Nawal Motawi began making historically inspired tiles in her garage and selling them at local farmers’ markets in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Her designs, influenced by a range of styles from Art Nouveau to Mid-century Modern, were warmly received by customers, and demand soon exceeded her own production capacity. She opened her company, Motawi Tileworks, in 1992.
Along with original designs, Motawi tiles showcase art inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright and Charley Harper. To make Motawi Art Tile, the design is first etched into a plaster mold. Clay is then pressed into the mold, trimmed, and bisque-fired in the kiln. Before the final firing, each tile is glazed by hand using the centuries-old Cuenca technique, carefully filling glazes into the “basins” created by thin, raised lines in the clay.
Motawi's artistic style and glazing technique are particularly well suited to high-contrast designs with distinct areas of solid color. This style is often seen in woodblock prints and poster art of the mid twentieth century, and modern revivals of this style such as Motawi's California landscape series based on the art of Yoshiko Yamamoto (below).
Motawi Tileworks is made up of employees who are dedicated to craft, creativity, and continuous improvement. As they have grown, Motawi has become known not only for their incredible product, but also for their business managment making it onto Forbes Magazine's list of Small Giants.
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