“Warm, moody colors dominated the aisles of Cersaie 2026 and the windows of almost every storefront in Bologna,” notes Danielle McWilliams, principal at Novità, the communications agency for Ceramics of Italy. “Just like in fashion, Italian tile manufacturers debuted collections in deep burgundy, luxurious browns, earthy terracottas and vibrant reds and yellows.”
Era by Faetano mimics the look of terracotta and comes in six natural and neutral colors. Photography courtesy of Del Conca.
Besides color, large-format tiles, texture and dimension, intricate digital printing, and natural material effects were top trends at the 43rd edition of Cersaie, held for five days at the end of September in Bologna, Italy. The annual trade show brings together manufacturers, architects, and designers to explore the latest innovations in ceramic tile, architectural surfaces, and bathroom furnishings. This year’s show drew more than 90,000 visitors to see ceramic and porcelain surfacing materials from 600 exhibitors across 24 countries.
There was an energy to this year’s fair, and not just from the bustling crowds. That palpable buzz was reflected in the temporary showrooms displaying bold, exciting products.
Photography courtesy of Antiche Fornaci D’Agostino
1. Color Makes a Comeback
While stark white and neutral tiles will always be in fashion, ceramic makers did not shy away from richer, more saturated hues this year. “We are certainly seeing a renewed confidence in color,” says Benedetta Borghi, of external affairs at Atlas Concorde. “There is a much greater willingness to use stronger colors as part of the architectural palette.”
Photography courtesy of Atlas Concorde
Combining bright hues with neutral and warm white tiles offers a refreshed aesthetic. Atlas Concorde’s Boost Hux pairs warm natural tones with accents of green, red, blue, and ember, while Vivia features vivid glazed colors inspired by Italian ceramics. “For us, color is increasingly becoming a design tool rather than simply a decorative accent,” Borghi says.
Cristina Faedi, tile trend expert, consultant to Confindustria Ceramica, and founder and art director of Infinite Possibilità, agrees: “There are Italian companies that have even doubled the colors in their range, and others have made three densities of the same color.”
Photography courtesy of Ceramica Fioranese
2. Green Takes Root
Could the popularity of rich-colored tiles be the pendulum swinging back after muted tones and neutrals have been in favor? Maybe. But Faedi also sees the chaotic state of the world influencing tile palettes, citing the seven chakras, which correspond to the colors of the rainbow. Green, for example, represents empathy and emotional healing.
The Eterea collection by Gardenia&Ariana includes onyx-inspired tiles for floors and walls, plus a complementary 3D fluted wall tile called Righe. Photography courtesy of Gardenia&Ariana.
So it makes sense that green is having a moment. “It’s a color that clearly gives a lot of calm and is inspired by nature,” Faedi says. “It’s a narrative of landscapes, of places, of wild herbs, but also of thermal waters and even of oceans.” Along with shades ranging from deep forest to pale sage, earthy palettes of terracotta and other natural tones also stood out.
Plinth by Terratinta Group’s Sartoria, shown here in Moss, Stone Green, and Off Stone. Photography courtesy of Terratinta Group.
Glossy finishes amplify the colors and make them pop. Plinth from Sartoria, part of the Terratinta Group, comes in two shades of green, Moss and Stone Green, and features a 3D surface that adds texture and dimension to walls.
3. Playing with Perception
“Ceramic is no longer simply reproducing a material: the surface itself is becoming an architectural element,” Borghi says. “That’s an interesting evolution.”
Photography courtesy of Marca Corona
Marca Corona’s Multiforme Mira wall tiles complement its concrete-effect porcelain floor tiles. The Tassello decorative variant features small, three-dimensional tesserae arranged to create the appearance of a continuous mosaic, with glossy and luster-glazed details set against a matte background.
Photography courtesy of Cerasarda
As part of The Nesting Room collection, Moooi Ceramic Surfaces, in collaboration with ABK, designed Hypnotic Owl, a floor and wall tile with a tactile 3D-relief surface created using ABK’s 3DTECH technology. This proprietary process digitally applies glazes and textures to porcelain stoneware.
Photography courtesy of Moooi Ceramic Surfaces
Gruppo Bardelli brand Appiani introduced Lamiere, part of its Pastelli Strutture collection. Inspired by sheet metal, the through-body ceramic tiles use the chiaroscuro effect to create the illusion of a 3D surface. I found the interplay of light and reflectivity particularly impressive, even mind-bending: the tiles look dimensional but feel flat to the touch.
Photography courtesy of Appiani
4. Nature, Reimagined
When real stone or marble isn’t durable enough for a project, or is simply too expensive, ceramic offers the aesthetics of natural materials and the performance of porcelain. While this has been a trend for years, advances in technology have made the effects increasingly realistic.
Magma by Flaviker features the look of slate and lava stone in its color-body porcelain stoneware; it comes in indoor and outdoor versions up to 48 inches. Photography courtesy of Flaviker.
“We are talking about controlled chaos,” Faedi says of tiles that mimic natural stone. “Technology can create this apparently chaotic mix of colors, hues, and shapes, but with a great visual impact, thanks precisely to modern techniques.”
Photography courtesy of Verde
Gruppo Romani brand Verde introduced Essenziale, a glazed porcelain stoneware that mimics the materiality of limestone. Its Contour Tech 3D printing process colors the ceramic body at different depths to reflect the irregularities of sedimentary stone.
It’s hard to believe the Marble Boutique collection from Del Conca isn’t actual marble or onyx. The line includes three finishes—Shine, Natural, and Structured—and six new material options with enhanced colors and veining. Its large-format slabs, measuring 48 by 110 inches, are also on trend.
Photography courtesy of Del Conca
5. Sizing Up
Large-format tile stood out at the show, even though it has been trending larger for years. “We see large slabs as a way to create greater continuity across different elements of a space, from floors and walls to kitchen countertops, islands, and furniture,” Borghi says.
Photography courtesy of Cotto D’Este
European manufacturers, particularly in Italy and Spain, pioneered oversized formats in 2001 by using advanced pressing techniques that moved beyond the traditional 12-by-12-inch tile.
In the U.S., the American National Standards Institute officially defined large-format tile in January 2025 as tile with a facial dimension of 23 inches or larger. Many exhibitors at Cersaie showcased extra-large formats, including several collections featured here. Solaris by Cotto D’Este is one of them; it comes in formats up to 24 by 128 inches.
6. From Paint to Pixels
Other products that resonated with me at Cersaie were colorful, intricate decorative tiles made using both high-tech processes and traditional hand-painting. I appreciated the juxtaposition of new technologies and traditional techniques.
Photography courtesy of Ceramica Bardelli
Ceramica Bardelli’s Tulipani, designed by Ronald van der Hilst, features floral decoration in three patterns created using different technologies, from cold digital printing to laser engraving. The brand also introduced the eye-catching Searcus, designed by Riccardo Capuzzo, with two patterns inspired by the sea and the circus, made using cold digital printing.
Photography courtesy of Ceramica Bardelli
In direct contrast, Ceramica Francesco De Maio’s Three Elements, One Matter collection was designed and hand-painted by architect Kengo Kuma. “I sought to let nature emerge through the hand, where each tile carries a continuous human gesture, sometimes as light as rain, sometimes as soft as mist, sometimes as grounded as earth,” Kuma says. “Material, movement, and landscape quietly become one.”
Photography courtesy of Ceramica Francesco De Maio
