Ideal Standard International has this morning announced a major new collaboration which will drive our design philosophy for years to come.
At a press conference at the Milan Triennale museum, Chief Executive Torsten Türling unveiled a partnership with internationally renowned Italian architecture and design studio Palomba Serafini Associati.
He also announced the creation of a design centre in Milan, where Ludovica Serafini and Roberto Palomba and their team will work closely with our own experts to take forward our approach to bathroom design.
The new collaboration fits perfectly with Ideal Standard’s long and successful history of innovation and design, a heritage of combining cutting-edge technologies with avant-garde aesthetics to accompany society’s evolution and redefine the role of the bathroom within it.
In the 1950s and 1970s, for example, working with master designers like Gio Ponti and Achille Castiglioni, Ideal Standard was instrumental in developing the bathroom from a purely functional room to a real living space that holds a prominent role in the house.
Today, as society continues to evolve at incredible speeds, Ideal Standard wants to build on this heritage and challenge itself and its designers once again to imagine what’s next; to take technological innovations and design to the next level and build for the future.
“The earlier design masters really elevated Ideal Standard into the culture of design, leaving behind a rich heritage of drawings and design archives,” said Mr Türling.
“Having been ‘raised’ by these design masters and representing Italian design in all its aspects around the world, we could think of no-one better than Ludovica and Roberto Palomba to explore this heritage and translate it into the 21st Century.”
Commenting on the new collaboration, Roberto Palomba said: “When done right, a well-designed project completely transcends its function and becomes timeless.
“Some of Ideal Standard’s designs, created by Italian icons such as Ponti and Castiglioni are perfect testimonies to this principle.
“I am honoured to follow in the footsteps of these Italian Masters and support Ideal Standard’s continued journey to design and develop innovations that will once again redefine not only bathroom design, but design in general.”
UK Marketing Director Katie Cope said: "Our collaboration with this internationally renowned design partnership is exciting news for the business.
"This builds on our strong design legacy, marking significant investment in our NPI (new product introduction) roadmap, which enables us to deliver a proposition that meets the evolving needs of our customers."
The first results of the new collaboration between Ideal Standard and Palomba Serafini Associati will be previewed next year during ISH 2019, the world’s leading bathroom trade show, taking place in Frankfurt, Germany from 11 to 15 March.