With a reputation for their beauty and technical performance, Spanish tiles draw on a rich heritage of creativity and craftsmanship while remaining at the leading edge of contemporary design. Whether your project is residential or commercial, the latest designs offer a wide choice of colours, shapes and finishes.
PASSIONATE ABOUT PATTERN
Top left and clockwise: the latest Spanish tile designs include Cevica Tender, Dune Doria Creta, Gayafores Grace, ZYX Matter, Peronda FS Heritage Leaves and Arcana Cliff Paracas
Pattern allows architects and designers to make their mark on a project and create a unique ambience. With the latest digital printing techniques, Spanish manufacturers are able to respond quickly to trends, yet still have the capacity to continue offering timeless classics, proving that there is the perfect ceramic tile for each and every job.
CRAZY FOR COLOUR
Top left and clockwise: Keros Element, Equipe Altea, Harmony Bow and Cerámica Elias Esmaltes are available in a variety of colours
One of the most loved characteristics of ceramic as a material is its potential to transform any interior with a pop of colour. Whether it’s a small format with variation of tonality that suggests the hand of an artisanal studio or a contemporary matt finish on a slab, Spanish tiles provide something for every artistic vision.
Tiles may look handmade, but are actually manufactured and benefit from production processes that offer high performance as well as flexibility of use.
Often tiles are created with a strong visual concept in mind. The Bow series by Harmony is inspired, for example, by the shape of Mediterranean roof tiles, and was developed by Alberto Sánchez and Eduardo Villalón of MUT design. Element by Keros, which is modular in design, offers formats such as hexagonals and mosaic 30x30s that work well with rectangular and square tiles.
Design values are thus incredibly important with some brands employing in-house creative teams that utilise 20 or more professionals. And these designers make the most of the latest digital technology, allowing for the faithful reproduction of all kinds of effects.
COOL AND ELEGANT MARBLES
Marble-effect porcelain, usually seen on large-format slabs, is a product area that has expanded significantly in recent times. Designs either imitate the natural raw material with breathtaking verisimilitude or offer exaggerated twists on reality with over-sized striations and manmade colours that may even improve on nature.
Left to right: Museum Dreamy Road and Arklam Calacatta Gold are ranges that appeal strongly to those who love the luxury of marble, but want something a bit different
On display at Stand 401, Arklam Calacatta Gold provides much more drama than a typical classic marble whilst Museum Dreamy features an impressive finish and a choice of four hues. Unlike quarried marble, porcelain is easy to install and maintain yet still achieves an opulent feel.
GREY MATTERS
Left to right: shades of grey on Colorker Pulsar, Tau Sixtone and Vives Pietra Salerno
Whilst there seems to be a cyclical shift of design trends towards warm earthy tones, grey continues to be a popular neutral. There are plenty of new designs to choose from that demonstrate how dynamic grey continues to be.
TECHNICAL SURFACES
The Spanish tile industry is famous for its technical porcelain. Manufacturers continue to push boundaries and develop ranges that provide practical solutions for a variety of environments. Decocer’s new Crag range is frost resistant, so ideal for both indoor and outdoor settings while Argenta’s Carpenter Collection features anti-bacterial properties that will be appreciated as we continue to grapple with a global pandemic.
Left to right: Argenta Carpenter and Decocer Crag are suited to a variety of settings
Manufactured in Spain and widely available in the UK, these varied new products embody the spirit of an industry that prides itself on proposing beautiful, meaningful and high-performance solutions to flooring, wall coverings, furnishing and external cladding.
To find out how these surfaces, can improve your next project, visit Stand 401 at the Business Design Centre.