BRAND & STONE 3.0
Time In Stone
BRAND & STONE 3.0
Hall 12
Concept by: Danilo di Michele
Curated by: Giorgio Canale
Natural stone in objects and accessories developed for the collections of leading international design brands.
Following the success of the previous edition, the collaboration between stone companies and major international design brands was renewed for 2021. This partnership gave rise to Brand & Stone 3.0, an exhibition conceived by Danilo Di Michele and curated by architect Giorgio Canale.
Now in its third edition, the exhibition responds to the need to bring designers and global brands closer to the use of natural stone in the production of objects and accessories intended for their own collections. It demonstrates how it is possible to overcome reservations that are still sometimes widespread—both commercial (costs, distribution, etc.) and technical (weight, installation issues, etc.)—regarding the use of this material.
The technical and artistic expertise of Italian stone companies is therefore placed at the service of the most prestigious furniture and interior brands, collaborating on the development of unique projects—both indoor and outdoor—designed to be launched on the market. Natural stone thus becomes a revolutionary and innovative material, capable of meeting the expectations of the most demanding clientele worldwide through everyday objects.
Brand & Stone 3.0 is not merely an exhibition of outstanding marble design objects, nor simply an experiment aimed at pushing lithic materials to their extremes. It is a partnership project—a synergy between two worlds, stone and design—whose results are unveiled at Marmomac.
Participating collaborations
Swatch — Biasi Emilio & Figli Industria Marmi
Antoniolupi — Marco Di Paolo — Grassi Pietre
FORMITALIA Luxury Group - Tonino Lamborghini Casa — Formitalia Design Studio — MARMI GHIRARDI
Baxter — StudioPepe. — bagnara
Il Fanale Group — Giorgio Canale, Matteo Zorzenoni — STONETHICA by Petris
PENTA — Giorgio Canale — MAP SLATE
QEEBOO MILANO — Stefano Giovannoni — TESTI GROUP
Mk — Giorgio Rava — MARINI MARMI
MAXI SWATCH
BRAND
SWATCH
CONCEPT
GIORGIO CANALE
PRODUCTION
BIASI EMILIO & FIGLI INDUSTRIA MARMI
MATERIAL
BIANCO DI CARRARA
How big is a Swatch? Up to 2.10 metres! Maxi Swatch is an enlarged tribute to the pure, essential design that turned Swatch into a true icon. It has been interpreted by artists such as Damien Hirst and Folon; fashion designers like Castelbajac and Agatha Ruiz de la Prada; directors like Luc Besson and Almodóvar; and designers such as Massimo Giacon and Alessandro Mendini. It has been Tintin, Mickey Mouse and Corto Maltese; it has travelled to the Atlanta Olympics and the Locarno Film Festival—and now it is marble.
FIDA
BRAND
ANTONIOLUPI
DESIGN
MARCO DI PAOLO
PRODUCTION
GRASSI PIETRE
MATERIAL
Pietra di Vicenza — Grigio Alpi, brushed finish
The Fida bathtub is inspired by nature: a true sculpture carved from a single monolith of Pietra di Vicenza Grigio Alpi with a brushed finish. The material’s characteristic light-grey tone, marked by the presence of macrofossils, creates a contemporary meeting point between matter and function. The external profile draws on the organic shapes of river-worn wood, lending the piece a sense of fluidity. Edges are softened and lines remain gentle. Inside, the basin is ergonomic and carefully studied to convey safety and comfort.
Fida integrates harmoniously into interiors, giving them a distinctive atmosphere. Organic yet symmetrical, restrained yet provocative, it responds to different needs with equal coherence.
TL-2491
BRAND
FORMITALIA LUXURY GROUP – TONINO LAMBORGHINI CASA
DESIGN
FORMITALIA DESIGN STUDIO
PRODUCTION
MARMI GHIRARDI
MATERIAL
BRECCIA AURORA MARINA BLU, NERO ASSOLUTO, BRECCIA LIGHT
Model TL-2491—a dining table and mirror—is part of the latest Tonino Lamborghini Casa collection (Volume 6), characterised by a new, highly decorative style for the brand.
Formitalia Luxury Group selected this new model for presentation at Brand & Stone within Marmomac, entrusting its realisation to a specialist such as Marmi Ghirardi. Exclusive marbles were chosen, including Breccia Aurora Marina Blu and Nero Assoluto for the mirror; the same Breccia Aurora Marina Blu is used for the 150 cm diameter tabletop.
“We start with a careful selection of blocks arriving directly from our quarries; thicknesses are cut to size, and the shapes of the elements are defined using a bridge saw and lathe. Finally, our craftsmen finish and assemble the parts to create the final product.”
DHARMA
BRAND
BAXTER
DESIGN
STUDIOPEPE
PRODUCTION
BAGNARA
MATERIAL
Verde Lapponia quartzite
Dharma is an outdoor collection presented here as a preview in a special quartzite version, produced as unique pieces. The project is inspired by the distinctive collaboration between Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret and Indian local craftsmen in the creation of the iconic city of Chandigarh in the 1950s. From a formal perspective, the collection investigates the relationship between East and West, and the meeting point between craft practice and industrial design.
The pure geometries, vaults and solid concrete volumes of Chandigarh’s architecture are reinterpreted to define the poetic language of the pieces, enhancing the quality of the raw material—stone.
SEVEN BLOOMS
BRAND
IL FANALE GROUP
DESIGN
GIORGIO CANALE, MATTEO ZORZENONI
PRODUCTION
STONETHICA BY PETRIS
MATERIAL
CARRARA MIX AND PIETRA GREY
In its original version, the Bloom lamp designed by Matteo Zorzenoni evokes the preciousness of antique perfume bottles and the shapes of oriental essence diffusers. For Brand & Stone 3.0, Giorgio Canale reinterprets these forms, creating a floor composition titled Seven Blooms. Pastel-coloured glass elements, irregular heights and contrasting finishes enhance the materiality of Stonethica’s recycled stones, forming a dynamic ensemble with a strong character.
The selected materials are Carrara Mix—a blend of multiple Carrara stones—and Pietra Grey, characterised by warm grey-brown tones with delicate white veining.
SCULPTURA
BRAND
MK
DESIGN
GIORGIO RAVA
PRODUCTION
MARINI MARMI
MATERIAL
NUVOLATO DI GRÉ
Since the dawn of time, humankind has carved into the earth’s crust in search of life. In stone, we imagine archetypal forms and spaces—at once to satisfy earthly needs and to seek a connection with spirit and eternity. Sculpture thus becomes the first creative act of humankind, the origin of a design mindset that has reached us across millennia.
With the Sculptura kitchen, I wanted to express the inseparable bond between design and the sculptural gesture, rediscovering within function a profound artistic value. Function becomes sculpture: abstract, monolithic matter, held in an archaic balance between past and present, mass and void, solidity and lightness.
Far from the contemporary practice in which stone is used merely as a cladding “skin”, Sculptura rediscovers the primordial energy of the mineral element—its wholeness, its heavy mass, the depth of its inner core.
INDOOR STREET LAMP
BRAND
PENTA
DESIGN
GIORGIO CANALE
PRODUCTION
MAP SLATE
MATERIAL
Ligurian slate
The block used for the exhibited work comes from an underground Ligurian gallery quarry, split and reduced into 5 cm “sheets” through skilled craftsmanship using only a chisel. The base, machined with state-of-the-art CNC equipment, is assembled and fully hand-finished.
TEDDY BOY
BRAND
QEEBOO MILANO
DESIGN
STEFANO GIOVANNONI
PRODUCTION
TESTI GROUP
MATERIAL
Moleanos limestone
Teddy Boy, one of the iconic products designed by Stefano Giovannoni for Qeeboo—an object of affection par excellence—becomes a monumental marble piece one metre tall. Teddy Boy winks at the classic toy with an irreverent attitude, mixing the traits of a teddy bear with “almost human” features.
