Name/Title
Tile: House Blessing T-20Description
A four-color silkscreen overglaze print on a glazed white tile blank depicting a saltbox house under construction, with a house blessing printed below. The saltbox house is shown partially in section, revealing activity within: a woman carries an armload of logs for the fire, a man stands on a stool with one hand reaching toward a stack of bricks, another man sits on the roof while mortaring bricks on the chimney stack. Atop the front dormer is a small pine tree, a reference to the Northern European tradition of “topping-off”: the roof is completed first so the interior remains dry while finishing the house. When the roof is finished, a topping-off ceremony takes place, blessing the house and the success of the project.
The blessing reads, “Bless this house, each brick and rafter, may it be filled with peace & laughter”.
This design is c.1954, but this example has been recolored and is printed on the thinner tile body and full cork backing used by Country Prints/Ceramo Studio from 1962 onward. See previous entry for comparison.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Robert Darr WertRole
ArtistManufacturer
Ceramo Studio, New York, Country PrintsDate made
circa 1962 - circa 1965Time Period
20th CenturyPlace
* Untyped Place
New York CityNotes
Design, screen production, and mixing of colored overglazes performed at the Country Prints workshop, Gill, MA. Screen printing of overglaze colors, firing and finishing by Ceramo Studio, NYC.Inscription/Signature/Marks
Front: “by hand”, lower left corner. This example is missing Wert’s signature in the lower right corner.
Back: Country Print Tiles/Ceramo Studio imprint.Dimensions
Height
1/4 inWidth
6 inLength
6 inMaterial
White Tile Blank, Overglaze Colors, Cork, InkColor
Red, Teal, Yellow Ochre, Dark Green
