Wall Hanging

Detail of 17th Century Kosode, Japan.

From wall coverings, fabric weaving, clothing, reclaimed wood floors, ceramic tile, stone. brick or glass; the Herringbone pattern is a classic that has evolved in every form of architecture since the ancient times of Rome and Greece. For centuries herringbone brick pathways have been leading us through gardens and parks. One of the main design elements in herringbone is the to know what you choose to highlight in the room or yard because just like a shooting arrow, you are leading the eye to something, make it worthwhile.

Herringbone brick pathway, leading out of the garden and into the countryside.

Reclaimed Herringbone, Exquisite Surfaces

TILE INSPIRATIONS - MORE PORTUGUESE PAVEMENTS

Inspired by ancient Greek and Roman pavements the Portuguese artisans combined white limestone and black basalt into sidewalk designs that were installed almost two hundred years ago. Very few craftsmen remain for this back-breaking manual work, every stone was individually laid into a bed of sand. The practical side of this design is that if any work needed to be done under the pavement, the stones could be removed and then replaced exactly where they had been laid decades before.  

Roberto Burle Marx, a world renowned landscape architect from Brazil installed many of the sidewalks in Rio de Janeiro.  This pavement is located at La Playa de Impanema and was inspired by the Portuguese walkways of the 1800's.  

This mosaic facade from the Oceana Hotel in Santa Monica, California is inspired by the Portuguese pavements and Marx. Reinvented in a modern stylized form the mosaic makes a statement that announces the entry to the hotel.

Designed in all white Calacata marble, Walker Zanger's Ipanema is subtle and enduring.  The classic curves of this pattern pay homage to the Portuguese and Marx mosaics and the uniform material makes it's own statement.

TILE INSPIRATIONS - PORTUGUESE PAVEMENTS

Portuguese Pavement, Rossio Square in Lisbon - Brede

The pavement in Rossio Square was installed in the mid 1800's and is white limestone an black basalt.  The use of pavement is believed to have originated in Mesopotamia and the concept was continued in Ancient Rome and Greece. A craft that is rarely used for new work, artisans are involved in restoration. Portuguese pavements are also found in the old colonies of Brazil and Macau.

Promenade at the Copacabana Beach, Brazil

Two and a half miles long, and thirty feet wide, the promenade at Copacabana Beach was completed in 1970 by the world renowned landscape artist Roberto Burle Marx. The most famous beach in Brazil is celebrated by this amazing wave pattern path in white limestone and black basalt.

Wave pattern bath 

Smaller scale, the wave pattern from the Portuguese pavements filter down to a modern bath and mosaic below. Timeless and classic, these mosaics will never go out of style.

Paramour Aquarius Mosaics

TILE DESIGN - MOROCCAN STYLE CHECKERBOARD

Marrakesh by Ruggero Poggianella

Moroccan style when using checkerboard design is quite distinct. The tiles are ceramic, not stone and are ceramic sizes from 1 to 8 inches or 2 to 15 centimeters. When you are mixing patterns, the overall design is more cohesive if the ceramic tiles are about the same size. This allows your mind's eye to enjoy the pattern flow without being distracted by a change of material or texture. 

Marrakesh by Riad Kaiss

Adding details to Moroccan style can be accomplished by changing the orientation of the tiles, size and outlining the areas.  In the photo below the checkerboard in the pool and the deck are laid in a grid or straight lay. In the detail around the pool the tiles are smaller and the area outlined in black.  Changing the checkerboard on the main pool deck to herringbone or any other pattern is part of the fun of making each design unique.

TILE HISTORY - CHECKERBOARD - ART & TEXTILES

Chancay pottery Jar, South American, 1000 - 1300 AD

Checkerboard patterns appear all over the world on works of art and woven into textiles. It is a classic design element that will never go out of fashion. From Anglo-Saxon studs, to South American pottery, to Japanese Kosode, the artistic examples of checkerboards are truly unique.

Anglo Saxon-English stud, 550 AD-1066 AD

17th Century Kosode Collection｜Nezu Museum

In art, furniture and textile design today, the selection of individual pieces is as varied as it was centuries ago. Checkerboard patterns are timeless and will continue to inspire new ways to use the pattern from all corners of the globe.

  Boutala waist wrap, cut pile raffia embroidery, The Congo

Louis Vuitton Spring 2013

MacKenzie-Childs Hand Painted Sink

Harlequin Painted Furniture

TILE HISTORY - CHECKERBOARD - THE BEGINNING

Metropolitan Museum of Art Collection

Checkerboard patterns, staggered squares of light and dark appear painted on pottery and woven into textiles from ancient times.  This Egyptian jar in the Metropolitan Museum of Art Collection dates from ca. 3850–2960 B.C.   As stone is incorporated into flooring the checkerboard layout pattern makes it's appearance in civilizations all over the world.  

Villa of Mysteries, Pompeii

This Roman home, known as the Villa of Mysteries was located just outside of Pompeii.  The checkerboard boarder adds definition to this amazing room of frescoes from over two thousand years ago. 

Westminster Abbey, Royal Wedding

Westminster Abbey checkered floor has felt it's fair share of history. The current Abbey was begun in 1245 by King Henry VIII and the original checkered floor was installed around 1690.  Coronations, weddings and funerals have filled the Abbey and now we see it all on color TV.

As architecture and interiors evolve over time the checkerboard floor  is found in palaces, great country houses, churches and a more modest home found in this Vermeer painting.

Jan Vermeer's THE CONCERT

Unfortunately for all of us, this painting was  stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, MA in 1990 and is now hidden from sight.  Painted circa 1664-1667, Vermeer shows us his skill in managing perspective with the checkered floor. I like to think that it was the actual floor of this home and not just Vermeer's minds eye, we'll never know.

Versailles Corridor (Interior)

Becoming the seat of royal power around 1682, the Palace at Versailles went through several building stages, the first one commencing around 1664.  Louis XIV and his architect, LeBrun used fine marble to resemble the imperial palaces of ancient Rome.

Versailles Corridor (Exterior)

Almost 100 years later, Robert Adam, an English architect and designer added a Greek Key overlay onto his checkerboard design at Syon Park.  The excavations at Pompeii and the influence of Grand Tours revived the Roman and Greek influences which was named Neo-classicism.  

Syon Park designed by Robert Adam

The Neo-Classicism architectural movement was international in influence.  In America the movement was exemplified by the White House, Capitol Building and the layout for the city of Washington D.C.  Robert Adam's architectural style was later adapted to what became known as Federal Architecture.  

Neo-Classicism also influences the works of Chippendale, Biedermeier, Hepplewhite and Wedgewood.  The classics also influenced English garden design at Chiswick House, Stowe House and Stourhead.