Compiled by Peter Sobchak
Tile Council of North America
Fabric Folio
Wonder Porcelain’s Fabric Folio collection is a contemporary interpretation of textiles overlaid on a cement base that highlights the natural movement and striations of fabric. Unpolished and light polished finishes complement the colour palette for an interesting industrial sheen, instead of the more wool knot look of area rugs. www.wonderporcelain.com
Natural Design
Inspired by American walnut, Landmark Ceramics’ Natural Design planks are crisscrossed by delicate design traces typical of the manufacturing of natural materials, such as planing, veining, saw cutting, and can be used in both floor and wall applications. www.lcusa.com
Urban District
American Marazzi Tile touted its Urban District BRX collection, which is inspired by Chicago’s own historic bricks. The style is meant to evoke the revitalization of gritty downtown districts by combining rough and smooth surface effects. www.marazzitile.com
Satori
Satori, a Laminam by Crossville collection, is suited for commercial and residential applications, and these luxe porcelain tile panels come in 1×3 metre and 1×1 metre sizes yet are only 5.6mm thick, increasing their application efficiency. www.crossvilleinc.com
Tile of Spain
Foresta Benton
Alto Maestrazgo is an area in the Spainish province of Castellón very close to Peronda’s headquarters and associated with large rural farmhouses known as masías. The wooden door of one such building — painted years ago and worn by the weather, passage of time and history — was the inspiration for the Foresta Benton collection. www.peronda.com
Brick
Equipe exhibited the Brick collection of porcelain tiles, designed with multiple graphic patterns, reliefs, sizes and colours to reflect traditional handmade brick and its processes of aging. www.equipeceramicas.com
Ground
Inspired by industrial settings and the robust solidity of large cement panels, the Ground series by Inalco attempts to replicate that material’s concepts of strength and architectural resilience. www.inalco.es
Playground
Bringing colour and vibrancy to both walls and floors, the Playground series by Venus Ceramica is available in a 30x60cm format and in solid, brick or cotto options, in black, beige and grey colours. www.venusceramica.com
Tundra
Argenta Cerámica introduced the new Tundra collection, a six-shade porcelain palette of neutral, functional colours that present a recreation of natural stone. www.argentaceramica.com
Ceramics of Italy
Canvas
Like a painter’s canvas, this collection from Ariana features textured surfaces with highly realistic fiber relief effects. Available in five colour patterns and two sizes, this collection is also available in ABK Group’s new Wall & Porcelain technology which merges the best qualities of porcelain and double fired tiles, while eliminating their disadvantages, such as micro-cracking, and the need for back-buttering. www.ariana.it
Earth by Pininfarina
Earth by Pininfarina is the first tile system designed by the world-renowned sports car design firm in collaboration with Casalgrande Padana. Inspired by décors inspired by the automotive world, the porcelain stoneware slabs combine influences from glass, leather, and fabric creating a strong multisensory effect. The collection is also available in Casalgrande Padana’s eco-friendly, antibacterial and self-cleaning technologies. www.casalgrandepadana.it
BrickLane
Inspired by the famous London street, this brick lookalike collection by Marca Corona reflects a cool eclectic spirit, and conveys a contemporary taste for building restoration. Available in standard brick format sizes as well as a 10″x8.5″ hexagonal decor, and four colours (white, olive, beige, red). www.marcacorona.it
Transition
A collaboration between designer Lanzavecchia + Wai and Mirage, the Transition collection’s porcelain tiles features strips of colour in slightly varying tones that create an interesting textural effect. The concept is inspired by the idea of a pixelated image of a journey through Italy – the 5 contemporary colourways are each inspired by an Italian city. www.mirage.it
Pictart
Pictart is a new porcelain stoneware collection from Ceramica Sant’Agostino inspired by the stems of banana leaves. The combination of shades and drawn graphic movements in long and narrow sizes are accentuated by light, almost transparent strokes, creating a play of light between opaque and shiny and turning every plank into a true work of ceramic art. www.ceramicasantagostino.it
Concrete Jungle
Extensive research into the industrial spaces that surround us led Blustyle to the new Concrete Jungle series, a versatile porcelain tile with the essential colour tones of urban concrete. www.blustyle.it
Remake
Remake by Abitare La Ceramica transforms porcelain into a highly sophisticated surface with a modern style based on neutral colour tones and the contemporary appeal of concrete. The series comes in three colours: grey, taupe and white. www.abitarelaceramica.it
Meteors
Meteors is a series in opalescent and iridescent glass by Sicis in which rhomboid tesserae were combined into visions of geometry at play. www.sicis.com
Styletech
Styletech is a range of wood-effect and metal-effect porcelain tiles for floors and walls. Part of Florim Group’s Magnum Oversize range, 9 extra-large sizes (up to 63”x126”) revolutionize the concept of a continuous surface. www.floorgres.it
Organic Rug
Organic Rug is a collection of porcelain floor tiles by Gambini Tile On Time that gives a remarkably accurate impression of carpet squares, while offering the durability and stain-resistance of tile. It is available in three cold colorways (Ice, Smoke, Dark), and two warm (Sand, Teak) each which feature degradations in color and linear designs that give the appearance of threads and worn fabric. www.gambinitile.com
Nirvana
Nature’s ability to create and change its compositional elements was the inspiration behind Nirvana by La Faenza. This collection is specifically modeled to mimic wood dried by the sun — this primitive ruggedness is seamlessly meshed with the innate elegance and practicality of porcelain. www.lafaenzaceramica.com
