Field Paoli

In a country with a magnificent history of material manipulation—the buttery marble under the arm of Michelangelo’s pieta, the Roman invention of concrete, and the paint glazes on Renaissance paintings—it seems sacrilegious to create faux materials for designers and architects. Yet it is exactly because of this history, and the examples everywhere you turn in Italy, that it makes sense to pursue this as an option. Who is better poised to create a new materiality with an old substance than those immersed in the visual and physical textures of Italy?

The synergy between authenticity and imitation became evident when I traveled to the Sassuolo region of Italy to visit the porcelain tile factories. Every year, Ceramic Technics takes a few lucky designers and clients to see the latest technical and artistic innovations in porcelain tile. The trip occurs the week before CERSAIE, the global tile conference set in Bologna less than an hour away from over 300 tile factories in the region. We spent a few amazing days traveling around this region with the tile manufacturers and representatives. Our group got a preview of the showrooms and the factory floors before CERSAIE and the rest of the world. Each of the sites we visited had unique showrooms and presentation styles, and all were epic. Gorgeous showrooms exhibited tile in a variety of settings: on large walls like modern art in a gallery, housed in private villas, historic landmarks, and in crisp modern prefabricated buildings. They all had a wide range of tiles, and experts to share the stories of their development with us. I came back wanting to tile everything. Here’s why.

(l to r): the Imola showroom; looking at tile; factories are so large a bike is required to get from one end of production line to the other.

The surfaces of Italy are etched, eroding and faded, inspiring the Creative Directors at the tile factories to do more than mimic natural perfection.

EXPANDING THE PALETTE

A number of manufacturers offer tiles that mimic natural materials: stone, marble, and recently wood. But a close inspection on of the work reveals the dot matrix of a photo overlay or the repetition of a pattern that is too easily discerned. More importantly, most reflect a lack vision by the creative teams. This is not the case with this group of unique manufacturers. The new production methods at their sites use computers to increase the pattern repetition from 10 or 12, to 64 or more, making it almost impossible to discern a repeat. The visual texture is also not just a pattern; the creative directors at the tile houses are layering in details typically reserved for authentic materials. The marks left by chisels in stone are mimicked to perfection. The slip of a saw blade during the wood milling process is captured and “sprinkled” throughout the lot. Paint drips on steel panels or water creating the efflorescence on concrete are embraced and integrated. These “flaws” are etched into the porcelain through masterful mimicry. Even the depth of the interventions are ‘trompe l’oeil’: built up paint layers are actually flat, and recesses are painted to appear 3-4x deeper than their slim profile. No longer are the eyes capable of detecting authenticity, only physically feeling them worked. Everywhere we went we had to touch the tile. And even then we were consistently deceived. As a perfumer, I wonder if olfactive parodies are next. “Stone” tile with the wet, dusty smell of a quarry? “Marble” infused with incense? Or the slight char of Cade* on the “burnt wood” tiles?

Innovative approaches to tile finishes: (l to r) chiseled stone, milling marks, burnt wood, aged painted wood, decorative painted wood, modern painted wood, white wash brick, painted concrete, and stacked concrete.

A MODERN MATERIAL

In Italy, these new techniques and textures are not being driven by startups or young companies. Well-established, even centuries-old companies, with visionary teams and financial backing for technological innovations, are leading the way. Tiles are produced by large automated machines and transported by robots; and natural resources (materials and energy) are reused, recycled, and re-purposed in each production cycle. Existing natural resources are preserved, and an innovative, consistent, and cost-effective alternative is now available. It is also impressive that after conquering the “natural” world, these companies are infusing their tile with design and humor. Tiles mimic painted wood: old paint, new paint, decorative patterned paint, and even graffiti. Wood tile is also weathered, stained, burned, split, and patterned. That is just SOME of the wood category. Italy’s history of materiality serves as a reference for these technological and aesthetic tile innovations. There are now inspiring, innovative and “authentic” faux options for designers to choose from. If you are looking for any material for your project, pick Italian porcelain. Save a forest, a quarry, and your budget while expanding your possibilities.

A few of my personal favorites from the categories of metal, stone, and  concrete:

1. Sienna Corten: These three tiles represent steel panels: Gun Oil = ‘Iron’, Old white paint = ‘Worn’, and Fully Weathered = ‘Rust’. Visually and physically stunning. Touching these didn’t help us determine their authenticity”. http://ceramictechnics.com/product/sienna-corten/
   
2. Coem Sequoie: A stone substitute with distinct and random veining. I love the Grant Grey. http://www.coem.it/en/prodotti/sequoie-en/
   
3. Modena Concrete: A realistic concrete tile with some historic and modern decorative options. http://ceramictechnics.com/product/modena-concrete/
   

Dannielle Sergent works on a variety of design projects at Field Paoli, including large retail developments and store design; and she provides guidance on color and interiors for the office. Away from the office, she heads her world-renowned perfume company COGNOSCENTI and is also a painter. www.cogno-scenti.com and www.botanical-portraits.com

Thank you to the Lea Ceramiche, Emil Ceramica, Imola and Coem Italian teams for sharing their amazing products, time and favorite places to eat. Special thanks to Matt Houser of Ceramic Technics for including me on the trip and always supplying us with information, attention, and amazing products for our projects. http://ceramictechnics.com/

*Cade, also known as Juniper Tar, is a smoky ingredient used by perfumers to recall just extinguished wood fires.