Mexican Tiles: Color, Style, Design (Paperback)

by Masako Takahashi (Author), Tony Cohan (Introduction) "THE TECHNIQUES OF HAND-PAINTED, TWICE-FIRED, TIN-GLAZED CERAMICS THAT WERE FIRST BROUGHT TO MEXICO FROM TALAVERA DE LA REINA, SPAIN, INVOLVED BLENDING TWO KINDS OF CLAY..." (more)
Key Phrases: mexican tiles, tile work, Dolores Hidalgo, San Miguel de Allende, Casa de los Espiritus Alegres (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Masako Takahashi, coauthor of the best-selling Mexicolor, now turns her attention to the vibrant tiles that are such a key element in Mexican style and design. Bring a festive new look to any home or garden with the ideas in Mexican Tiles. Masako Takahashi leads a colorful architectural tour through Mexico, revealing the many ways tiles are used for function and decoration, adding color and interest to everyday surroundings. Over 175 beautiful color photographs present inspirational examples of classic and contemporary tile work, from colonial-era church facades ornately covered with talavera tiles to vividly detailed modern treatments of bathrooms and kitchens. Including a delightful introduction by Tony Cohen about the history of tile-making in Mexico, plus installation tips and a resource guide, Mexican Tiles is both a fascinating initiation and a practical guide to this key element of Mexican style and design.

About the Author
Masako Takahashi is the coauthor of Mexicolor: The Spirit of Mexican Design, published by Chronicle Books. She divides her time between Mexico and Venice, California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (April 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811826295
• ISBN-13: 978-0811826297
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 8.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #277,166 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AWESOME!!! Fulfilled ALL my expectations!, April 12, 2003

By	"chelita101" (Olympia, WA United States) - See all my reviews

After I bought Masako Takahasi and her husband Tony Cohen's book "Mexicolor", I thought no other book I purchased would EVER compare to that experience. When I discovered "Mexican Tiles", I opened it with fear and trepidation, hoping against all hope, yet hardly daring to believe that it could be even half as good as their first.

But this book is AWESOME!! I think I finally figured out why, after reading Tony Cohen's book "On Mexican Time": these people simply ADORE Mexico, and it comes through in everything they do. All of the wonder and breathless anticipation and teary-eyed beauty that I feel and am so hopelessly unqualified to express when I am either in Mexico or adding to my collection of artesania, Tony vividly portrays in his prose and Masako captures with her camera.

As for subject matter, I LOVE Talavera tiles, Talavera pottery, Talavera ANYTHING, because they are so INCREDIBLY Mexican, and this book is simply PAGE after GORGEOUS PAGE of Talavera-lined kitchens, bathrooms, stairs, floors...you name it, it's tiled. If you at all appreciate ethnic interior design or Mexican handicrafts, this is an AWESOME book!!!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Tile Summary, February 27, 2006

By	R. Spell "raspell" (Memphis, TN USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I'm in the process of building on the Maya Riviera so this isn't a book read for fun. This is real research looking for real ideas. Building in Spanish Colonial style can't be done without some incorporation of Mexican Tiles. This book is basically 90% pictures and 10% background and history of Mexican Tiles. The background write-up is excellent and gives good history of Talavera and Talavera-Style Tiles. Then it's on to different uses, floors, kitchens, bathrooms, walls and stairs, and patios and gardens.

I'm very simple in the colors I like in homes so these tiles can be "over the top". This book has a lot of these type pictures. It has more tile usage than I've ever seen on exteriors. The kitchen section has huge tile usage but I've seen more attractive usage in other books.

Overall, I did not get any ideas I will definitely use but I did get a different perspective on tile usage. There are definitely pictures I will take back to discuss with my architect and designer which may be incorporated. This book can be consumed in an hour. But it may take many hours of review going over the pictures again and again.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A bit of a let down., January 17, 2006

By	rick from Boston - See all my reviews

I love Mexican tiles but I felt the book was a bit of a let down. The pictures were a bit small and there wasn't enough information about tilemaking in the book. I think the book would have been much more effective in a larger format where the tiles would have been more impressive. There are some wonderful talavera tile websites on the net for anyone who wants a better overview.