The team at Motawi Tileworks is passionate about making great tile while spreading positivity, and sharing the Motawi experience. The company was founded in 1992 by Nawal Motawi, who started making tiles in her garage and selling them at the Ann Arbor Farmers Market next to the rutabaga sellers. More than 30 employees now make tiles in a 12,900 square foot studio. Their team utilizes Toyota Style Production thinking and methodology and strive to cultivate positivity, constant improvement, and high quality tile. Nawal’s motto: It’s fun to be good! (at what you do)
Motawi polychrome tiles are striking individual art pieces as much as functional tile installation accents. We’re told that our tiles will give you serious cred in gift-giving circles. And each one is made by hand and with heart in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Motwawi embraces variation and handmade beauty. The bold heft of each Motawi tile reveals serious craftsmanship. And their time-honored hand-glazing methods produce a nuanced range of color with depth and translucence.
Motawi Tileworks
$100
These two lovebirds were inspired by a Charley Harper artwork. “If a male cardinal wants to rate, get a date (and even a mate), it’s smart to show her that he’s a good provider. After all, there’s nothing like a sunflower seed to warm the heart of a female cardinal.
Motawi Tileworks
$104
A favorite motif of Charley Harper, this charming little fawn showcases Harper’s signature “minimal realism” style. Motawi tiles are striking art pieces and installation accents. Each tile is made by hand and with heart in Ann Arbor, Michigan. We embrace variation and handmade beauty: Our time-honored methods produce a nuanced
Motawi Tileworks
$40
The Charley Harper Minis feature the whimsical wildlife images of artist Charley Harper. Midcentury modern meets Motawi mastery in this charming series of 3×3 art tiles. Actual Tile Size: Approximately 2 7/8” x 2 7/8”. As each Motawi tile is crafted by hand, dimensions may vary slightly by up to 1/16″.
Motawi Tileworks
$49
It all started with a Dragonfly tile. Motawi Tile loved it so much that other small insects and animals were added to the line, including this Frog, a Butterfly, a Bee, and a Turtle. Actual Tile Size: Approximately 3 7/8” x 3 7/8”. As each Motawi tile is crafted by
Motawi Tileworks
$129
Midcentury modern meets Motawi mastery in this serene scene by Charley Harper. Motawi tiles are striking art pieces and installation accents. Each tile is made by hand and with heart in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Motwai embraces variation and handmade beauty: their time-honored methods produce a nuanced range of color with
Motawi Tileworks
$124
6×8 Titmouse Tidbit is based on the original piece by celebrated wildlife artist Charley Harper. This cheery scene depicts a determined titmouse’s stages of motion as he reaches for a highly coveted seed. It is one of many Motawi art tiles resulting from a fun and fruitful collaboration with the
Motawi Tileworks
$104
“From twelve o’clock high, a mockingbird screams out of the sky to strafe his catnapping enemy with bad bird words, pulling up just in time to escape catastrophe while tantalizing the tormented tabby.” – Charley Harper Actual Tile Size: Approximately 5 7/8” x 5 7/8”. As each Motawi tile is
Motawi Tileworks
$134
Artist Yoshiko Yamamoto is a self-taught block printmaker who strives always to fuse Japanese design sensibility with fine craftsmanship. Several years ago, Nawal Motawi, a longtime admirer of Yoshiko’s work, approached her for a collaboration. Motawi thought Yamamoto’s bold prints would work well as a raised-line tile design. She was
Motawi Tileworks
$192
Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959) is recognized worldwide as one of the greatest architects of the 20th century. In 1927, Wright submitted a series of cover designs to Liberty magazine. All were rejected by the editors as too “radical” and were never published. One of these designs was “Saguaro Forms and
Motawi Tileworks
$84
English artist William DeMorgan created tiles that were dust-pressed flats, the designs looking like charcoal sketches overlain with watercolor paintings. While a very different technique from Motawi’s own raised-line “cuenca” style, this Sunflower tile is one of three vertical floral pieces adapted from his work. The Tudor Rose and Carnation
Motawi Tileworks
$49
This little chickadee may look cute, but he’s out to sneak some seed from the nearest feeder, so the other birds need to make room! Mid-century modern meets Motawi mastery in these tiles based on the work of celebrated wildlife artist Charley Harper (1922-2007), a self-described “minimal realist.” From the
