Art Students Explore Historic Creative Links with Marlborough Tiles
Senior School, Art
We were delighted to welcome Marlborough Tiles for a special presentation and hand‑painting workshop with our A Level Art students, celebrating the remarkable shared heritage between the school and the iconic British tile manufacturer.
Founded in 1936 by two pioneering female artists and former Royal High art teachers, Sylvia Packard and Rosalind Ord, Marlborough Tiles traces its origins directly back to our school. Both women taught here in the early twentieth century, when the school was known as the Royal School for Daughters of Officers of the Army, before establishing the tile‑making partnership that would grow into the company now marking its 90th anniversary.
During the visit, Cassie Maxfield from Marlborough Tiles introduced students to the history of decorative tiles and the pioneering role Packard and Ord played as female entrepreneurs in the 1930s. Students also learned about Packard’s extraordinary 1931 hand‑painted tile mural — a seventy‑foot artwork of nearly 1,000 tiles that still survives within the school and remains a significant landmark in the history of British tile manufacturing.
A practical workshop followed, led by Marlborough Tiles hand painter Alys Marshall, where students explored traditional majolica techniques using specially prepared glazed tiles. Their pieces will be professionally fired at the Marlborough factory before returning to the school.
Inspired by the visit, students are now creating a contemporary reinterpretation of Packard’s historic mural, which will be displayed on site.
Head of Art, Hannah Wilson, said:
“The spirit of creative bravery lives on at Royal High. It has been wonderful to celebrate our shared history with Marlborough Tiles and to see our students working with the same techniques used by Sylvia and Rosalind.”
Cassie Maxfield, Head of Sales and Marketing at Marlborough Tiles, added:
“We are incredibly proud of our roots and our connection to Royal High School Bath. Sharing the story of Sylvia and Rosalind with today’s students feels especially meaningful. Their creativity, determination and entrepreneurial spirit remain just as inspiring now as they were nearly a century ago.”
