The hotel was built almost 20 years ago and most of the details were chosen for us. Ceramic tiles, wall arches and design accents were inherited, we did not choose them. But we did preserve them! It is nice to think we did all of this ourselves, but credit must be given to the wonderful woman who built the hotel…while she was in love. Yes her inspiration came from a deep love for her partner and her love is felt throughout the hotel. What attracted us to the hotel and continues to be a topic of conversation with guests, are the ceramics. Ceramic tiles, ceramic sinks, more ceramic tiles and more ceramic sinks…we love them, and our guests love them to!
Hand-painted ceramic tiles inspire us, daily, weekly, monthly….they are a lost art in North America but a continued tradition and art form here in Mexico. The colors are amazing, the details in the designs, inspiring. Each room has a different tile design and uses a different color palette.
Ceramics are everywhere, hand-painted and tell a story
Like any art form, the designs tell a story, a story that the artist is telling through pictures, shapes and colors. Now we are far from art enthusiasts or interpreters but we do love what we see. It is fun to think up your own interpretation of what each ceramic design is saying.
How are the tiles made? Raw red clay tiles are cut from the clay by hand, fired in the oven and hand painted or printed. The background paint is spread over the tile surface using a trowel and then the design is hand painted or in some cased hand printed with the use of various films for each color. Afterwards the tiles are fired in industrial ovens again creating durable, colorful and shinning surface. The term used for these unique tiles are Talavera tiles, named after the first location where the clay was found int eh vicinity of Dolores Hidalgo in central Mexico. Ceramics are now created through out the country and has become a Mexican art form.
Playa del Carmen keeps the tradition of hand painted ceramics alive
The nice part is you can take some of this art form home with you as a reminder of your Playa del Carmen vacation. Throughout 5th avenue, vendors and artists sell hand painted ceramics at a third of the price of what you find at home. As the main shopping avenue, you can walk for over 19 blocks looking in stores and studios that sell Mexican kitsch and traditional art in many forms. Ceramics are the highlight and seem to be the most popular purchases.
I guess we are not the only ones inspired by Mexican ceramics and art.
Check out our guests photos on Tripadvisor to see the architectural accents and details in each room. Each room is different but all the rooms have the ceramic accents we love.
