Name/Title
Tile: Boston, Louisburg Square Townhouse, Electro-Motive Division of General MotorsDescription
A four-color silkscreen underglaze print on a white tile blank depicting a townhouse on Boston’s Louisburg Square in Beacon Hill as well as lighting fixtures found inside and outside of the home; see web link for Louisburg Square history.
The lighting and illuminants featured are, clockwise from top left:
1. A candle in a suspended hurricane lamp.
2. A handheld alcohol lamp.
3. An exterior electric streetlamp.
4. A tall tabletop oil lamp.
This tile is one of a set of three commissioned by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors as favors for an annual convention at the Somerset Hotel in Boston on June 10, 1958. In theme with the company’s business, each tile features a historic Boston building and its corresponding lighting fixtures; see images.
This is the second of at least three commissions produced for Electro-Motive’s annual conventions. The other two known commission are placemat sets; see placemat sets below.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Robert Darr WertRole
ArtistManufacturer
Ceramo Studio, New York, Country PrintsDate made
1958Time Period
20th CenturyPlace
* Untyped Place
New York CityNotes
This example is on the thicker tile base used by Country Prints/Ceramo Studio before 1962.
Design, screen production, and mixing of colored underglazes performed at the Country Prints workshop, Gill, MA. Screen printing of underglaze colors, clear glaze and firing by Ceramo Studio, NYC.Inscription/Signature/Marks
Front: “wert by hand”, lower left corner.
Back: Country Print Tiles label hanger.Dimensions
Height
3/8 inWidth
6 inDepth
6 inMaterial
White Tile Blank, Colored Underglaze, Clear Overglaze, Oaktag Label Hanger, Cork, InkColors
Color
Black, Brick Red, Aqua, TealColor Notes
The aqua and teal colors are very close, but the teal holds a hard edge when fired, whereas the aqua bleeds slightly.
