Ceramics take centre stage at the ADI Design Museum

(November 2024) | The exhibition Design di Filiera (Supply Chain Design) marked the culmination of a decade of theoretical and methodological research into the role of design in supply chains conducted by ADI (Industrial Design Association). The exhibition explored a distinctly Italian ecosystem that transcends the traditional concept of a supply chain and represents a significant part of Italy’s economic, cultural and social heritage.

With a focus on ceramic production, the exhibition examined the transformation of industrial districts into supply chains and then into networks and clouds, transitions driven by investments in the creative industries, particularly design. The exhibition also marked the tenth anniversary of the ADI Ceramics & Bathroom Design Award, an annual accolade presented at Cersaie, the key event for showcasing new products and innovations in the ceramic industry.

ADI Ceramics&Bathroom Design Award 2021: Spire washbasin.
Design: Elena Salmistraro. Production: Ceramica Flaminia.
Award citation: “The elliptical volumes combine soft, asymmetrical shapes, creating a washbasin that becomes a perfect design object.”

ADI Ceramics&Bathroom Design Award 2021: Kintsugi.
Design: R&D Fioranese. Production: Ceramica Fioranese.
Award citation: “The company’s outstanding technical and manufacturing expertise has enabled it to develop a product that brings together the value of three different materials in a single industrial process, reinterpreting the visual poetry of an ancient Japanese technique.”

The exhibition was organised jointly by Confindustria Ceramica, Cersaie and ADI, and for a month was viewed by visitors to the ADI Design Museum, a venue that plays an important role in promoting design culture nationally and internationally through the permanent collection of the Compasso d’Oro award featuring Italian design products from 1954 to the present day.

Floor -1 of the museum, which still houses large items of industrial archaeology, proved the ideal setting for the exhibition of ceramic products to have won the ADI Ceramics & Bathroom Design Award over the past decade. Surrounding the products displayed at the centre of the room, video installations narrated the evolution of the supply chain concept, the qualities and history of ceramic products, key figures in the industry and ADI’s activities in the sector.

ADI Ceramics&Bathroom Design Award 2021: Attitude.
Design: Daniele Martelli. Production: Leonardo Ceramica by Coop. Ceramica Imola.
Award citation: “An innovative production process in which the company has revisited the traditional body pressing process and exploited the random effect of the crushing operation. The result is a full-body ceramic product with high technical and material performance.”

ADI Ceramics&Bathroom Design Award 2021: Blade.
Design: R&D Panaria Ceramica. Production: Panaria Ceramica.
Award citation: “Blade interprets the theme of a metallic surface, fully exploiting its graphic and ceramic characteristics to create a warm and welcoming material that is particularly suited to contemporary interior design projects.”

The exhibition featured products created by renowned designers such as Claudio Papa, Davide Vercelli, Odo Fioravanti, Meneghello Paolelli Associati, Elena Salmistraro, Jasper Morrison, Nilo Gioacchini and Daniele Martelli (winner of the 2024 Compasso d’Oro award for the Attitude slabs) and produced both by major brands and by small to medium-sized companies, including Cooperativa Ceramica Imola, Ceramica Sant’Agostino, Gambini, Ceramica Bardelli, Marca Corona, Flaminia, Ideagroup, Ceramica Dolomite, Arblu, Hom and Cordivari.

A documentary by director Esmeralda Calabria entitled Ceramics of Italy. A journey towards sustainability was screened in the room adjacent to the exhibition. Winner of two Filmimpresa awards, the documentary explores the theme of sustainability, narrated through the voices of women working in the Italian ceramic industry.

The exhibition was inaugurated on 7 October 2024 in the presence of Luciano Galimberti (ADI Chairman), Andrea Cancellato (ADI Design Museum Director), Filippo Manuzzi (member of Confindustria Ceramica Board of Directors), Angelo Dall’Aglio (Cersaie Operations Director) and curators Carlo Branzaglia and Wladimiro Bendandi.

The exhibition was concluded on 22 October at 6 p.m. with a roundtable discussion entitled Innovating processes: design and the ceramic supply chain. Attended primarily by students from the IED in Milan, the event explored the experiences of three generations of designers who have worked in the ceramic sector. The speakers at the discussion, moderated by Carlo Branzaglia, were Angelo Dall’Aglio (Cersaie Operations Director), Giacomo Bertolazzi (Head of the School of Design, IED Milan), Federica Biasi (Federica Biasi Studio), Diego Grandi (GDO_Diego Grandi Office) and Ambrogio Rossari (Rossari e Associati).