Touching History

Person holding a 3D Minton tile
Person holding a 3D Minton tile

Please note, this project has now ended, but we want to do more work on this topic in the future.

Part of being grateful is to notice and appreciate the local natural and urban environment in which we live. We noticed that the Minton encaustic floor tiles that we often see at street level in Stoke-on-Trent are often overlooked by people who live in the very place that produced them.

Visit the exhibition to find out more about this fascinating sensory project with a focus on historical ceramic tiles. Visitors can view an array of items including displays of original Minton tiles, sample 3D printed (sensory) tiles & related project information (archives & contemporary design work). We’ve also made a book about our findings. You can view/download it here in various formats:

PDF book

Audiobook

eBook (ePUB format)

Touching History eBook


Friday 5th April 12noon – 5:00pm (+ ‘Late’ event 5:00pm – 7:00pm FREE drink & nibbles)

Saturday 6th April 11:00am – 5:00pm (includes Tiles and Architectural Ceramics (TACS)’ Members visit 11:00am – 1:30pm). (FREE) Cuppa & cake for all visitors!

Sunday 7th April 11:00am – 5:00pm

The exhibition is housed in Ceramic City Stories’ unique DIY space in Swan Street: CLAYHEAD is an exciting pop up environment secretly housed at Winkhill Mill, Stoke-on-Trent. Two modified shipping containers installed in the former loading bay of this historical ceramic tile works help to form an exciting & unusual micro venue for The Potteries.

Exhibition Location: CLAYHEAD, Winkhill Mill, Swan Street, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST4 7RH

Supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, we created a project in collaboration with Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), Tiles & Architectural Ceramics Society (TACS), Ceramic City Stories, Wavemaker and The Firing Line. Some of the outcomes will be tactile models for visually impaired people that makes these tiles accessible, and a project book featuring a selection of specially chosen Minton & Co. encaustic tile designs from the period 1840-42. Thank you to the National Lottery players that made this project possible. #NationalLotteryHeritageFund

National Lottery Heritage Fund Logo
National Lottery Heritage Fund Logo