Casalgrande will host the first work of architecture by Kengo Kuma: the “Casalgrande Ceramic Cloud” will be a new gate to the ceramics district that the Casalgrande Padana company decided to donate to the community and the territory, to contribute to the enhancement of the territory through modern architecture.

On the occasion of the Settimana milanese del Design 2010, during which the Japanese architect presented an impressive installation anticipating the new work of architecture, Kengo Kuma himself gave a video-interview on the meaning of the very “Casalgrande Ceramic Cloud”, its conception and tangible character. The image and voice of the Japanese architect allow the viewers to approach the ceramic masterpiece which will be inaugurated in Casalgrande, Reggio Emilia.

A more thorough understanding of the architectural project, from its creative development  to its implementation, is achieved through additional video-interviews by Alfonso Acocella and Luigi Alini, who teach at the Faculty of Architecture in Ferrara and Siracusa. They both played an important directive and interfacing role between the client, i.e.  Casalgrande Padana, the leading manufacturer of porcelain stoneware, the design team co-ordinated by Kengo Kuma and the academia through the Material Design research lab. The “CCC” work of architecture may be considered the finishing touch of a collaboration between Kengo Kuma and the Faculty of Architecture in Ferrara which started in 2003, the year when its tenth anniversary was celebrated by means of the XFAF project, which included Kengo Kuma as one of the numerous international contributors.

Casalgrande Ceramic Cloud, scorcio tra le lastre (ph. Alfonso Acocella)

Today an opportunity is provided by a peculiar challenge consisting in a work of architecture which was made possible through the integration of the creative talent of the Japanese master and a far-sighted client who, in this case, was also the manufacturer capable of promoting the quality of products made in Italy and making the work itself viable thanks to its avant-garde products.

For the first time, the “Ceramic Cloud” by Kengo Kuma exploits ceramic material for structural purposes. Large standard product manufactured by Casalgrande Padana are freed from their traditional role as cover and turned into a 3-D space texture which is both impressive and light, like a long thin line in the landscape, where the experience of the company has led to an innovative technological solution to implement an idea and to a new season of architectural applications for ceramic products.

di Veronica Dal Buono

www.casalgrandepadana.com