The Silverado is the truck that works as hard as you do.
Here in the Motor City, we know a thing or two about cars, and we love to celebrate the automobiles we love. While that of course means driving them, it also includes automobile memorabilia. One such piece comes from Pewabic, 10125 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit, a nonprofit ceramic design studio that just debuted a brand new Corvette Tile.
The four inch round Corvette Tile was released on Thursday, July 9 in partnership with GM in honor of the 62nd anniversary of the Chevrolet Corvette, which was first built in Flint on June 30, 1953.
“During the summer, Detroiters celebrate their classic cars, whether cruising Woodward Avenue or convening for a car show. We felt this was the season to celebrate Corvette with the release of our tile,” Louis Casinelli, marketing and communications manager for Pewabic, said.
The tile’s design is a replica of the original 1953 Corvette logo created by Robert Bartholomew, and the imprint of the logo reproduced in Pewabic’s clay is a great representation of the current trend of cross collaboration within the city of Detroit, according to Casinelli.
(Photo provided by Louis Casinelli of Pewabic)
“The tile will resonate with Corvette fans and appreciators… The maker spirit is alive and well in Detroit,” Casinelli said. “And our partnership reinforces that two businesses with century-long legacies are still rooted in the values of design and craftsmanship.”
The tile itself begins with a signature clay recipe, which is then pressed into plaster molds. Next, the tiles are dried for 48 hours, then fired. After this “bisque firing,” the tiles are glazed. For this particular tile, parts of the glazed surface are scraped away to expose the natural clay, creating contrast. Once dried, it goes into the kiln for a final firing.
“In this case, the two-tone Corvette Tile with a matte-black glaze and natural clay body comes out of the kiln and straight to our store,” Casinelli said.
The first pressing of the Corvette Tile produced 500 tiles, but Casinelli said Pewabic will continue making more. You can purchase a Corvette Tile of your own in store or online for $50.
For more information on Pewabic, visit the official website at http://www.pewabic.org.
