Surfaces: texture and decoration

The aesthetics of stones and marbles used in the past by great Italian architects - Carlo Scarpa, Gio Ponti, Piero Portaluppi, Angelo Mangiarotti - is the subject of the work of Artifact by Lo Studio design by Paola Ascari and Alberto Zattin who for Settecento have defined a contemporary surface "that carries within it traces and memories of natural materials and that includes elements of known surfaces: an operation of synthesis and contamination. Not a replica but a synthesis, and therefore a product of invention", they explain.

The Clayborn collection of rectified porcelain stoneware tiles is suitable for use on floors and walls. Made by Ceramica Bardelli , it is characterised by the pattern obtained thanks to generative models of artificial intelligence, i.e. neural networks capable of creating new images from scratch based on a series of examples analysed during the acquisition phase. The collection, characterised by large cuts, is available in two sizes - 60x60, 60x120 cm - 1cm thick - and four colour families - lime, sand, cement and asphalt.

Art Walls by Flaviker – ABK Group are large 6mm thick porcelain stoneware slabs in the 120x280 and now also 60x120 sizes, conceived as designer paintings suitable for both indoors and outdoors. The "Tapis" colour variant is inspired by the texture of decorated carpets, with shades of brown and green, bringing a touch of elegance and originality.

Fluids by Cerdisa, Gruppo Ceramiche Ricchetti, recreates an elusive and “intangible” material such as water on porcelain stoneware, drawing inspiration from the iconography of liquid crystals to inaugurate a new aesthetic frontier of ceramic surfaces. The Fluids collection won first place at the Archiproducts Design Awards 2023 in the Finishes category. The surface brilliance, obtained by applying special high-thickness grits, gives shine, visual depth and greater resistance to the surface.

Optical effects that give depth to the surface for the My Line collection by Ceramiche Brennero in natural porcelain stoneware 60x120 cm, where both the planar and geometric lines generate in their casual whole a sensation of movement and depth.

The small 10x10 format, the glossy finish and the color palette of Pixel, in porcelain stoneware by Ceramica Sant’Agostino, make possible dynamic compositions and combinations with other materials and collections. The glossy surfaces lend themselves to various combinations, both with similar surfaces and with opaque and material surfaces to create tactile contrast.

The Cannè series by Ceramica Rondine interprets and enhances the material from which it takes inspiration: the reed. Regular grooves run along the entire length of this porcelain stoneware, creating a wavy surface that varies in thickness, alternating the intensity of the color. A decorative art that gives three-dimensionality to the walls.

The ITE project by Ceramica Mediterranea (on the cover) is an immersion in the world of minerals and their geometries and crystalline structures which, imagined as graphics and a composite visual system, are reinterpreted in a minimal key.

Materiality

Designed by Ferruccio Laviani, the Pigmenti collection by Lea Ceramiche in laminated porcelain stoneware, Slimtech in large format - a light, versatile, resistant and Carbon Neutral material with exclusive antibacterial technology PROTECT ®- investigates matter, bringing out its expressive possibilities. Returning to the purest identity of ceramics and its materiality, Pigmenti has been recognized with the iF DESIGN AWARD 2023, an Archiproducts Design Award and a Sustainability Award.

The blowing of the wind, the ripples, the traces and vortices left by its passage on water, rice paddies and fields of grass, are the elements of inspiration for Windy, the collection designed by Oki Sato, founder of the Nendo studio, for Decoratori Bassanesi. Here the colors are melted directly into the clay and the surfaces are decorated with three-dimensional motifs such as bas-reliefs, a technique that allows for the creation of intricate and unique designs. Subtle differences in the cross-section profile and depth of the grooves cause a change in the perception of shadows. The collection consists of 4 different graphic faces that can be combined and is available in 4 colors, minimal and neutral. The collection is mass produced.

The Gamut collection, developed by the Monocibec brand, is characterized by natural and soft finishes, expanding the expressive potential of porcelain stoneware. The surface is soft to the touch, the colors reflect the shades of the earth, enriched by foliage shapes as decoration.

Grooves by La Fabbrica is a wall tile collection in matte and glossy versions, whose three-dimensional surface creates plays of light and shadow that give walls a 3D effect. The palette of four natural tones and the 6 solid color backgrounds with different three-dimensional structures expand the creative possibilities. Colors: Bone, Grey, Sage. Matte and Glossy finish. Sizes 7.5x15 cm. Thickness: 9m.

Craftsmanship

The result of the collaboration between Mirage and architect Hadi Teherani, the Nagomi collection in rectified porcelain stoneware and double-fired white body, incorporates a significant percentage of glass derived from the recycling of cathode ray tubes from monitors and television screens. The name of the project draws inspiration from a Japanese word that evokes harmony and serenity, with the ambition of innovating the concept of decoration: each piece represents an element of a larger project, oriented towards a future in which design respects and enhances the planet's resources. A balance between the uniqueness of artisan techniques and the precision of industrial production methods. The result is a material connotation, a texture that evokes the artisan decorative tradition reinterpreted through the lens of innovation and production efficiency. Formats – 120x120 – 60x120 – 7.5x30.

Papillon by Acquario Due is a 13x20 glazed handcrafted ceramic with a three-dimensional shape whose motifs are drawn in glossy, matt, craquelè, gold and platinum glazed parts. The laying combinations and light effects are always different, for a graphic result of great impact. For the production, natural clays mixed at 30% with inert materials deriving from the recovery of ceramic waste are used. The production process takes place by pouring the liquid earth into plaster molds. The plaster used for the molds comes from the recycling of waste plasterboard recovered in the construction industry. Particular attention is also paid to the packaging, using only recycled cardboard boxes and FSC wood pallets.

Handmade in the heart of Italy, where centuries-old artisan techniques meet the sensibility of modern design, the Lunar tiles by Eco Ceramica are characterized by the irregular surface and inspired by the charm of the lunar landscape. The surface of each tile has a unique texture, its colors go from the deep and velvety shades of midnight blue to the ethereal glow of silvery white. Sizes 5x20 cm and 10x20 cm.

The colours of the earth

Available in 12 solid colours, the Collection Retina by Coop Ceramica Imola, with a resin effect, is designed for the application of porcelain stoneware on vertical walls (thickness: 6.5 mm). It is characterised by light graphics, a soft touch effect, neutral and dusty nuances, to which new more decisive and saturated proposals are added. Sizes 120x278 cm, 60x120 cm, 5x120 cm.

The Join collection by Caesar starts from the soft and contemporary minimalism of cement-resin and expands it through a new chromatic palette rich in colors. The chromatic range is presented with a selection of 12 neutral colors ranging from warm grays to cold grays and 8 accent colors that strengthen the collection.

Argilla by Gigacer rediscovers the most natural expressions of the Faenza lands, the clays, creating a colour range with pastel shades. The Dry grey and the light Biacca recall the presence of a vein of chalk, determining a cold and rocky tendency. The Fog brown and the Dark brown are presented with warmer shades recalling the most superficial clays. Vetiver and Marine complete the collection with the reference to water.

The stone effect

Underway for several years and always requested by the market, the search for the materiality of natural stones leads to increasingly surprising and interesting results.

The Advantage Skin collection by Cotto d’Este - ultra-thin Kerlite 3plus slabs of large-format, carbon-neutral laminated porcelain stoneware made with exclusive PROTECT ® antibacterial technology - is characterised by the unprecedented stone effect that hybridizes some of the most evocative mineral textures present in nature. Its very reduced thickness makes it a light, flexible and resistant ceramic skin.

Marmi Imperiali by Tagina is a marble-effect porcelain stoneware collection that features an innovation in “method”, or rather in the way it is laid. This involves the adoption of a project called “Tagina intarsia” which, through the combination of 5 elements, allows the designer to design and create different laying patterns for an original and truly tailor-made floor or wall covering. The collection offers a contemporary take on the style of Imperial Rome, through meticulous work in selecting, harmonizing and fusing the graphics of the finest marbles.
 

By ABK, the Sensi Nuance collection reproduces the elegance of marble with its shades of color. In the photo, the Deep River variant with blue tones.

Inspired by travertine, the Pietra Tiburtina collection by Casalgrande Padana reinterprets the colours of the original stone. Offered in the typical natural stone finishes, both with veincut, which highlights the longitudinal stratifications of the limestone deposits, and with crosscut, it combines the charm of stone with the resistance of porcelain stoneware.