Events

Speaker, Dr Melanie Gibson, Editor of the Gingko Art Series and consultant to the Islamic Art module of the Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art at SOAS, London University. Melanie’s research specialises in the ceramics, glass and sculpture of the Islamic world. She is a trustee of The Friends of Leighton House, and her current research project is on the making of the ‘Arab Hall’ at Leighton House. Melanie led the TACS tour of Leighton House in June 2023.

Ottoman ceramics, sometimes known as ‘Iznik’ after the town where large quantities of tiles and tableware were produced throughout the sixteenth century, have long been admired for their glowing colours and elegant floral designs. With the accession of Sultan Suleyman (r.1520–66) the demand for glazed tiles to decorate mosques and other buildings reached a high point. This lecture will look at how the ‘Iznik’ tile industry developed and expanded across the sixteenth century, looking first at the blue and white tiles of the hammam of Barbarossa and the circumcision kiosk at the Topkapi Palace. The construction of the Suleymaniye, an imperial mosque commissioned from the royal architect Sinan in 1550, introduced a new and distinctive palette which included red, and the second half of the lecture will look at this and other buildings such as the Rustem Pasha mosque, famous for its astonishing variety of new floral designs.

Suggested donation: £5 per person

Speaker, Jo Amey, aka The Tile Lady, Insta @Tile_Lady, tile historian and local guide in Bournemouth
Carter and Co is recognised as one of the leading UK manufacturers of architectural ceramics. This talk looks at how the firm sought to promote its products to architects in the fifty years from 1920 and responded to the changes in building design. The talk is illustrated with advertising material from the Company and photos of a few of the many buildings they contributed to.

Suggested donation: £5 per person

Speaker, Lesley Durbin, Senior Conservator, The Jackfield Conservation Studio, and Conservation Advisor to TACS. Lesley holds Emeritus status of the Institute for Conservation and has acted as a reviewer for the Getty Institute in Los Angeles. She is one of the foremost authorities on the conservation of tiles and architectural ceramics. Lesley is the author of Architectural Tiles: Conservation and Restoration, 2nd edition, Routledge 2015, ISBN 978-0-415-84058-3, the only standard industry text on conservation and restoration of tiles, recommended by Historic England https://historicengland.org.uk/advice/technical-advice/buildings/decorative-features/tiles/

This lecture on the conservation of architectural ceramics is about the primary causes of degradation and will include discussion on remedial actions. There will be opportunity for discussion and questions. The lecture will be of interest to conservation officers, architects, members of SPAB and IHBC and Historic England as well as those with a general interest in architectural ceramics keen to learn more. TACS lectures are approved for CPD.

Cost £5 per person (free to members)

A visit to Cannon Hall with a morning of talks followed by tours and handling sessions in the afternoon. Tea and coffee will be provided.

Once the family home of Evelyn De Morgan’s ancestors, Cannon Hall is now home to the De Morgan Museum. Displaying around 70 stunning paintings, drawings and ceramics from the De Morgan Collection, the current exhibition takes a look at the world the De Morgan’s lived in through the artworks they made.

11.00am Arrival, tea/coffee
11.30am Rob Higgins, ‘William De Morgan, Boats and Beasts’ talk
12.30pm Lunch (members’ own cost)
1.30 – 3.00pm Two groups:
A: Sarah Hardy, Director of the De Morgan Museum: The De Morgan Collection, tour and handling collection
B: Melissa Gallimore, Freelance Curator, Cannon Hall Museum: Arts & Crafts ceramics at Cannon Hall, tour and handling collection
3.00-3.15pm Tea/coffee
3.15-4.30pm Reverse groups A & B
4.30pm Close

Cost £15 per person, tea and coffee included, max 25 people from TACS (and 25 from NCS)
This event is now full and Waitlist only.

Led by Helen Stead, local TACS member and tile enthusiast.

Meeting point will be St Martin on the Hill Church. Sites should include: the Spa, Burmantofts ladies toilets, the Grand Hotel, a couple of hotels on the Crescent, the train station for LNER map, Stephen Joseph theatre, a butcher’s shop, an NHS building, Albemarle Baptist Church, Mecca bingo, Natwest, old Pizza hut.

There will be a lot of walking involved but we will make use of two of the cliff lifts (this costs around £5 per person).

Cost £10 per person (plus cliff lift costs).

AGM to take place on the afternoon of Saturday 6th July at the Fitzwilliam Museum (tbc), Cambridge, more information to follow.

Free to attend the AGM, guided walk in the morning £10 per person

Organised by Alan Swale, Chair, TACS.
Hathern Terra Cotta is the UK’s leading manufacturer of traditional hand pressed architectural terra cotta & faience located near Loughborough in Leicestershire https://www.mbhplc.co.uk/hathern-terra-cotta/

We may also organise a visit to another local tilemaker on Friday 4th October TBC. These locations are close to Nottingham so any members visiting the Tile Fair on the Saturday may want to spend the weekend in the area.

Please register your interest by e mailing events@tacsuk.org and you will be sent more details in due course.

Previous TACS Events

See the Previous TACS Events page for details of TACS Events from 1981 to 2023, including On-Demand replays of previous TACS Zoom Events.

TACS members participate in events at their own risk, and neither the Society nor its officers or servants accept any liability of any kind whatsoever, howsoever arising. TACS reserves the right to cancel, postpone or alter events as necessary

For live events, full information (meeting points, times, directions etc.) will be sent out after payment by e mail at least two weeks in advance.

For virtual events, a Zoom link will be sent to the e mail address used at booking at least 48 hours in advance.

Please contact the TACS Events Secretary, with any questions, email: events@tacsuk.org