Cersaie 2021: Unveiling the new Meridio finish

The design concept interprets the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana and narrates the performance and applications of sintered stone.

Just as Lapitec was born as an evolution of the material that has built the history of architecture and design over the centuries, the stand the company is presenting at Cersaie 2021 becomes a tribute to one of the symbolic buildings of our culture. For its design, Didonè Comacchio Architects drew inspiration from the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana, a monument to Italian rationalism in the EUR district of Rome, with its identical rows of columns and arches. The purity of the lines, solids and voids, the semicircles of the "square Coliseum" and its finish inspire the exhibition concept designed by the two young architects from Vicenza to highlight the aesthetics and properties of sintered stone: the slabs, in large sizes up to 3440x1540 mm, the finesse of its natural shades and its surface texture - available in eight different textures, as well as the easy workability of the material with cuts, incisions and milling, find their best expression in this project.

The 'classic' language of the pavilion - made up of symmetrical relationships, harmony and compositional order - contains the identity of Lapitec and potential as a technological and highly performing material with a 'naturally Italian' look, as recalled by the company payoff. The result of a mixture of 100% natural minerals with no chemical additives, resins or petroleum derivatives and an industrial process covered by 25 patents, sintered stone is reminiscent even to the touch of stone material, while its colouring, in shades of white, beige, brown, grey or black, is a direct consequence of its composition. 

The stand is a narrative journey through the colours, finishes and applications of Lapitec in an atmosphere that traces the idea of a new contemporary monument. The three different collections Essenza, Arabescata, and Musa with its new shades, are showcased in the stand’s flooring, walls and furnishings like the bar counter, and even in the construction of a large spa area in collaboration with Cristina Rubinetterie, which shows how sintered stone can come into direct contact with water thanks to its porous-free surface and resistance to humidity, temperature changes and extreme temperatures. At the centre of the space, the counter is characterised by a carved sintered stone base, which highlights its special "full-body" feature and is therefore identical at every point, and by a top incorporating Lapitec Chef, a hidden induction unit that the Veneto company is now presenting after years of experimentation and research in collaboration with the University of Padua. 

From traditional indoor and outdoor surfaces, including ventilated facades in the Meridio finish, a new feature for Cersaie 2021, to use in the world of interior design, bathrooms and kitchens, and abstract games in various thicknesses of 12, 20 and 30 mm, the project designed by Didonè Comacchio reveals the entire Lapitec universe: timeless and naturally Italian.