FMG Fabbrica Marmi e Graniti and Iris Ceramica: Construction as Nature Intended in Milan

On Thursday, March 11, FMG Fabbrica Marmi e Graniti and Iris Ceramica’s Spazio FMG per l’Architettura inaugurated an eventful 2010 with its Construction as Nature Intended exhibit, which will run from March 11 to April 2 at the gallery’s location at 27 Via Bergognone in Milan.

Iris FMG’s gallery, which has been home to contemporary architecture exhibits overseen by curator Luca Molinari since 2007, has reopened its doors to the public with new displays and a fresh new look, designed to showcase Iris and FMG’s new materials for floor and wall coverings, including its ACTIVE Clean Air & Antibacterial Ceramic™ eco-active slabs.

Construction as Nature Intended, designed by Luca Molinari and Simona Galateo, displays the projects of four Italian architectural studios who have distinguished themselves in terms of environmental sustainability: ecoLogicStudio, de Amicis Architetti with porfiristudio, tamassociati and Iosa Ghini Associati.

Their four different projects represent four different, practical ways to intervene in just as many specific settings; four contemporary, innovative, interesting approaches to architecture and its essential role in transforming and administrating an area:

-          ecoLogic Studio’s Light Wall House is a private residence in Turin with an innovative and sophisticated system applied to its walls: spiral cavities in the walls act as a filter for the outdoor environment and makes it possible to adapt lighting and temperature according to different needs.

-          Iosa Ghini Associati’s People Mover is a monorail which shuttles passengers from the Bologna airport to the city’s central railway station. With photovoltaic panels and green areas, it represents a long, eco-friendly strip in perfect harmony with its urban surroundings.

-          Value Partners Headquarters, designed by De Amicis Architetti and porfiristudio is a former industrial building in the city of Milan that has been converted into an office space using only sustainable systems for energy production and consumption.

-          The “Container” project by tamassociati in Sudan aims to recycle and reuse the numerous  shipping containers at the edges of the NGO Emergency- run Salam Centre’s construction site, mainly for building houses for the center’s medical personnel.

SPAZIO FMG PER L’ARCHITETTURA is a gallery that Iris Ceramica, world leader in the production of glazed ceramics and glazed stoneware, and FMG Fabbrica Marmi e Graniti, a division of the Iris Ceramica Group, has dedicated to architecture and interior design. Their hope is that this gallery can be a place where architects, students and architecture enthusiasts can freely meet and discuss ideas.