Casa Dolce Casa’s revolutionary new line Casamood is turning heads around the world.  The series, which combines Italian porcelain tiles with other types of materials including paint, grout and glass, was an overwhelming hit at Cersaie and made an artistic statement at another leading show this season, Art Basel Miami Beach. Art Basel is a new type of cultural event, combining an international art show with an exciting program of special exhibitions, parties and crossover events including music, film, architecture and design.

As a special exhibition during the show, Casamood partnered with Iberia tile to present “High Definition,” a work by Italian artist Luca Pancrazzi. Throughout his career, Pancrazzi has used expressive media that range from painting and photography to video, light-boxes, sculpture and large installation pieces.  For this exhibit, he used tiles from Casamood to recreate photographs. Similar to the giant display that was on view at the Casamood concept store during Cersaie, Pancrazzi used a 2”x 2” format with grouts that exactly matched each color tile to create a tile mosaic based on one of his pieces.  On the other side of the room, he blew up the image to give it a pixilated appearance.  In order to capture this look, he used slightly larger 4” x 4” tiles.

This brilliant display of tile art was well received by both the general public and critics at Art Basel. For more information on Casamood’s upcoming events and extensive product line, visit www.casamood.com.

Ceramica Faetano Inaugurates New Foundation Headquarters

Ceramica Faetano, one of Italy’s leading ceramic tile manufacturers, announced the inauguration of a new headquarters for its philanthropic arm – the Cino Mularoni Foundation (CMF). It will be located in the Palazzini Uffici – created in 1962 for Ceramic Faetano. On display in the new offices will be a selection of ceramic objects that the CMF has acquired over time – with a particular focus on the winners of local design competitions that celebrate ceramic artistry.

Ceramica Faetano has been dedicated to providing financial and human resources to social and philanthropic purposes for some time. The CMF, founded in 1992, in memory of the company’s founder from San Marino, is charged with the mission of spreading awareness of the local ceramic tradition. This tradition has been a vital part of the local economic and cultural life in the Republic of San Marino for most of the last century. 

In honor of the opening of the new office, the foundation has announced that it will organize an exhibit, in collaboration with the State Museum of the Republic of San Marino, and with the assistance of the State Secretariat for Education and Culture and the University Social Affairs Department. The exhibit, entitled Ceramic Bottles of San Marino, will be on display next December in downtown San Marino and will be an extensive look at the artistic and decorative of these collected objects of art.

In addition to its support and focus on the local community, Del Conca, the leading factory in the Faetano Group, has had a growing presence around the world. Del Conca’s exports represent two thirds of its entire production.  Half of that quota goes to the US market. With high-profile clients like Starbucks and the new Turks and Caicos Islands airport as well as numerous malls, total U.S. sales for the company have risen to 50 million Euros, which represents an increase of 30%.

In addition, Del Conca has recently been specified for prestigious projects like the Russian Finance Ministry in Moscow as well as the Russian Central Bank in Saint Petersburg and a prominent new luxury residential community in Budapest. 

It all adds up to another high-profile year for the active leader in the Italian ceramic tile industry.