Guess what? - there's barely any news in Tile Land for February 2010! That's saying a lot since Surfaces 2010 happened this month. We enlisted a Tile Envy special correspondent, equipped with camera, in search of anything cool in tile (thanks, Juan!). But not a single photo returned as he reported no reason to take a snap.Yikes!
So, I've decided to put a big shout out to ALL TILE PEOPLE. If you've got news brewing in your studios- new products, improvements, designs- please let Tile Envy know. I'll be happy to post your news as long as Tile Envy finds it newsworthy- i.e. creative, or innovative. Since the design mag's are letting us down- let's make some news for ourselves!!
For now, here's the hippest tile news I could uncover for February 2010.
(remember to click on the photo if you would like to read more)
Interior Design magazine did their own Cersaie 2010 coverage in their recent issue under "Tile File". I featured a number of highlights from this same show several months ago in Tile Envy. It's interesting to compare ID's favorite picks from that show-
Ceramica Bardelli
Here ID brings Fornasetti's tiles into focus though these particular works have been around for decades. I've long been a fan and collector of Piero Fornasetti and have a post waiting in the wings filled with all things Fornasetti- so look for more of this prolific and remarkable designer soon in Tile Envy.
Ceramica Bardelli is the Italian ceramic studio recreating Fornasetti's tiles while also specializing in the tile works of many other renowned artist/designers. Their website is filled with lots of tile candy.
Mosaic+
Pel-eeease!! I'm not sure about anything described as "recycled wood scraps and regenerated polymers". Don't get me wrong- I'm all about lemonade from lemons, and sustainable, green, etc. But some of this stuff seems to be stretching this a bit. Where's the magic, where's the humanity?? Ok- I'll try to find out more from the manufacturer - Mosaic+ - until then, I remain skeptical, but open.
Brix
These tiles were certainly intriguing with their matte black and unusual shapes. I won't kid you- I know little about these tiles, even after trying my hand at a bit of investigative journalism (google). What little I do know is that they were created by designer - Vincent Van Duysen for an Italian tile company named Brix and their name- D.R.Y. could be short for Don't Repeat Yourself.
Settocento
Italian glass mosaic companies have long created amazing mosaics like this highly crafted Chuck Close-type image. Here, Norma Jean is created by Settocento, another innovative Italian company that creates some fairly amazing art panels in one specifically large size. I like that concept- even if Marilyn wouldn't be my particular choice. I highly recommend viewing their website to take in all their designs.
That's all she wrote-
Sorry for the very Italianate post- but when the news is about Cersaie- that's what you get. I was a bit miffed by the rather thin information stream provided by the ID people - lots of pic's and not much info. What's up with that? Hopefully, I pieced together enough information to make the read worth your while.
For March- hoping to hear from all you other countries (hello USA!) for more news from around the tile globe. I wonder if -say- rugs or wallpaper or plumbing have the same news starvation as the tile industry? Hoping all of you will help to change this. I'm here for ya'!!