GRAND PRIX

Always attentive to circumstances of evolution and innovation that effect the international architecture scene, Casalgrande Padana has created this international architecture competition in order to select and award the most important works that in various fields of building design, have best known how to exploit the technical features and expressive possibilities of the Casalgrande Padana porcelain stoneware elements.

Evolved ceramic materials, characterised by high level performances in physical-chemical terms and with considerable aesthetic qualities, the result of continuous research, are products that can be used for flooring and wall covering works for both interiors and exteriors, with wide-ranging possibilities in terms of application as well as on a creative level, thanks to a great variety of colours, surfaces, sizes and decorations in component parts that allow for innovative and personalised solutions. Grand Prix selects works originating from all over the world, making comparisons between very different experiences, and in this sense, represents an important opportunity for assessing the state of the design process in various architectural spheres: shopping and office centres, public and service sector buildings, industrial buildings, special applications, facade coverings and external floorings, and residential buildings.

The original spirit of the initiative, therefore, was not just limited to a promotional aspect for the material. If on the one hand the intention is to award those projects best able to interpret the forms and requirements of contemporary architecture through the use of evolved ceramic materials, on the other hand, the aim is also to develop the ties between the producer and the user, making them closer and more profitable, so as to set a virtuous cycle in motion able to generate products and projects directed towards innovation.

Production culture and design culture are, in fact, the fundamental reference points for the development strategies of Casalgrande Padana, which established a close relationship of co-operation with the design field right from the start. Having now reached the ninth edition, the Grand Prix international competition intends to consolidate and strengthen this important relationship, representing an opportunity for exchange and constant assessment on the themes of architecture and technological innovation.