The 42nd edition of Cersaie — Italy’s leading international showcase for ceramic tile and bathroom furnishings — was brimming with creativity, material innovation, and engaging programming. Held annually in Bologna, the five-day fair proved its vitality and resilience amid an uncertain global market with 94,577 visitors from 29 countries — all ready to explore new collections from over 600 exhibitors.
The fair’s energy was high, with a vibrant mix of talks, installations, and emerging trends to explore. Among the programming highlights was an inspiring keynote by next-generation architect Elizabeth Diller, founding partner of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, who touched on some of her most iconic projects to date while reflecting on the power of architecture to transform how we live and walk through the world. A trends presentation by Cristina Faedi, which delved into the underlying drivers behind the serene, wellness-inspired color palettes, reliefs and warm minimalism that dominated this year’s Cersaie, was also quite enlightening.
Aside from Cersaie, Bologna buzzed with design and culture, from museums and galleries to Bologna Design Week — an electric convergence of exhibitions, workshops, events, and more, that set the streets alive with creativity. Below, we’ve spotlighted some of the most captivating tiles introduced by a few of our favorite Ceramics of Italy brands, along with some stand-out moments from the fair and beyond.
TILE LOVE
Coem unveiled Milano Sublime — a truly incredible collection of porcelain stoneware surfaces that reproduce the look and feel of the famed Candoglia marble that lines the Milan Cathedral. Created in collaboration and with the support of the historic Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo di Milano — which has overseen the construction and restoration of the cathedral for centuries — the collection offers two authentic shades in various formats and finishes. Puro, a luminous tile with a pale pink ground scored with fine, gray veins, is joined by Lume — a veined, pinkish-gray tile that features soft movements and slight, amber hues. It’s a wonderful feat that pays tribute to a distinct heritage and cultural legacy.
Imagina, the new line of ultra-fun decorative porcelain stoneware tiles from Casalgrande Padana is designed to create the illusion of a pattern-rich wallpaper. Available in large format sizes, the new introductions invite creative applications with motifs ranging from florals and geometrics to abstract and architectural forms. Scenery (left), a toile-like surface stuns, while Ornament (right), exhibits old-world elegance.
Mirage’s sensorial Terrae collection, designed in collaboration with Milan-based multidisciplinary studio AMDL CIRCLE, transforms ceramics into narrative elements defined by shape, light and texture. The collection centers around three main tiles: Atmo, wall tiles that use geometric reliefs to reinterpret traditional Italian tiles; Idro, a white-body wall tile that offers smooth or subtly decorated surfaces; and Lito, a three-dimensional design created with partitions and cinematic backdrops in mind. The latter especially celebrates the harmonious relationship between the earth, its natural elements, and human design — creating artful effects with shadow, reflection and tactile depth that beautifully transform the surrounding environment.
ABK’s new Alterego collection includes 10 design-forward tones on a surface that embodies the tactile nature of hand-applied resins. The timeless assortment of complementary earthy hues is designed to inspire unique combinations, while the surfaces themselves are available in a wide range of formats. Colorways shown: Cotto and Clay (left); and Cream and Mud (right).
Caesar Ceramiche’s new CiViC collection consists of various porcelain tiles that explore the language of concrete through three distinct surface variations. Cross, with its soft, milky finish; Vein, which is defined by linear veining; and Chips, a terrazzo-inspired tile offered in a lively multicolor version with four fun colorways to choose from. Each surface is also available in four soothing tones — Fusion, Sable, Clear, Plinth, and Silent. The complementing decorative options include InSquare (far right) and Circle, which is shown in Clear with Chips in Multicolor White (left), and in Clear with the circle in Silent (middle).
Dutch design brand Moooi launched its first collection of ceramic surfaces, Nesting Room, through a collaboration with ABK. Beautifully showcased in a series of multisensory rooms that played off the collection’s three motifs — Hypnotic Owl, Reiki Rhea, and Cloistered Dove — the installation highlighted the brand’s love of organic animal forms and natural forces. Plumage (left), a decorative wall tile shown in the Heron colorway, was displayed along with Pavone, an elegant patterned wall tile paired with the brand’s Sandy Plains — a ceramic surface that features a refined, sand-like texture — and Egg Scape, a chic, terrazzo-like floor and wall tile that stuns. All shown in the Powder colorway.
Atlas Concorde’s Boost Vision collection includes the 3D Qube Glow tile (left), which beautifully melds two distinct material natures: the solidity of concrete with the irregular, natural movement of stone. Meanwhile, the Marvel Epic collection redefines stoneware with bold slabs in rich, expressive palettes that transform spaces into visual statements. Inspired by seven precious stones, the collection includes a striking reinterpretation of classic marble, the Calacatta Viola.
La Fabbrica Ava’s Breccia Sicilia series reinterprets the essence of a distinctive Sicilian marble in a variety of porcelain stoneware floor and wall tiles. Each tile captures the stone’s dramatic veining and eye-catching tonal nuances with its fusion of bold, warm colors, while featuring a natural texture that mimics the depth and authenticity of the stone. The collection is available in a variety of finishes ranging from matte to satin.
SUSTAINABILITY PRESENTATION
Mauro Rullo, sustainability and climate policy manager at Confindustria Ceramica, led an insightful sustainability presentation that shed light on how the Italian ceramic industry earned its reputation as a leader of responsible manufacturing. Since the 1980s, the industry has steadily worked to optimize its production processes; today, those decades of investments have paid off in droves. Producers have worked together as an industry to collectively improve energy efficiency through the use of cogeneration, heat recovery and photovoltaic systems — each of which has contributed to significantly reducing resource consumption and CO₂ emissions. From 2022 to 2023 alone, the number of photovoltaic plants adopted by the Italian ceramic producers rose by 75%.
But that’s not all — the products themselves exhibit low embodied carbon throughout their life cycle, contributing to green building and durable, healthy living environments. Carbon emissions are minimized at every stage of production through a circular economy model that recycles water and reuses up to 100% of manufacturing waste, resulting in ceramics with minimal environmental impact. Beyond production practices, worker safety and the well-being of local communities and ecosystems are also prioritized.
TRENDS PRESENTATION
Cristina Faedi, a ceramics trends consultant, led a fascinating trends presentation at this year’s fair. She underscored the importance of light — both natural and manufactured — as an architectural instrument. To illustrate the point, she demonstrated how various techniques on view at this year’s show, ranging from rhythmic grooves, reliefs and incisions carved into surfaces, to enamel finishes applied in a manner that amplifies refraction and shadows, employed light as a symphonic tool.
Faedi also touched on the pervading color palettes at this year’s show, which revealed an undeniable shift towards tranquility, minimalism and a reconnection with nature. Soft, soothing neutrals — think milky whites, creams and beiges — were everywhere, reflecting a collective longing for serenity and a retreat from the relentless onslaught of digital noise. Likewise, earthy hues, including terracotta, leather and clay, expressed a need to rediscover nature and its restorative powers.
MARIONANNI VIRGOLA MUSEUM
Outside of Cersaie, Bologna was rife with inspiration at every turn — from its design and culture, to its culinary mastery and way of life. Among the city’s many hidden gems, a visit to the Marionanni Virgola Museum, founded by lighting designer Mario Nanni, was especially illuminating. Housed within an 18th-century residence, the space is a living laboratory that experiments with light in a manner far beyond its function as a technical tool. Light is employed as a philosophical language — one that Nanni believes anyone can use to express emotion, create art, and shape the way we live. The museum forms part of Nanni’s Marionanni Scholé Foundation — a nonprofit institution dedicated to expanding the study and culture of light — with various educational pathways.
BOLOGNA DESIGN WEEK
This year’s Bologna Design Week included a variety of immersive installations at Palazzo Isolani. One deeply poignant experience, “The Living Resonance” — brought to life by Frassinago Gardens and Landscapes and Marco Nieri — consisted of a space transformed into a living ecosystem where plant scenography and bioenergetic research converged. In the center of the room, a bioenergetic tree was chosen and positioned using Nieri’s Bioenergetic Landscapes method, which identifies the precise location where trees can channel a natural flow of energy that benefits the human body. With Daniele Gullà’s hyperspectral analysis, the subtle bioenergetic emissions that connect us to nature aren’t just visible, they’re measurable. The experience offered an invitation to rediscover nature as a vital force while serving as a reminder to employ these natural vibrations and frequencies that connect us as a regenerative design tool. Nature is an ally to humankind, and we should treat it as such.
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