Marmomac fair and raw natural stone: it’s 2023 and history, once again, cyclically, repeats itself. The most important event for the stone world, in this year’s edition, told us an ancient story, which we are all aware of. It spoke to us about natural stone, presented with a rough finish, as a great and long-awaited return. If the call of nature has become more insistent in recent years, it’s also due to the strong push that the issue of sustainability has given to consciences. This includes a universe of practices that goes beyond attention to production, sourcing of raw materials and processing, storage and delivery techniques. Sustainability is permeating civil life. Not only do people want to enjoy open spaces more to be in contact with nature, but there is also an ongoing transposition of natural elements into closed spaces and into our homes.
Nature-based wellness
It’s not just a fashion that embraces the aesthetic sphere. Having intact and authentic natural stone within environments is a social turning point that aims to create an all-encompassing nature-based well-being. And so it is no coincidence that slabs or blocks of bare stone prevailed among the Marmomac halls. Inlaid, striated, with patterns, with textures and other decorative alterations, but always retaining its “nakedness”.
Polishing, smoothing, brushing, acid etching and sandblasting find less space, although they still cover a large market. This is demonstrated by the technological innovations and special equipment that have populated the more “technical” Halls of Marmomac fair.
Interesting, even to the most lay eyes, was the mechanical happening The Applaud by Giorgio Canale in Hall 10. An ongoing process of creating a work through the use of latest generation machinery.
Highlights from Marmomac fair 2023
For the 57th edition of Marmomac, pavilion 1 was dressed in the “A matter of Stone” display, designed in concept by Elle Decor and in layout by the Calvi Brambilla studio. A choral and multi-brand story around the many variations of natural stone.
Inside, the Savema stand, where the Arabescato del Corchia marble meets vegetable tanned leather, inlaid wood, natural and toasted cork, etched brass, woven willow and veneered wood. All combos of a collection that tells new stories dedicated to architecture.
The classic imprint by Kiriakidis is precious, with its porticoes and its stairways with statues, capitals and decorations that reconstructed an agoral atmosphere in which marble had the role of an extremely contemporary element.
Moving our attention to hall 9, the Furrer exhibition space stands out. The Carrara company evoked the idea of travel among its marbles sculpted into suitcases and bags on an airport luggage roller.
Sezgin, on the other hand, adds only small details to bring out a little bear that was hidden behind its onyx slab.
Elite elegance in the marble joint of Franchi Umberto Marmi, an exhibition that enhances the materiality of the naturally authentic stone.
Under the heading “Shaping matter” we find the Naturale bench by Leonardo Talarico for Lapis Vitae, in hall 6. It’s an interlocking of pure shapes in travertine, kept natural with its porous texture.
During the days of the fair, hall 10 is the theater where all the culture of the stone world is staged. In addition to workshops and talks, the space was the stage made available to universities. Marmomac meets Academies has in fact involved Italian and foreign universities and research centers. The students collaborated with companies in the sector, with their works displayed under and around a large “suspended vault” made up of lithic elements.
The characterizing element of the entire fair, it is worth repeating, was the stone with a rough finish, in its naked materiality, stripped of any processing that would alter its naturalness. It’s probably because not only is it always time for natural stone, but because we are living in an era in which vivre nature is the most right of trends.
With the proud belief that the beauty cycle can never end, the appointment is next year, with the dates of Marmomac 2024 set for 24 to 27 September, from Tuesday to Friday.
Article in collaboration with Marmomac
2 Comments
stone is such a noble material that it has its own expression: invest in stone, which says a lot
The evolution of our times requires us to understand and respect
the raw material to love it in its raw state.
The richness of his existence.
it is a societal movement that forces companies to think differently and innovate for the sustainability of what nature gives us
we realize that nature is our habitat.
We want our interior to resemble it.
A beautiful tribute of awareness.
today, the stone
a noble material is sufficient in itself.
our job is to restore it in our interiors as naturally as possible.
an ode to nature