Made in the Mediterranean: Timeless Tile Designs by an Italian Collective - Remodelista
Here’s proof that tile has stood the test of time: It dates from thousands of years ago (about 9,000 BCE, to be exact), yet year after year it ranks among the top design trends (in 2019, it’s porcelain-tile countertops and the rise of zellige).
But it’s the Mediterranean air, land, and sea that serve as the muse for many of the companies’ designs, as illustrated in Ahead of Our Time, a new Ceramics of Italy film directed by award-winning filmmaker Francesca Molteni with architectural historian Fulvio Irace.
Shards, a porcelain stoneware tile collection by Fondovalle, is a riff on classic Italian terrazzo.
The D_Segni Colore tile by Marazzi is a cement-look tile in dusty terracotta hues.
The natural-looking Freedom tile, designed by Ceramiche Piemme to look like Hauteville limestone, is actually the product of modern digital technologies, and is available in 3D iterations for wall applications as well.
An Italian-made tile that takes cues from the simple, clean lines of Scandinavian design: the matte Scandi collection by Tonalite.
Above L: The Creos collection by Refin comes in eight colorways and is designed to look like troweled, textured resin. Above R: Shards, the modern terrazzo-look tile, up close.
Ornamenta’s Maiolicata tile is made of gray ceramic lava stone treated with colored powder to create subtle patterns and textures that can be endlessly mixed and matched.
The Cocoon tile by Ricchetti has the look of a concrete floor, but is actually porcelain stoneware.