Trencadís (Catalan pronunciation: [tɾəŋkəˈðis]), also known as pique assiette, broken tile mosaics, bits and pieces, memoryware, and shardware, is a type of mosaic made from cemented-together tile shards and broken chinaware.[1][2] Glazed china tends to be preferred, and glass is sometimes mixed in as well, as are other small materials like buttons and shells. Artists working in this form may create random designs, pictorial scenes, geometric patterns, or a hybrid of any of these.[1]
Although as a folk art the method itself may be centuries old, the two most commonly used terms are both of modern origin. Trencadís, a Catalan term that means 'broken up', and by extension, 'broken up tiles', is the name for this method as it was revived in early 20th century Catalan Modernisme, while pique assiette is a more general name for the technique that comes from the French language. In French, pique assiette ('plate thief') is a term for a scrounger or sponger, and thus as a name for this mosaic technique, it refers to the recycled or 'scrounged' nature of the materials.[1][2]
Traditional mosaics, such as classical Roman floors, are made up of individual tesserae, usually small cubes that are uniformly shaped and designed for their intended use. Trencadís differs in that the tesserae are nonuniform pieces broken from tiles and chinaware originally made for other uses. Trencadís is thus a form of bricolage, found object art, or recycled art.
There are two main methods for trencadís. In the first, an initial design is drawn up and the ceramic fragments are carefully fitted into the design; in this case, the mosaic is only cemented together once all of the fragments have been placed. Alternatively, an artist may spontaneously arrange fragments without a prior design; here the success of the finished work depends greatly on their improvisation skills.
Notable artists and works
Antoni Gaudí and Josep Maria Jujol
The Catalan modernist architects Antoni Gaudí[3] and Josep Maria Jujol used trencadís in many projects, among which Barcelona's Parc Güell (1900–1914) is probably the most famous. Gaudí's first use of this technique was at the Güell Pavilions, where the sinuous architecture forced him to break the tiles in order to cover the curved surfaces.[4]
Gaudí tended to create patterns with his trencadís work, and he leaned towards brightly colored glazed ceramic shards. He often used discarded pieces of ceramic tile collected from the factory Pujol i Bausis located in Esplugues de Llobregat, as well as pieces of white ceramic from broken cups and plates discarded by other Spanish manufacturers.[citation needed]
Demetrio Ribes
The Valencian architect Demetrio Ribes used trencadís extensively for decoration in the hall of Valencia North Station in 1907.
Raymond Edouard Isidore
In France, the term pique assiette is most closely associated with Raymond Edouard Isidore (1900–1964) a French graveyard sweeper and folk artist. Starting in the late 1930s, he spent 30 years covering both the inside and outside of his house as well as his furniture and his garden walls with mosaics.[1][5] He found his materials in the surrounding fields and quarries, in the public dump, and at auctions.[1] This habit of scavenging earned him the nickname "pique assiette" later shortened to "picassiette".[5]
Isidore, a very religious man, created many of his mosaic scenes with Christian personages and symbols.[6] He also built a "sweeper's throne" and a "sweeper's tomb" covered in pique assiette.[6] As the mosaics expanded, the project became more widely known, and in 1954, Pablo Picasso visited Isidore's house.[6] Today, the house is a tourist attraction near Chartres known as "Maison Picassiette".[1]
The Watts Towers in Los Angeles were built over a period of 30 years by Simon Rodia, a construction worker and tile mason. Begun in 1921, the 17 interconnected towers were decorated with fragments of porcelain, tile, glass, seashells and other found objects. Rodia built them without a premade plan, using damaged pieces from local tile companies and materials scavenged by neighborhood children.
Bridge of the Dragon
A contemporary example is the Bridge of the Dragon, which crosses the Guadaíra River at Alcalá de Guadaíra.[7] The bridge's support structure emulates a dragon's body and is covered in trencadís.[7] Designed by engineer José Luis Manzanares, it was directly inspired by Gaudí's dragon fountain in Parc Güell.[7]
A related form is the memory jug, an American folk art form that memorializes the dead.[8] The memory jug is a vessel with a mosaic-like surface decoration of glass and ceramic shards, seashells, trinkets, coins and other small objects, especially objects associated with a specific dead person.[8][9] Most known examples date back no further than the early 20th century.[8]
late 19th or early 20th century puttywork or pique assiette pedestal
References
^ abcdefJacobsen, Reham Aarti. Mosaics for the First Time. Sterling Publishing Company, 2005, p. 18. ISBN978-1-4027-2780-1.
^ ab"Unique Mosaic Art: History, Technique and Tip Guide". Ebay buying guide.
^"Trencadís mosaic, hallmark of Gaudí". November 2017.
^Sobrer, Josep Miquel (2002). "Against Barcelona? Gaudí, the City, and Nature". Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies. 6: 212–213. JSTOR 20641605. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
^ abcMbison. "La Maison Picassiette". Atlas Obscura.
^ abc"Dragon Bridge: The Guardian of the Castle". Turismo de Alcalá de Guadaíra website. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
^ abcWertkin, Gerard C., ed. Encyclopedia of American Folk Art. Routledge, 2003, p. 314.
^Tabler, Dave. "The Memory Jug". Appalachian History, May 11, 2015.
Further reading
Fassett, Kaffe, and Candace Bahouth. Mosaics (2001)
Marshall, Marlene Hurley. Making Bits and Pieces Mosaics (1998)
Wallach, Mara. Making Mosaics with Found Objects (2010)
External links
Media related to Trencadís at Wikimedia Commons
May 03, 2023
trencadís, catalan, pronunciation, tɾəŋkəˈðis, also, known, pique, assiette, broken, tile, mosaics, bits, pieces, memoryware, shardware, type, mosaic, made, from, cemented, together, tile, shards, broken, chinaware, glazed, china, tends, preferred, glass, some. Trencadis Catalan pronunciation tɾeŋkeˈdis also known as pique assiette broken tile mosaics bits and pieces memoryware and shardware is a type of mosaic made from cemented together tile shards and broken chinaware 1 2 Glazed china tends to be preferred and glass is sometimes mixed in as well as are other small materials like buttons and shells Artists working in this form may create random designs pictorial scenes geometric patterns or a hybrid of any of these 1 Dragon with trencadis at the entrance of Parc Guell overlooking Barcelona Although as a folk art the method itself may be centuries old the two most commonly used terms are both of modern origin Trencadis a Catalan term that means broken up and by extension broken up tiles is the name for this method as it was revived in early 20th century Catalan Modernisme while pique assiette is a more general name for the technique that comes from the French language In French pique assiette plate thief is a term for a scrounger or sponger and thus as a name for this mosaic technique it refers to the recycled or scrounged nature of the materials 1 2 Contents 1 Technique 2 Notable artists and works 2 1 Antoni Gaudi and Josep Maria Jujol 2 2 Demetrio Ribes 2 3 Raymond Edouard Isidore 2 4 Watts Towers 2 5 Bridge of the Dragon 2 6 Memory jugs 3 Gallery 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksTechnique EditTraditional mosaics such as classical Roman floors are made up of individual tesserae usually small cubes that are uniformly shaped and designed for their intended use Trencadis differs in that the tesserae are nonuniform pieces broken from tiles and chinaware originally made for other uses Trencadis is thus a form of bricolage found object art or recycled art There are two main methods for trencadis In the first an initial design is drawn up and the ceramic fragments are carefully fitted into the design in this case the mosaic is only cemented together once all of the fragments have been placed Alternatively an artist may spontaneously arrange fragments without a prior design here the success of the finished work depends greatly on their improvisation skills Notable artists and works EditAntoni Gaudi and Josep Maria Jujol Edit The Catalan modernist architects Antoni Gaudi 3 and Josep Maria Jujol used trencadis in many projects among which Barcelona s Parc Guell 1900 1914 is probably the most famous Gaudi s first use of this technique was at the Guell Pavilions where the sinuous architecture forced him to break the tiles in order to cover the curved surfaces 4 Gaudi tended to create patterns with his trencadis work and he leaned towards brightly colored glazed ceramic shards He often used discarded pieces of ceramic tile collected from the factory Pujol i Bausis located in Esplugues de Llobregat as well as pieces of white ceramic from broken cups and plates discarded by other Spanish manufacturers citation needed Demetrio Ribes Edit The Valencian architect Demetrio Ribes used trencadis extensively for decoration in the hall of Valencia North Station in 1907 Raymond Edouard Isidore Edit In France the term pique assiette is most closely associated with Raymond Edouard Isidore 1900 1964 a French graveyard sweeper and folk artist Starting in the late 1930s he spent 30 years covering both the inside and outside of his house as well as his furniture and his garden walls with mosaics 1 5 He found his materials in the surrounding fields and quarries in the public dump and at auctions 1 This habit of scavenging earned him the nickname pique assiette later shortened to picassiette 5 Isidore a very religious man created many of his mosaic scenes with Christian personages and symbols 6 He also built a sweeper s throne and a sweeper s tomb covered in pique assiette 6 As the mosaics expanded the project became more widely known and in 1954 Pablo Picasso visited Isidore s house 6 Today the house is a tourist attraction near Chartres known as Maison Picassiette 1 Watts Towers Edit Main article Watts Towers The Watts Towers in Los Angeles were built over a period of 30 years by Simon Rodia a construction worker and tile mason Begun in 1921 the 17 interconnected towers were decorated with fragments of porcelain tile glass seashells and other found objects Rodia built them without a premade plan using damaged pieces from local tile companies and materials scavenged by neighborhood children Bridge of the Dragon Edit A contemporary example is the Bridge of the Dragon which crosses the Guadaira River at Alcala de Guadaira 7 The bridge s support structure emulates a dragon s body and is covered in trencadis 7 Designed by engineer Jose Luis Manzanares it was directly inspired by Gaudi s dragon fountain in Parc Guell 7 Memory jugs Edit Main article Memory jug A related form is the memory jug an American folk art form that memorializes the dead 8 The memory jug is a vessel with a mosaic like surface decoration of glass and ceramic shards seashells trinkets coins and other small objects especially objects associated with a specific dead person 8 9 Most known examples date back no further than the early 20th century 8 Gallery Edit A figure in Park Guell Casa Batllo roof Sagrada Familia detail Auditorio de Tenerife late 19th or early 20th century puttywork or pique assiette pedestalReferences Edit a b c d e f Jacobsen Reham Aarti Mosaics for the First Time Sterling Publishing Company 2005 p 18 ISBN 978 1 4027 2780 1 a b Unique Mosaic Art History Technique and Tip Guide Ebay buying guide Trencadis mosaic hallmark of Gaudi November 2017 Sobrer Josep Miquel 2002 Against Barcelona Gaudi the City and Nature Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies 6 212 213 JSTOR 20641605 Retrieved 2020 10 29 a b La Maison Picassiette a b c Mbison La Maison Picassiette Atlas Obscura a b c Dragon Bridge The Guardian of the Castle Turismo de Alcala de Guadaira website Retrieved January 17 2018 a b c Wertkin Gerard C ed Encyclopedia of American Folk Art Routledge 2003 p 314 Tabler Dave The Memory Jug Appalachian History May 11 2015 Further reading EditFassett Kaffe and Candace Bahouth Mosaics 2001 Marshall Marlene Hurley Making Bits and Pieces Mosaics 1998 Wallach Mara Making Mosaics with Found Objects 2010 External links Edit Media related to Trencadis at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Trencadis amp oldid 1145641456, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
