The historic Tile Club, founded in 1872, was a group of artists in New York City who met regularly to paint on tile, a popular surface of the coinciding decorative arts movement. Among the artists in the club were William Merritt Chase, Winslow Homer, and architect Stanford White. When the Long Island Railroad expanded to Montauk in the late 1870s, The Tile Club was invited to ride to the eastern-most tip of Long Island and paint what they saw, making these western artists some of the first to visit the East End, initiating the long history of art in the area.
Inspired by this club, Scott Bluedorn focused his 2021 Guild Hall Community Artist-in-Residence project on the history, practice, and revitalization of The Tile Club. Throughout the 2021 summer season, Scott led 6 free workshops, some en plein-air, during which ceramic tiles were given to participants along with a demo and discussion of the history of the Tile Club. Participants were asked to donate at least one completed tile to the Education Corridor Exhibition. The exhibition and project are in tandem with Guild Hall’s current exhibition, 90Years: Selections from the Permanent Collection that includes original Tile Club paintings c. 1875, on view in the education corridor from October 30 through January 2, 2022.
