The Steve Charles Story
The Steve Charles brand is synonymous with exquisite materials and craftsmanship from his lifelong passion and knowledge. The best-kept secret in decorative surfaces in the world of interiors and architecture for five decades.
Steve Charles is a true pioneer. It's impossible to exaggerate his influence on decorative stone and ceramics and their use in contemporary interiors: From the 1980s (when he founded Paris Ceramics) to 'Steve Charles,' the eponymous brand he runs today, his ideas have always been the 'next big thing.' Steve has been at the fore of ceramics for over 40 years and has an impressive worldwide client list.
Steve Charles rediscovers materials unavailable for hundreds of years and brings to light craftsmen whose work is astonishingly complex. Some of Steve Charles' collections are priceless - others are affordable luxuries.
Steve Charles is a true pioneer. It's impossible to exaggerate his influence on decorative stone and ceramics and their use in contemporary interiors: From the 1980s (when he founded Paris Ceramics) to 'Steve Charles,' the eponymous brand he runs today, his ideas have always been the 'next big thing.' Steve has been at the fore of ceramics for over 40 years and has an impressive worldwide client list.
Steve Charles rediscovers materials unavailable for hundreds of years and brings to light craftsmen whose work is astonishingly complex. Some of Steve Charles' collections are priceless - others are affordable luxuries.
Once described by David Putman's wife, Patsy, as "The Pharaoh of Stone" and known more as an artistic decorator of stone, Steve Charles is a true pioneer. It is impossible to exaggerate the influence which he has had on decorative stone and ceramics and their use in contemporary interiors: His ideas have revolutionized the materials available to us today. Inevitably, each innovation has spawned imitators at every level, from DIY sheds to the smartest tile emporia. Still, Steve has always stayed streets ahead, striving to innovate even in the most challenging times.
As a young boy growing up in Chiswick, Steve would seek solace in Chiswick House Park, inspired by the architecture and execution of materials. He left school and began his career in the skillful tiling trade before taking a leap of faith and starting his first shop when he founded Paris Ceramics in the early 80s.
At that time, the only ceramics widely used in houses were the ubiquitous quarry tiles and mass-produced 6" square bathroom 'splash back' tiles. Into this dreary environment, Steve Charles launched first his reclaimed antique stone and terracotta floors and then a wave of handmade products which celebrated ceramic craftsmanship.
No one had seen such things in Britain before. Steve forged enduring relationships with the leading designers and architects in Britain, the USA, and Europe: who queued up to specify his products for their most prestigious clients and innovative projects. Private clients, too, happily waited months to get their hands on some especially rare floor or mural.
Steve Charles pioneered the reintroduction of countless native stones, often from long-closed quarries. Britain had forgotten its heritage (in favor of fitted carpet, lino, and other manufactured floorings) but, prompted by Steve Charles, was ready to remember and fall in love with stone from all over the world. White limestone, first sourced and imported by Steve Charles, is a look that defined the dawn of minimalism and architecture of the 90s.
Steve Charles went on to sell Paris Ceramics to Charlie Smallbone. Still unable to resist his passion and to put his expertise back to work, he went on to founder three smaller companies that metamorphosised into 'Steve Charles' today. Steve Charles is still a driven man, passionate as ever about what he does. He knows stone and ceramics probably better than anyone else, nicknamed. Steve Charles can't help looking for the next extraordinary product, the next 'must have' for floors and walls. More to the point, he knows where to look.
Steve Charles' product creations have included award CharlesStone, which won an award for Innovation at Decorex 2009 and is a testament to Steve's passion as an innovator and Burnished now sold through other outlets. Collaborations have included a bathroom furniture range Smallbone of Devizes. Shagreen is the latest porcelain range designed exclusively for Artistic Tile by Steve Charles and can be purchased through Artistic Tile showrooms. With many other innovative products, there is no end to the limits of what Steve Charles can achieve.
