A Life-Giving Tree in Blue Sprawls Across a Mosaic Tile Facade by Michael Chandler

the facade of a fashion boutique completely covered in hand-painted blue tile featuring an elaborate tree of life motif with flowers and birds

Photo by Kris Tamburello. All images © Chandler House, shared with permission

A fashion boutique in Miami features a one-of-a-kind facade thanks to Michael Chandler, artist and founder of Cape Town-based Chandler House. He created a bespoke, hand-painted, nature-inspired tile installation with “May all the doors of the world always be open to you” appearing on a ribbon floating above the entryway. A large tree unfurls throughout the composition, bedecked with myriad birds, flowers, and a silhouetted climber.

The project began with a simple email inquiry from the Cult Gaia brand. “We almost didn’t take it seriously because it was so wild,” Chandler tells Colossal. “But we had a Zoom chat or two, exchanged emails, and before I knew it, I was laying out tiles and covering them with brilliant, blue brush marks!” He worked on the project in sections, carefully numbering and mapping each piece so the composition could be easily installed on the exterior of the building.

Chandler was given a good deal of creative license in collaboration with Cult Gaia, and from brainstorms around the theme of the ancient world, he conceived of a “tree of life” motif. He enjoyed the freedom to create “all its branches of flowers, fruit, birds, and muses in my own way,” he says, sharing that when a creative is given license to do what they do best, it can lead to remarkable results. The style nods to influences like Delft Blue, Chinese porcelain design, and early Persian ceramics.

Chandler is currently working on a series of small panels for a vineyard near Cape Town and a coral-themed mural for a local family home with views of the ocean. The permanence of ceramic tile appeals to the artist for its longevity. “The thought of people enjoying my work over the course of the next hundred years really excites me,” he says. “How wonderful to be able to bring joy to the world after I am no longer around.”

Explore the Chandler House website, which features a shop and art gallery of others’ work, plus more of Michael’s commissions.

a detail of a shop facade completely covered in hand-painted blue tile featuring an elaborate tree of life motif with flowers and birds

Photo by Kris Tamburello

a hand paints flowers in blue glaze onto white ceramic tiles sections of ceramic tile painted with blue glaze, propped up on a surface with art materials in the foreground

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