Ethereal and ultra-thin, in spite of its weight, or textural, sculptural, architectural; precious but strong, with special stain-proofing and scratch-proofing treatments, and above all sustainable. Luxury brands are exploring and experimenting with new uses and interpretations of marble, focusing on the environment by safeguarding the natural material, preventing waste.
Starting with Visionnaire, which for its new tables has chosen the patented Azerocare finish by Antolini, a process of protection and waterproofing specifically for marble and onyx, to guarantee permanent protection against stains and corrosion caused by contact with organic acids, to transform marble into surfaces that are easy to clean with water, neutral soap and a simple, non-abrasive cloth. This is an eco-friendly protection process that produces no atmospheric emissions or scrap, in line with the green vision of Visionnaire.
Medea and Armani|Dada explore the infinite applications of marble in their new collections, inspired by the Orient and convivial pleasures: Medea applies marble for the top of the Huo table, the first collaboration with Hong Kong-based architect and interior designer Steve Leung, an ideal surface for the tea ceremony that is the collection’s inspiration. Armani|Dada, on the other hand, personalizes the new Midnight bar cabinet, a refined citation of Japanese style, with a refined worktop in Portuguese pink marble, on which to add specific equipment for the preparation of cocktails, such as a cutting board, a bar mat in perforated steel, an ice bucket and a mini-sink.
The sculptural, theatrical tables by the studio Duffy London, from the Civilization collection, are eye-catching: one-offs where the marble base is architecture inside architecture, entirely sculpted by hand and inspired by the incredible monuments created in stone that have survived the tests of time, such as the Al-Khazneh temple at Petra, in Jordan, the ‘lonely castle’ Qasr-al-Farid at Mada’in Saleh, in Saudi Arabia, the Kailasa temple at Ellora Caves, Maharashtra, India.
Salvatori presents an innovative technique for working with marble, in the Curl chaise longue designed by Piero Lissoni, obtained from a single block of natural stone thanks to CAD/CAM technology, which takes the material to its limits “to remove only what was superfluous,” in keeping with the creative concept of Michelangelo.
Lithos Design and Kreoo focus on the luxury market with high-quality products like the Pluvio table by Matteo Nunziati for Kreoo, with a marble top that seems to be liquid, with ripples and waves, and the Petalo table by Raffaello Galiotto for Lithos Design, whose base is formed by three slightly overlapping petals, like a corolla, as the result of a mixture of technology and handiwork, curving and shaping the marble while minimizing scrap.
Finally, Budri breaks out of décor boundaries with Patricia Urquiola, experimenting with marble as a decorative element for the handles of bags by Valextra, in a surprising encounter between the softness of leather and the hardness of stone.
