Interiors - October/November 2010

MUST EVERY NEW CREATIVE CONCEPT BE GREETED BY A WELCOME wagon of killjoys and bewilderment? The moment a novel idea works up the nerve‚ puts on its smartest out;t and ventures out to mix with oxygen for the ;rst time‚ it receives as charming a reception as the village heretic.

One year ago‚ when Jacqueline Moore sought feedback on her nascent collection of wood tiles‚ the reaction was a scrumptious blend of curiosity and confusion‚ “As though I were making kitchen cabinets out of meringue‚” she recalls. Often tiles are thrust into that unsexy professional category where builders and contractors frolic. Her tiles are lyrical‚ quixotic creatures‚ distinctive not only for their hand painted surfaces but their deep‚ succulent soulfulness.

Born into an English family of artists‚ the Santa Monica-based designer is an art historian‚ furniture restorer and muralist‚ who has “always had a forensic inquiry into materials.” Of her love for restoration she says‚ “It’s always been for me about every nuance‚ every layer and detail. Something about the condition‚ and the passion captured. It’s about preserving the story.” This is coming from a woman who spent hours on a ski holiday in Aspen in the library‚ pouring over the history of lacquers‚ shellacs and gold leaf.

It was an afternoon at Lotusland‚ the private estate and gardens of Madame Ganna Walska in the foothills of Montecito‚ where Moore had a rousing impulse. Among the manicured hedges‚ and sundials of this botanical Narnia‚ she saw tiles resting on the ground‚ almost superimposed—an epiphany that led to sketching the Lotus collection. When asked why wood and not the usual suspects‚ she relays a simple‚

passionate rationale: possibilities. During her months of meticulous
research‚ asking craftsmen and stone masons and specialists‚ lingering
for hours at factories‚ it was a contest of endurance; gold leaf would
never take on porcelain or ceramic after being ;red‚ but wood‚
with its transformative esthetic properties‚ had near boundless
opportunities.

Each glossy‚ indulgent tile wears anything from 12-20 layers. It is a
succulent chemistry of imagination‚ of distressed wood‚ gesso and
paint‚ detailing and layers upon layers of character‚ like a precise
but thrilling lasagna. The Old Malacca pattern was inspired during
a trip to Malaysia‚ the weathered walls‚ colors that had worn and
bled‚ and mellowed in the sun. It’s an emotional design‚ a memory
submerged in blues and terra cotta. The Golden Art Nouveau style
re;ects the designer’s love of the 19th century period and captures
too‚ that traveler’s exploration of old buildings and scenes in the
late afternoon with its “;reside cooked yellow” glow; while The
Prayer Temple honors her a;nity for Asia. The collection is a fearless
expression‚ the tiles are crafted like paintings: a blue may need be
to be “more sweet tooth‚” or a layer of black beneath silver is added
for “more body and poignancy.”
Where to place the tiles is a matter of preference: chair rails and
backsplashes‚ ;oor borders‚ as ceiling tiles or outdoor spaces‚ as a

coat of marine varnish will thwart Mother Nature in a bad mood. Lee Nicholson‚ owner of West Hollywood’s divine tile showroom Filmore Clark‚ had the ;ne eye and good instincts when Jacqueline Moore visited her for the ;rst time. “I knew they were special‚” she says of the series‚ now happily represented in her showroom  Jacqueline