On the occasion of the new edition of Milan Design Week 2023, Mutina presents four new important projects that experiment with the ceramic material: Mater, Chamotte and Jali by Patricia Urquiola, a consolidated presence in the Mutina team, and Fringe by Michael Anastassiades, inaugurating his collaboration with the company.
Just inside the space of Casa Mutina Milano, one discovers Chamotte, the new collection of Mutina ceramics with a strongly material texture, entirely handmade and covered with coloured glossy glazes, typical of artistic ceramics. Designed by Patricia Urquiola, the Chamotte collection takes its name from the raw material composed of ceramic fragments crushed and incorporated into the raw clay to obtain a granular texture.
“Chamotte collection comes about from the desire to design an element with great tactile consistency, that highlights the brutal and natural beauty of ceramics. We have worked on volumes, creating a surface full of layers and contrasts, both to the eye and to the touch,” Patricia Urquiola.
An industrial product, although offering the same sensation as a handcrafted product, is instead Mater, a name that recalls the earth used to make the neutral bases of the collection. Inspired by the customized graphics of the late 50s and, especially, Vietri artisanal ceramics, Mater is a project where glaze becomes the true protagonist. Patricia Urquiola coated the fields between the signs that run across the surface with high thickness coloured glazes, creating a tactile effect with great visual impact. This was obtained thanks to an innovative glazing technique, implemented for the first time by Mutina on the occasion of this project.
The Spanish designer’s third project on show at Casa Mutina Milano is the new Jali brick, a three-dimensional drawn terracotta module inspired by the typical decoration of Indian architecture.
“Jali is a perforated rock, an architectural micro grid typical of Indian architecture, with geometrical or floral motifs. For Mutina, I have designed a 3D object inspired by this element: a versatile yet rigorous presence, simple and poetic. Jali can be placed in many different ways: both vertically and horizontally, in line or in staggered positions, creating dynamic filters, architectural elements as well as real furniture,” Patricia Urquiola.
Fringe (Frangia in Italian) is the first collection designed by Michael Anastassiades for Mutina. It is a floor or wall tile divided into a series of parallel segments of two widths, directly engraved onto the surface, suitable for both indoor and outdoor spaces. The pronounced grout spacing forms a “brick like” design and can be woven into multiple patterns through a simple interplay of a change in orientation. The result is a series of seamless carpets with or without borders which demarcate spaces, perfectly adapting to each environment. Both the tile and ceramic body share equal importance in the designs created.
