2026 CERSAIE Part I - An Interior Design Adventure in Italy

CERSAIE 2026, the International Exhibition of Ceramic Tile and Bathroom Furnishings, closed in Bologna on Friday, September 25. Our principal, Tai Kojro-Badziak, attended as a North American delegate at the invitation of the Italian Trade Agency (ITA), Joining over 90 designers, journalists and professionals from the US, Canada and Mexico to explore both the aesthetic and technical sides of Italian porcelain, ceramics, and bath fittings.

The welcome began on arrival. The first evening brought a rare visit to MuseoVirgola, Marionanni's palazzo in the center of Bologna. It is workshop, home, and museum at once, a place where lighting, space, furniture, and experience merge into one whole. It is a study of light in every form: electric, cast, reflected, implied. It set the tone for the week: technical precision and boundless curiosity merging to create wonder.

The first full day began well outside the city, at Mirage Ceramiche's plant in Pavullo nel Frignano, in the Apennines south of Modena. The 480,000-square-meter facility monitors energy precisely, recycles water in a closed loop, and recycles material throughout production. Together these keep energy and resource use low at every step without compromising the look or performance of the finished product. Mirage's showroom pushes tile well past floors and walls. It shows seamless tabletops and counters, cabinet fronts, and integrated shower and drain systems that let a surface run continuously from one use to the next.

On the CERSAIE show floor, sustainability was treated as multidimensional: the industry's role in resilience, comfort and health, safety, and life-cycle circularity. The Italian ceramics community's argument rests on durability: The most sustainable material is the one that performs for decades without needing replacement. True sustainable performance isn't only technical, it's aesthetic too. The same surface that protects against moisture and wear also gives a room its character, and that's where Italian ceramics excel: subdued palettes, tactile surfaces that invite the hand, and color, glaze, and finish layered with real grace.

As designers, we look for the right material for each application. Ceramics and porcelain earn their place at every scale, from exterior surfaces that weather any climate to interiors that have to stand up to years of daily use.

Thank you to the Italian Trade Agency and Mirage Ceramiche for an unforgettable experience!

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