WHEN MATERIAL GUIDES DESIGN
An eye on quality and innovation is guiding the surface design industry
With a growing focus on
living and in response to the evolving tastes of design investors, quality is at the forefront of any decision-making that involves material selection.
Natural or man-made, artisanal or developed by cutting-edge machines; international manufacturers of surface materials are lending
colour, shape, texture and most importantly, mood, to interior and exterior spaces. Bringing the designer’s scheme to life with character and personality, these manufacturers represent a specialised community in design that straddles both tradition and tech.
Cosentino are known for their innovative surfaces for the architecture and design industry. From large-scale slabs to the know-how for delivering highly customised solutions, the Spain-based manufacturer is constantly pushing the envelope. Their latest development, the thin-edged, Dekton Slim not only mimics the organic beauty of natural stone, by virtue of being a composite material, it promises to retain its beauty and character for ages.
Known for their hand-picked selection of manmade and natural stones, Grani Marmo supply exotic stones to the region’s prime hospitality and residential projects. KalingaStone, their collection of engineered stones that offer seamless application and consistency is ideal for the region’s climate.
Taking the art of stonework further into the realm of high-design are Ranieri Lava Stone. Specialists in creating madeto-measure solutions featuring 100 per cent recyclable natural volcanic stone, they have recently introduced a range of benches that combine the coveted stone with rich velvets and other plush soft furnishings.
Representing an international portfolio of the finest manufacturers, artisans and makers, Dubaibased Kens & Company supply bespoke materials to the region’s leading architects and designers.
One of the most exciting brands in their arsenal, DSA Glass, offer latest innovations in decorative glass. Be it bespoke patterns and etchings, or chromatic effects and silk panels sandwiches between panes, their range brings instant glam to any space.
The commercial flooring industry is not immune to manufacturing advancements either. Driving innovation in the vinyl, linoleum and rubber surfaces sector, Tarkett are known for design-led, high-performance solutions. Their latest collection pays homage to the aesthetic codes and compositions of the Bahuahus movement.
UK-based Camira make more than 8 million metres of fabric a year. Their team of innovators design and make some of the world’s most adventurous and environmentally sensitive fabrics. One of their latest collections, Hemp, uses two of nature’s cleverest renewable fibres to create upholstery fabrics of natural beauty — wool and hemp — to create a range with soft handle and inherent flame retardancy in a beautiful array of colourways.
Other brands are lending new vocabularies to age-old making traditions, often recontextualising the artisan’s offerings for the current market. Portugal-based makers New Terracotta are known for their beautiful glazed Azulejos tiles produced manually by local craftsmen; what sets them apart is their ability to offer customized designs across a range of sizes, shapes and colours.
The expertise of their craftsmen truly comes across in the beautiful montages they create in terracotta tile work that, whilst tipping its hat to the compositions often found on old Portuguese houses, are thoroughly contemporary.