San Gines ceramicists construct "world's largest ceramic mural"

Work to date unveiled for the first time this week

Susan Dickenson -- Home Accents Today, 12/3/2009 12:11:00 PM

Talavera de la Reina, Spain -- The San Gines Ceramics Company unveiled this week, for the first time, the work done to date on “the largest ceramic tile mural in the world.” San Gines, part of a ceramics tradition that, for generations, has produced crockery, tableware, architectural ornamentation and decorative accessories in central Spain, was commissioned by the Government of Algeria to produce the mural for the exterior of a new convention center in the city of Oran.

When completed, the mural of approximately 55,000 hand-painted tiles will measure 60 meters in length and 35.4 meters in width. Eight ceramics workshops from the region of Castilla-La Mancha are helping in the effort to ensure the work is completed in time for the convention center’s opening in April 2010.

The design originated with Algerian artist Tewfik Boumehdi and, since early November, the mural has been rapidly taking shape under the leadership of Monica Garcia del Pino (photo, left), founder of the San Gines Ceramics Company.

This week, cameras were allowed to film and photograph the work in progress, but the overall design is being kept secret until the final unveiling.

Read more about the mural and San Gines HERE.