Where does the limit of architectural luxury lie? In ostentatious materials? In avant-garde products? In wasted living space? In eco-friendly choices? In the quality of the air we breathe inside buildings? In decorative pretention? In the exorbitant cost of the whole complex? In the fame of the designer?

A long – almost infinite – list of questions, which have an equal number of answers, but to get to the heart of the matter, we start with two quotes: the first by Coco Chanel and the second by Anthony Crosland. The French fashion designer argued: “Some people think luxury is the opposite of poverty. It is not. It is the opposite of vulgarity”. While the English politician declared: “What one generation sees as a luxury, the next sees as a necessity”. 

A long – almost infinite – list of questions, which have an equal number of answers, but to get to the heart of the matter, we start with two quotes: the first by Coco Chanel and the second by Anthony Crosland. The French fashion designer argued: “Some people think luxury is the opposite of poverty. It is not. It is the opposite of vulgarity”. While the English politician declared: “What one generation sees as a luxury, the next sees as a necessity”. 

If we apply these two statements to the world of architecture and to its materials for floor and wall coverings, we immediately realise that they touch on two of architecture’s main features: the first one considers expressive quality to be the true luxury of a space, by externalising its material and taste; the second focuses on how the concept moves from one generation to the next, in ongoing continuity.

Indeed, we have come a long way from the cliché where luxury is everything that looks “rich”, “sparkling”, “charged”; nowadays, luxury is the right balance of fine design and quality materials. So, in ceramics this approach must transpire not only in the decorative appearance of a tile but also in its performance, when its outward appearance is affirmed; in other words, the elegance of a material that makes a splash without vulgarity and that senses the needs of the next generation. Hence, our era has changed the parameters of luxury, at the end of an aesthetic path that began last century, so it is now identified in design and production awareness. This is an intellectual operation where the real performance of the material is hidden in the form but is displayed as a visual, tasteful outward appearance.

One example of this revitalised luxury is found in the production of Eiffelgres, which stands out in the porcelain stoneware industry precisely because of the elegance expressed through design .

Indeed, the Argent line is pure material made from a skilful blend of selected soils and minerals, which are then turned into tiles that set off the design of the living space through its coverings. Something desirable, an added value, which is not consigned to a pure outward show of pomp but takes the form of quality material and its stylish distinguishing marks that set it apart from other products in the same category. Here, luxury takes the form of porcelain stoneware and is then transferred into homes.

The same company is also behind the Pillart collection, where the quality of the ceramic material, its performance and its elegance are combined with a graphic design that manages to reproduce the idea of artful design and not decoration for its own sake, combining material, form and pattern in a single design thought. Exactly what luxury is for contemporary civilisation!

And we mustn’t forget the other component of revitalised luxury: the next generation’s necessity. Eiffelgress has also responded to this, leading the way in its commitment to sustainable economic growth and to environmental protection, policies that are also guaranteed by its certifications: ISO 14001, LEED, ANAB, BREEAM just to name a few.

PRODUCTS MENTIONED
http://www.eiffelgres.it/collezioni/argent/
http://www.eiffelgres.it/collezioni/pillart/