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Welcome to Porteous Tiles!
Porteous Tiles is a family business that has been making some of the world’s most beautiful tiles for over 25 years. The tiles are made in Wellington, New Zealand, in a studio located at the home of Neville and Gill Porteous. After many years growing up surrounded by tiles, Ben and Sarah Porteous (children of Neville and Gill) have joined Porteous Tiles and are continuing the family tile making tradition.
The first tiles produced by Porteous Tiles over 25 years ago were reproductions of some of the most iconic designs from the Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts eras (1890-1920); we still produce these tiles to this day. Over the years our range of designs has expanded into many different areas, including neoclassical & pacific style. We have also developed a range of extruded mouldings, decorative trim pieces and field tiles to match so that traditional settings can be created.
Porteous Tiles grew out of a passion for tile and a love for working with clay. The processes used combine traditional methods for making hand made tiles with some innovative new techniques that have been fine tuned and perfected over the years. Tile production begins with a very high quality semi-porcelain clay chosen for its beautiful white colour and high firing suitability – this results in a very high quality tile that is strong, durable and vitreous. Colour is key with Porteous Tiles. There is nothing mass-produced or ordinary here. Our beautiful artisan glazes were all developed by Neville Porteous through many years of experimentation, an ongoing process which continues to this day and results in new glazes being added to our range on a regular basis. Porteous Tiles glazes are produced in small batches and tested to ensure quality and consistency. Tiles are individually made using our own hand made moulds and are all hand painted. After firing at high temperature, tiles are hand sorted to ensure only the best tiles are sent out to our customers. The final product is a tile of exceptionally high quality, with a beautiful lively individuality, which effects that fact that they have been produced by hand by people who love what they do. Customers from all over the world will enjoy the effort of the Porteous labours for many years to come.
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Wellington is the beautiful capital city of New Zealand and is located at the southern tip of the North Island. The CBD lies on the edge of the harbour surrounded by hills.
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Porteous House in Wellington, New Zealand. Built by Neville and Gill in the 70's, Porteous House was designed by architect Ian Athfield. This magnificant and unusual house comprises a cluster of living spaces on multiple levels radiating out from a central spiral staircase tower.
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The entrance to Porteous House, beautifully tiled of course!
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The studio of Porteous Tiles, this is where it all happens! The lush native New Zealand bush surrounding the studio is alive with birds, you couldn't ask for a better work environment.
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The outside walls of Porteous House were simply too tempting for Neville. Whenever the creative inspiration hits, another section of wall gets tiled. Neville is well on the way to tiling the entire Porteous House, and his tiled masterpieces such as this one just get better and better!
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Hundertwasser meets Gaudi meets Matt Frevel! This incredible three-dimensional undulating tiled wall at Porteous House was created by Matt Frevel (Sarah Porteous's husband) and sets a new standard of tiling and creative excellence.
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