Showing posts with label Coverings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Coverings. Show all posts

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Dynamics

Well, I’ve been back from Coverings for a few days now, and I’ve had a chance to catch up on my sleep and to think a bit about all the beautiful tiles I saw while I was there. The show is always a sensory overload situation for me, and it usually takes a few days to digest the massive quantities of information I gather. This year, Coverings was held in Las Vegas, so it was even more overstimulating than usual--but in a good way. ;)

So, what was new at Coverings? ...OK, where do I start? (This is going to take multiple posts.)

Last night’s larger-than-usual moon was one inspiration for tonight’s post.
InterStyle Glass Tile
The image above is two very large slabs of glass which could be used as cabinet doors or counter tops. 

The moon’s a sword of keen, barbaric gold,
Plunged to the hilt into a pitch black cloud.

From Mid-March by Lizette Woodworth Reese 

I was thinking about the moon’s influence on the tides and it occurred to me that I saw a lot of wave patterns in tile this year. 


Stone mosaics from the Walker Zanger Showroom
There were relief tiles--even more than previously--yet the hard geometric shapes of past years seem to have given way to softer forms, such as circles and curves. In case you were wondering how to make cement look sexy, I couldn't take my hands of this new line:

Dimensional cement tile
These small ceramic dots were hard to stop touching, too.
Walker Zanger showroom


It’s a beautiful world, you said,
with these trees, marshes, deserts,
grasses, rivers and seas

and so on. And the moon is really something
in its circuits
of relative radiance. 
from Light-Years by Hester Knibbe


Sicis glass mosaic "Nude"

Eddies and swirls were a theme
There’s something so permanent about a tile wall, and yet, the flowing lines of swirls, circles and waves counterbalance this solidity and permanence by creating movement and giving the surface life. 

 
... life, light, and energy. Which I guess was something of a theme for a journey to Vegas...
:)


Thursday, March 10, 2011

Friends

Or, Why I'm Excited to Attend Coverings--Part 2

One of the best parts of going to the same tile trade show for ten years is that I've made some great friends in the industry. In addition to all the tile manufacturers and artisans, many designers, architects, editors, PR folks, and bloggers attend the show.

The Tile of Italy Pavilion
I'm very excited that I'll get to see Jorge Aguayo, Janet Arden, Patti Fasan, Laurie Lyza, Karen Gustafson, Bill Buyok, Wilhem Stephens, Kristin Powers, Karim, and Nawal Motawi, all of whom I've known for a long time. Also, my relatively new friends, Paul Anater, JoAnn Locktov, Christine Whittemore, Lee Harris Nicholson and I are having a tweetup on Monday. (OK, the Oscars-speech part of the post is over. You can wake up now.)

Another reason I love going to Coverings is to discover new tile lines, new technologies, and new industry contacts. It's a lot of work and a lot of fun, too.

Today, I received the itinerary for the press tour, and it looks like it will be another show loaded with information and gorgeous tile. The various tile pavilions have invited us for press conferences, booth tours and meals. It's an international group, so many languages are spoken at Coverings. Plus, the Italian Pavilion always has wonderful espresso, Tiles of Spain makes tapas and paella, and there's invariably wine representing tile regions from all over the world. What's not to like?

Glass Windows by Trikeenan Tileworks

If you're attending Coverings and you'd like to meet me, post a comment (they're moderated,) or you can DM me on Twitter. I hope to see you there!

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Why I'm excited to go to Coverings, part 1

Here is a lovely mosaic design by the divine Sara Baldwin:

Weeping willow design
If you're a long-time reader of my blog, by now you already know that Sara is the founder of New Ravenna Mosaics and Stone, and that I think Sara is extremely talented. What you may not know is that last year at the Art Tile Party, between her rock band's sets, she tried to convince me to start a band of my own. I'm still laughing about that idea, although the concept of trying something completely radical has stuck with me. (I'll get back to you on how that will manifest itself, after I figure it out.)

Sara is brave and I admire that about her. In addition to starting her own company and band, she's kissed a camel and can even get away with wearing a mosaic mini-dress. I'm pretty sure that qualifies her as a tile rock star.

Next month, at Coverings, I'm hoping to see Sara and her latest mosaic creations!

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Coverings 2010

Coverings will be opening shortly and I'll be there, scouting all the newest and coolest tiles. Check back in a couple of days for updates on all the trends!

Monday, April 27, 2009

Tiles that should come in green, but probably won't

Several companies announced new product lines slated for late 2009 production. These tiles will use clean air technology to fight pollution. Ceracasa Tile's 'BionicTile' cleans the air by converting nitrous oxide to inert nitrates. StonePeak's new photo catalytic titanium dioxide tile uses nanotechnology to clean the air.

They both sound like a fabulous idea. If they work, let's clad all our buildings in them!

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Coverings

Well, I survived a busy week at Coverings in Chicago. It was less hectic than usual, but my impression was that the people who were there were pretty serious. There weren't as many folks there who were just looking. Manufacturers and vendors seemed happily surprised that there were a considerable amount of orders. Maybe because fewer people were there, there was less competition?

I'll be posting images later this week, so stop back for a look!