Percorsi in ceramica: Past, present, future

The renovation project currently transforming Casa Baldi into a new Creative Centre thanks to the help of Paolo Portoghesi and Renzo Piano Building Workshop’s project to create Columbia University’s new Manhattanville campus are at the heart of this

Time is the prism through which we believe you should read this edition of Percorsi.

From one side, the edition is about the past becoming the present, as we take a closer look at Paolo Portoghesi’s renovation and transformation project at Casa Baldi in Rome. On the other hand, however, the edition looks to the future, as we profile Renzo Piano Building Workshop’s large-scale project to create prestigious Columbia University’s new Manhattanville campus in the heart of New York.

In the first case, the unique residential building – considered one of the most significant works of Italian architecture since the Second World War – will become home to the third Creative Centre, a network devised by Casalgrande Padana to help promote creativity and a culture of architecture and design. This fascinating project, all about restoration and transformation, has been entrusted to the building’s original designer, Paolo Portoghesi, who introduces it to our readers in an exclusive interview.

In the second case, meanwhile, the new campus complex serves as a fine example of the potential of urban redevelopment, featuring several different buildings centred around green spaces and services open to the wider city. Parts of the project are already in operation, such as the Jerome L. Greene Science Center, a stunning space both in terms of interior design and functionality. Several thousands of square metres of porcelain stoneware tiles by Casalgrande Padana were used to finish the space.

The focus on the future continues with a preview of the information needed to participate in the upcoming edition of the Grand Prix International Architecture Contest 2016/2018, while the edition also unveils the new Kontinua line of porcelain stoneware tiles combining large dimensions with minimal thicknesses.

Last but not least, there is also innovation afoot for Percorsi in Ceramica itself. After 35 editions, and just shy of 18 years since the publication of the first edition, the magazine is to update its appearance and – more importantly – format, with the magazine jumping up to the elegant 28x31 size, which is already used for all of Casalgrande Padana’s editorial productions for the industry, not least the acclaimed Creative Book. The additional space will create a bigger platform for the content, images and designs, with the objective being to provide better information and more comprehensive updates on what is happening in the world of ceramics, architecture and interior design: the great universe within which Casalgrande Padana sits.