Taking a closer look at stunning tenement tiling
ON A wander around Paisley you would be forgiven for missing the fragments of history which can take you back to the town’s time as a titan of industry.
The skyline was dominated by mills with JP Coats and Clark’s employing the vast majority of those living in the area, with plenty from around Scotland and further afield, like Ireland, heading to Renfrewshire for work.
In fact, such was the impact of the mills that many of the tenement buildings in the town were first purposed for housing employees in close proximity to the workplace.
And hidden ‘Behind Close Doors’ is a world of tenement tile art dating back to the Victorian period.
Commonly known as ‘wally tiles’, tenements were decorated with the ornamental – often hand-painted – majolica, embossed majolica and tubeline tiling.
Glasgow also has many remaining examples of beautiful tenement tiling dating back to the 1840s.
Catherine Watt fell in love with the hidden artwork when she first discovered it 30 years ago.
The artist has teamed up with Paisley video production company StudioFV to highlight the existence of the tiling and encourage others to discover and share examples around the country.
“I had come across some tiles a year and a half or two years ago, and that really sparked my interest,” revealed Catherine.
“The more I looked, the more I started getting in to the history of the tenements, the tiles and the social history. The idea of adding tiles to the close was for hygiene reasons, but the Victorians believed the ornamentation would enrich people’s lives too.”
A year after launching the project, Catherine now has more than 1600 followers, and she is calling for Paisley people, and those in tenements around the country, to discover and share any tiles they find before it is too late.
“The tiles and the tenements are at risk of being overlooked and damaged as time goes on,” said Catherine.
“My main aim was to document what was there because I was very conscious that none of these pieces of public art are protected in any way.
“There is a good chance at some point that somebody will take it out, it’ll get damaged beyond repair. Then it’s just gone forever.”
Ed Hart, director and producer at StudioFV said the project “struck a chord” with the group.
And he too is hopeful the short film and social media drive will help inform Scots of the “rich cultural heritage” on their doorstep before it’s gone for good.
He said: “The Behind Close Doors: Paisley’s Hidden Tenement Tiles project particularly appealed to us because of our interest in art, history and placemaking.
“We have worked on many video projects over the years which have had at their heart the theme of regeneration, often with respect to something that is already lost.
“Few things are as redolent of city life in Scotland as the tenement. Hopefully, Catherine’s project and this film will make people consider this rich cultural heritage.”
Are there any wally closes near you? Send us your pictures of tenement tiling, and any stories of tenement life, and we will publish them in Times Past.