Project

XVIII was born with the purpose of manufacturing tiles and potteries fully handcrafted, hand-painted according to ancient methods and following traditional models.

Despite the remarkable relevance of tiles and potteries in the context of art in Portugal, the truth is that tiles and potteries produced and marketed in Portugal in the last decades, even hand painted ones, became more "industrialized" and to some extent could be said to have lost their soul. In fact, in an age of massification and homogenization, we reached a point where, in the homeland (Portugal) and in the city (Lisbon) of tiles, most tiles sold are printed replicas and imported from abroad.

It was in this context that XVIII’s project was launched in 2018. Its promoters (a lawyer passionate about art and a ceramist with a vast experience) believe that the timeless beauty and the unique character of the national tile and potteries are the result of their manufacture, by definition irregular and unique, with no two pieces being the same.

Out of this premise, and because they consider that, in the 21st century, imperfection is the new perfection, the promoters of XVIII proposed to recover – and thus preserve – the centuries’ old tradition of fully handcrafted tiles and potteries, following ancestral handmade methods and, naturally, fully hand-painted.

We were inspired primarily by the 18th century tradition (hence our name), which was the golden age of tiles in Portugal. However, the XVIII project is open minded and we therefore do not restrict ourselves to a specific century. The art of tile making, like that of pottery, is several centuries old, along which models evolved. Thus, we made a thorough survey of tiles and traditional potteries and selected those we considered most appealing and representative.

While we are especially inspired by traditional models, we do not deny modernity and we also foster current reinterpretations of such models, both by emerging and consecrated artists.

Team

At XVIII, the various stages of the manufacture of tiles and potteries – of which we highlight the painting due to its special importance – are carried out by carefully selected craftsmen and artists.

We are proud of our team, in which we have gathered the most talented artists, with dozens of years of experience in the sector.

XVIII’s artists have different profiles and life stories but also have something great in common: a passion for tiles and the potteries.