Fireplace in traditional tile and stone fragments

Edgar Miller
c. 1930s

Each fireplace in the Glasner Studio was designed in a unique style. This one in the ground floor Port Room was likely produced as a collaboration between Edgar Miller and Jesús Torres. Torres began as an apprentice to Miller in 1927, helping to work on the artist colony projects, and quickly learned how to lay tile, carve wood, and fashion metal designs. Most of Torres' own brilliantly executed tile work can be found at the Carl Street Studios, but some does show up in the Glasner Studio, and the rest of the Kogen-Miller Studios building.

What makes this fireplace appear characteristically like Torres's work is that the body of the fireplace is clad in a precisely laid tile design, with variously sized and shaped source materials. At the hearthstone extended out from the fireplace, we see where Miller undoubtedly contributed, as fragments of broken marble and other stone and mosaic are interlaced together in an abstract yet harmonious ensemble. The Port Room has perhaps the most likeness to a cozy country home, with the fireplace keeping the small anteroom bright and warm.