Robin Petravic - Tile Makes the Room: Good Design from Heath Ceramics

Editorial Direction

Simone Silverstein

Photography Direction

Mariko Reed

Design

Volume Inc.

Copyright 2015 by Robin Petravic and Catherine Bailey. All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.

www.crownpublishing.com

www.tenspeed.com

Ten Speed Press and the Ten Speed Press colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Bailey, Cathy, author.

Tile makes the room / Cathy Bailey & Robin Petravic.

pages cm

1. Heath Ceramics. 2. Ceramic tilesCaliforniaSausalito.

I. Petravic, Robin, author. II. Title.

NK4670.7.U53H433 2015

738.6dc23

2015013735

Hardcover ISBN978-1-60774-741-3

eBook ISBN978-1-60774-742-0

v3.1

We create the spaces we inhabit around the lives we lead. From work to home and to work again theres commonality, though they may feel different at first glance. Weve designed these spaces based on how we spend our time and how we want to feel when we work, relax, and entertain in them. Each space creates a backdrop to our lives, inspiring us and reminding us of where weve been and what we care about.

The way we use environments changes as our children grow, priorities shift, as well as how we work and spend our time. Nothing should be too precious or staticthis is reason enough to lay a foundation with good, honest materials. We find that when the materials chosen respect the spaces purpose, its beautiful, and obvious. Nothing needs to be too expensive or rare, but it must have intention, the ability to gain a patina over time and to tell a story.

Good design (for us) is not a particular style. Its respect for what truly works in a spacebe it form or function, how it enhances our experience, and how it evolves over time. Theres no old and new, only what moves us forward as we live our lives.

This midcentury building is steeped in heritage; around every corner the past collides with the present. The history of the building, with its roots as a small pottery, inspires us as we move forward. What works? What can we leave alone? What, if anything, needs to be changed? Being in this factory reminds us of simpler times. A typewriter sits on a shelf beside Robins desk, sharing the space with electrical outlets charging all the gadgets we use today. In the factory, windows line workstations, providing natural light and keeping the environment human and humane. Every surface is splattered in all manner of clay and glaze. Rather than cleaning them up, we witness ever-changing works of art that pay tribute to the making of ceramics. The ceilings folded plywood trusses, with long open spans, make for a lightweight feela young architects experiment that never caught onproviding a strong and unique design element. Since its next to the bay, the building is prone to flooding when tides are high. As luck would have it, the concrete floors wipe clean and dry with a simple mopping. As we update and adapt the building, we make choices that work around the functionality and materials from its original design. The building creates thoughtful conversationworking in it is living in it.

We chose our Victorian farmhouse for its location and proportions. We call it Victorian not because of its ornate details, but because its narrow windows and ten-foot ceilings remind us of that architectural style. Weve carefully rebuilt the house over time, keeping the proportions and coziness intact on each of its three floors. We wanted the former basement to feel warmour sanctuary for lazy movies and long baths. We tiled the guest bedroom in an olive green that flows into chocolate brown tile in the family room that flows into meadow green tile in the bathroom. The main floor, where daily life happens, was opened up to connect the kitchen, dining, and living rooms. Six of us live here (three humans, three animals) and were often in separate rooms, but each is close enough to enjoy each others conversation and the flow of everyday life. The home is lined with simple Victorian moldings, tall windows that complement tall ceilings, and natural fir floors in a mix of old and new planking. Black, ornately patterned Josef Frank wallpaper in the living room gives way to the inverse of the same wallpaper pattern, in white, going up the staircase to the bedrooms. Upstairs is light and warm, a place for dozing off and preparing for the day ahead. A former attic, the white painted beadboard on the walls and ceiling make the bedrooms feel larger than they are and frame views of the bay. Original soft fir floors age and wear next to the new soft fir planks beside them.