If you're wondering what new Italian tile products will be popping up in 2016, here's a roundup of the 10 most popular trends we saw at Cersaie, an exhibition of ceramic tile and bathroom furnishings held in Bologna, Italy from September 28 - October 2.
1. FRAGMENTS
Playing with the idea of modularity, Italian ceramic companies are designing fragmented patterns on square and rectangular tiles to produce large compositions. By mixing and matching geometric shapes, the tiles pop with vivid, kaleidoscopic effect.
2. HIT THE BRICKS
Each season, a shape naturally emerges as a tile industry favorite. Last year was the hexagon; this year is all about brick. From micro to macro, polished to rustic, and designs ranging from interpretations of old brick walls and brick with mortar spills to painted brick and marble and wood designs in a brick format.
3. CHEVRON CHIC
Drawing inspiration from an age-old pattern, designers dress up floors and walls with these porcelains. From rustic and painted wood looks to resin, brick and stone, Italian companies are producing chevron and herringbone tiles across all scales to create patterns that are easy to install.
4. ALONG THE RIGHT LINES
This year we saw endless variations on the most basic element of design: the line. Thick and thin, vertical and horizontal, straight and intersecting, flat and three dimensional, linear designs are definitely in vogue with the ability to add depth, movement or focus to a room.
5. OBJET D'ART
One trend that's been embraced by several Italian companies is the transformation of tile into objet d'art. Street art and pop art have influenced numerous styles of tiles.
6. SOFT SPOT
There was warmth to the tile introductions this year, lending a softness to the hard surface. From designs with distressed and tactile effects (sandblasted marble, stripped wood and fabric) to warm shades, watercolor and velvety textures, it was a welcome reprieve from the minimal aesthetic of recent years.
7. GREYSCALE
Despite the color's recent rise in popular culture, grey has always been a modern designer's best friend. And this year an entire spectrum can be found in the latest Italian tile introductions, from cooler slate tones to the portmanteau of grey and beige. With the addition of texture, chromatic variation and overlaid patterns, these tiles prove that you don't need color to make a statement.
8. 3D WALL
With continuously evolving technologies, Italian companies are able to create ceramic tiles with three dimensional folds, wavy ridges, raised geometry and asymmetrical profiles. Fitting these tiles together creates a three dimensional wall with a seamless sculpted surface that draws the eye.
9. SUPERSIZE ME
Tiles continue to get bigger every year, bringing new design possibilities. Thin, large porcelain slabs—which can be used to cover surfaces including countertops and furnishings—are now available in sizes up to 5.25' x 10.5'.
10. LIFE AQUATIC
This marine palette of greens and blues is perfect for a pop of color. From large-format and modern surface effects to more traditional shapes and motifs, these cool colors are bringing a coastal vibe to the interior.
Related Stories
| Sep 7, 2022
Use of GBCI building performance tools rapidly expanding
More than seven billion square feet of project space is now being tracked using Green Business Certification Inc.’s (GBCI’s) Arc performance platform.
| Sep 7, 2022
K-8 school will help students learn by conducting expeditions in their own communities
In August, SHP, an architecture, design, and engineering firm, broke ground on the new Peck Expeditionary Learning School in Greensboro, N.C. Guilford County Schools, one of the country’s 50 largest school districts, tapped SHP based on its track record of educational design.
| Sep 6, 2022
Herbert V. Kohler, Jr. (1939-2022) An incomparable spirit
Dynamic leader and Kohler Co. Executive Chairman Herbert Vollrath Kohler, Jr. passed away on September 3, 2022, in Kohler, Wisconsin.
| Sep 6, 2022
Demand for flexible workspace reaches all-time high
Demand for flexible workspace including coworking options has never been higher, according to a survey from Yardi Kube, a space management software provider that is part of Yardi Systems.
| Sep 2, 2022
Converting office buildings to apartments is cheaper, greener than building new
Converting office buildings to apartments is cheaper and greener than tearing down old office properties and building new residential buildings.
| Sep 2, 2022
New UMass Medical School building enables expanded medical class sizes, research labs
A new nine-story, 350,000 sf biomedical research and education facility under construction at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School in Worcester, Mass., will accommodate larger class sizes and extensive lab space.
Architects | Sep 1, 2022
BNIM promotes Jeremy Knoll to Director of Sustainability and Regenerative Design
BNIM'S Jeremy Knoll promoted to Director of Sustainability and Regenerative Design.
Giants 400 | Sep 1, 2022
Top 160 K-12 School Architecture + AE Firms for 2022
PBK, DLR Group, Huckabee, and Stantec head the ranking of the nation's largest K-12 school sector architecture and architecture/engineering (AE) firms for 2022, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
| Sep 1, 2022
ABC: Nonresidential Construction Spending Increases by a Modest 0.8% in July
National nonresidential construction spending increased 0.8% in July, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published today by the U.S. Census Bureau.
| Sep 1, 2022
The University of Iowa opens the new Stanley Museum of Art, a public museum for both discovering and teaching art
The University of Iowa recently completed its new Stanley Museum of Art, a public teaching museum designed by BNIM.