00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 Cement tiles start out like cake batter.
00:06 For artisans to complete the transformation,
00:11 they must bury their art in cement.
00:14 Nearly 200 years ago, cement tiles were popular
00:19 because they were affordable.
00:22 But today, the price for their main ingredient
00:24 has skyrocketed,
00:25 aggravated by supply chain issues and shortages.
00:29 Cement tiles can cost $30 per square foot,
00:32 over 10 times what some ceramic subway tiles cost.
00:36 But despite the premium,
00:38 their popularity across the globe has only increased,
00:41 even while many workshops
00:43 are struggling to stay in business.
00:45 So what's made cement tiles so expensive?
00:50 And can new trends sustain this traditional craft?
00:52 Every morning at this workshop in Morocco,
00:57 artisans settle in, surrounded by tiles.
01:00 The craft is still manual.
01:05 Each tile is touched by human hands.
01:27 The beginning of that art is pigment making.
01:30 From five pigments,
01:31 Abdel Rafia can produce hundreds of colors,
01:34 and it's his favorite part of the process.
01:36 He says the materials for some colors,
01:55 like green and blue, are more expensive,
01:57 so they increase the final price of a tile.
02:00 Abdel Rafia measures out each pigment
02:04 and combines it with cement, marble powder, and water,
02:06 turning together a colorful glob of liquid cement.
02:15 This mixture is what gives cement tiles
02:23 their characteristic matte surface.
02:25 A finished tile looks like one solid block,
02:33 but it's actually layered,
02:34 and artisans make each one upside down.
02:39 The liquid cement goes first,
02:42 filling in the gaps of this copper mold.
02:44 More complicated designs,
02:49 like those with lots of colors or really tight patterns,
02:52 take longer to make, increasing the price per tile.
02:55 When the design is simpler,
03:09 artisans can produce twice as many tiles.
03:12 They work quickly, but it takes a beginner a while
03:15 to learn how to add the proper amount of cement.
03:18 And the tool they use is surprisingly simple,
03:22 just a funnel with a stick to control the flow.
03:24 If too much or too little is added
03:28 or a design is poured incorrectly, the tile is rejected.
03:31 Depending on the design,
03:41 artisans produce 50 to 90 tiles a day,
03:44 enough to fill about two to three kitchen backsplashes.
03:48 That's a much lower volume than ceramic tiles,
03:51 where hundreds are fired together in large kilns.
03:54 Cement tiles are made one at a time.
03:57 Once a design is poured, tilemakers bury their art
04:17 in a layer of sand and cement.
04:19 (dramatic music)
04:22 While these experienced artisans don't often make a mistake,
04:30 the manual nature of each step means
04:32 that there's always the possibility of ruining a tile.
04:36 (speaking in foreign language)
04:39 (speaking in foreign language)
04:43 (speaking in foreign language)
05:11 Once the parfait of cement is full and level,
05:14 it's time to press.
05:15 It's a crucial step that only takes a second.
05:24 (speaking in foreign language)
05:36 (speaking in foreign language)
05:40 The design is absorbed into the tile,
05:46 so it won't rub off or wear like a painted pattern.
05:49 Healing up a tile looks easy,
05:52 but right now it's soft and moist, like a cake.
05:55 Poor handling or outright dropping would ruin it.
05:59 (speaking in foreign language)
06:04 (speaking in foreign language)
06:08 It will take several days of drying
06:22 before Abdourafia can sell his tiles.
06:24 Some workshops cover cement tiles in water
06:27 and dry them for up to a month.
06:29 But Abdourafia's method, which he says uses less water,
06:33 requires just a few spritzes
06:35 before the tiles dry in the sun for up to four days.
06:38 From this workshop, one tile costs $1.50 to $3,
06:47 or about $50 to $70 per square meter.
06:51 (speaking in foreign language)
06:55 (speaking in foreign language)
06:59 (speaking in foreign language)
07:03 (speaking in foreign language)
07:07 That's because it's not just interior designers
07:31 who want cement.
07:33 The price is heavily tied to the volume of construction
07:36 because it's used to make concrete.
07:38 In the US, the producer price index for cement
07:41 has more than tripled since 1990.
07:44 Outside of recessions,
07:45 the price of cement has typically gone up.
07:48 Now supply chain disruptions and shortages
07:50 are pressuring it even more.
07:53 The COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's war in Ukraine
07:55 slowed cement production and distribution.
07:58 When construction demand rebounded,
08:00 many builders said there wasn't enough
08:02 for the projects they had planned.
08:03 And in 2023, some countries experienced
08:07 a double-digit percent increase in cement prices.
08:10 Despite the cost of materials
08:14 and competition from cheaper tiles,
08:16 Abdourafia says the craft is growing.
08:19 (speaking in foreign language)
08:24 (speaking in foreign language)
08:28 (speaking in foreign language)
08:31 (speaking in foreign language)
08:35 After the tiles hardened,
08:59 workers shipped them to customers all around the world.
09:01 Abdourafia says his sales
09:04 are about half domestic, half international,
09:07 catering to the growing demand for handmade tiles,
09:10 which have become an increasingly common sight on Instagram
09:13 and in interior design.
09:15 Google Trends shows a steady climb in interest
09:17 in the topic since 2011,
09:19 and the market size could nearly double by 2032,
09:22 according to Data Horizon Research.
09:25 - More and more, I think people are drawn to things
09:28 that have character.
09:30 Everything went through a stage
09:32 where everything was just like white,
09:34 and the interiors were very boring.
09:36 There's an appreciation now for less synthetic,
09:39 less mass-manufactured things,
09:41 but I don't think it's a trend
09:43 because cement tile is actually a traditional tile method.
09:47 Architecturally, I think they're timeless.
09:50 - Kate co-founded Concrete Collaborative in 2004.
09:54 Many of its designs are created by artists it partners with,
09:57 like this one from designer Caroline Z. Hurley.
10:00 - I like kind of playing with different textures,
10:05 patterns, colors, to see what we can create.
10:08 And a lot of people really love the designers or artists
10:11 that we'll collaborate with.
10:12 They almost feel like they're getting a piece
10:14 of Alex Purvis' art by using her tile.
10:18 - Kate says cement tiles are great
10:20 for creating a bold design statement in your home.
10:22 Thousands of miles away,
10:25 her customers appreciate cement tiles
10:27 for the same reason as Opto-Rafia.
10:30,
10:58 - Every single piece is made by hand,
11:00 so it has a natural variation.
11:04 It's perfectly imperfect.
11:06 - Because cement tiles are handmade
11:08 and can develop a patina,
11:10 some customers worry that installing
11:12 or maintaining them is difficult.
11:14 But Kate says it's actually similar
11:16 to any tile installation.
11:17 - I'm gonna do this sample just to have an idea.
11:28 So the way we're gonna use is doing like this,
11:32 just to cover the whole area.
11:35 And this is how this works.
11:39 So you see, when you push it up
11:44 and you hit with the hammer,
11:47 this glue is really, really good.
11:51 You can wait like two hours
11:53 and it's gonna be dry, ready to add the grout.
11:57 - After deciding on the spacing,
11:59 he spreads out a glue and presses each tile into place.
12:02 - First of all, what we do,
12:05 we just measure the space we need
12:07 and prepare all tiles.
12:09 In this case, we use this kind of spacer,
12:13 which is 316.
12:14 We have to make sure everything goes straight,
12:19 has to be everything at the same spacer.
12:25 (gentle music)
12:27 - After cleaning off the grout,
12:37 he waits for everything to dry,
12:39 then seals the tiles once more.
12:41 - Sometimes with synthetic finishes,
12:46 it can make a space feel really cold.
12:48 So the beauty of anything that has a little bit of life
12:51 to it that does patina over time,
12:54 a lot of high-end clients really have an appreciation
12:56 for that because they don't want their spaces
12:59 to feel sterile.
13:00 You know, something can last a really long time
13:03 and have kind of like a life over time.
13:05 - The fact that each tile isn't perfect
13:10 is part of the charm,
13:12 but it also means that the craft relies
13:14 on the artisans who make each tile by hand.
13:17 And not every workshop is as successful as Abdurafi's.
13:22 Some artisans, like Syed Hussein in Egypt,
13:24 worry they won't be able to pass on this tradition.
13:27 In the 1990s, competition from ceramic
13:43 and marble tiles hurt his business.
13:46 Now the raw materials are more expensive
13:49 and it's difficult to find workers.
13:51 He's kept his workshop open by focusing on cheaper designs,
13:55 but he's one of the few tile makers left in Egypt.
13:58 Abdurafi is hopeful that in Morocco,
14:20 the craft will continue to not only survive, but thrive.
14:25 - I think this craft will face a lot of challenges in the future.
14:28 It needs people to support it,
14:32 because it's not a pure craft.
14:37 It needs people to support it with ideas,
14:39 to support it with...
14:42 to support it with...
14:44 A lot of people need to support it
14:46 to grow and develop.
14:48 For example,
14:51 people who are passionate about this craft
14:54 and who give their best to keep it going,
14:59 you can save money.
15:00 And those who give their best
15:03 are the people we work with.
15:06 I don't think of it as a job,
15:08 but as a hobby.
15:11 I love this craft.
15:15 And I don't think of it as a hobby.
15:20 I don't think of it as a hobby.
15:24 I love it.
15:26 I love it.
15:28 I love it.
15:30 I love it.
15:32 I love it.
15:34 I love it.
15:36 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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