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iris ceramica layers oak, stone and cotto into armonie modular ceramic surface system

IRIS CERAMICA INTRODUCES MODULAR CERAMIC SURFACE SYSTEM

Iris Ceramica, part of the Iris Ceramica Group, introduces ‘Armonie,’ a modular project of porcelain stoneware surfaces that blends three archetypal materials — oak wood, stone, and cotto — into a single, flexible design language. Developed to create continuity across indoor and outdoor environments, the ceramic surfaces promote compositional freedom, allowing to choose from a range of colors, finishes, and formats. From warm wood slats to compact cotto surfaces and graphic stone slabs, each element is suitable for a variety of applications: residential, contract, retail and outdoor.

oak, terracotta, and stone, reinterpreted into porcelain stoneware | all images courtesy of Iris Ceramica

BALANCING ARTISANAL CHARACTER WITH ADVANCED MANUFACTURING 

Iris Ceramica brings over six decades of expertise in creating sustainable, high-performance ceramic materials that respond to both technical and aesthetic demands. As part of the Iris Ceramica Group, the Italian brand continues to explore how advanced surfaces can elevate everyday living. Armonie continues this tradition, translating the enduring qualities of oak wood, terracotta, and natural stone into a modular design solution. Whether applied in residential, contract, or commercial settings, the surfaces reflect a contemporary approach to materiality — balancing artisanal character with advanced manufacturing.

harmonious material blends enable fluid connections between residential, retail, and contract interiors

OAK WOOD, TERRACOTTA, AND NATURAL STONE IN ARMONIE PROJECT

Armonie is built around the interplay of three distinct ceramic surfaces — Legno, Cotto, and Pietra — each referencing a traditional material while offering the technical advantages of porcelain stoneware. 

Armonie Legno reinterprets oak wood through four different tonal variations — Inverno, Primavera, Estate, and Autunno — evoking the shift in seasons. The slat formats (150×25 cm, 120×20 cm) and herringbone-ready stripes (10×60 cm) are available in Natural Plus, Antislip, and a soft-touch Cashmere finish designed for comfort in residential interiors.

slatted oak-look porcelain surfaces in ‘Rovere Estate’ create natural warmth with technical performance

Armonie Pietra offers a graphic, architectural counterpoint. Four stone variations — Pietra Madrid, Fontainebleu, San Just, and Pietra del Chiostro — are available in multiple sizes (from 120×120 cm to 60×30 cm) and two finishes: Natural and Antislip. A thicker 20 mm version in the 120×60 cm format enhances durability for outdoor settings. The result is a versatile palette that moves seamlessly between surface applications while retaining a strong visual identity.

Armonie Pietra offers a graphic stone pattern for architectural surfaces

Armonie Cotto distills the warmth and texture of handmade terracotta into compact 15×15 cm size in Cotto Rosa and Cotto Nero. Designed primarily for flooring but equally effective on walls, the format adds depth and rhythm to surfaces, especially in combination with contrasting textures.

Cotto Nero in 15×15 cm format adds tactile rhythm to floors and walls across indoor spaces

Armonie Pietra surfaces combine graphic depth and subtle tonal variation

warm oak tones of Rovere Primavera paired with compact Cotto Rosa tiles to create layered, tactile compositions

Iris Ceramica continues its modular surface design legacy with a new multi-material ceramic collection

project info:

name: Armonie

brand: Iris Ceramica | @irisceramicaofficial

materials: porcelain stoneware

thickness: 8 mm, 20 mm 

finishes: natural, antislip, cashmere, natural plus

application: residential, contract, retail, outdoor

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out of the box: MVRDV plans taipei tower as vertical puzzle of shifting volumes over taiwan

mvrdv unveils first residential project for taiwan

In Taiwan‘s capital of Taipei, a new addition by MVRDV is quietly reshaping the relationship between architecture and regulation. Dubbed Out of the Box, the 25-story residential tower reads like a catalogue of outdoor spaces over the neighborhood of Tianmu. Each is extruded, adjusted, and fitted within the boundaries of building code, yet rendered with a sense of freedom. Sitting prominently along Zhongshan North Road, the building responds to both the visibility of its site and the dramatic backdrop of Yangmingshan National Park.

Rather than presenting a monolithic form, the structure opens outward. Its marble facade is punctuated by a mix of loggias, balconies, bay windows, and covered terraces. These projecting volumes pull parts of the building toward the skyline of Taipei, forming a play of shadows and transparencies that soften the mass and animate the streetscape below.

MVRDV designs a residential ‘Out of the Box’ tower for Taipei’s Tianmu neighborhood | visualizations © MVRDV

out of the box: a shifting tower over taipei

Commissioned by Win Sing Development Company, MVRDV’s tower will act as an urban marker within the predominantly mid-rise fabric of Taipei, Taiwan. While the internal layout is structured around a modest number of repeatable apartment types, the architects use Taiwan’s complex zoning and outdoor space regulations as an invitation rather than a constraint. Through careful cross-referencing, the team generated a series of volumetric conditions that transform what would otherwise be uniform plans into a diverse, flexible set of homes.

The process was shaped by digital scripting tools, which allowed for the precise placement of boxes based on environmental data like sun exposure. What results is a tower that shifts across its height, with no two apartments quite alike. Despite their individuality, each of the 93 units shares the benefit of access to open air and framed views, reinforcing the idea that variability and efficiency can work in tandem.

The outward thrust of the loggias and terraces serves both a spatial and visual function. As Winy Maas, founding partner at MVRDV, explains, the tower was designed with the notion of observation at its core. The protruding boxes, some extending six meters in depth, act as elevated vantage points from which residents can take in the mountains and city below. This outward gesture also lends the building a distinctive silhouette from the street, where it appears almost kinetic in form.

the marble facade is shaped by a system of projecting boxes that create outdoor spaces

Architecture as Lookout and Landmark

With the surrounding buildings of Taipei remaining relatively low in scale, MVRDV’s tower both rises above its neighbors and interacts with them. From the ground, the layering of the facade gives the impression of movement, a rhythm dictated by the boxes that emerge and recede in response to sun paths and view corridors.

Beyond the tower itself, MVRDV has introduced a smaller companion structure to upgrade the retail presence along Zhongshan Road. Its facade continues the lines of its neighbors but integrates a grid-like logic that relates back to the tower, creating visual consistency without mimicry. Existing shop owners will be accommodated within the new volume, ensuring continuity of street life and community presence.

At the base of the tower, landscaping is used to mediate between private and public domains. A swimming pool and community park create pockets of greenery that soften the transition from the sidewalk to the residences. The green roof terrace above, accessible to residents, completes this layered outdoor strategy.

each box serves a distinct function such as a loggia, balcony, or extended interior room

This project marks MVRDV’s first foray into residential development in Taiwan. Its previous efforts in the country, including the Tainan Spring urban renewal and the forthcoming Sun Rock project for Taipower (see designboom’s coverage here), reflect a growing familiarity with the island’s environmental and regulatory landscape. In each case, the firm has demonstrated a willingness to engage with the specificities of place — whether in the reuse of industrial sites or in maximizing the spatial possibilities of residential architecture.

project info:

name: Out of the Box

architect: MVRDV | @mvrdv

location: Tianmu, Taipei, Taiwan

developer: Win Sing Development Company

visualizations: © MVRDV

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translucent curtains drape over polycarbonate walls at nin hao restaurant in brooklyn

layered transparency defines Plan Plan’s restaurant in brooklyn

In Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, design studio Plan Plan transforms a 167-square-meter corner site into Nin Hao, a Fujianese restaurant infused with cultural memory. Bathed in daylight from its five-meter, south- and east-facing curtain walls, the dining room is defined by its layered transparency and its capacity to evolve. Translucent Austrian curtains diffuse sunlight across warm cement tiles and glowing polycarbonate surfaces, creating a luminous interior. With a rotating curatorial framework and spatial elements designed for touch, play, and community, Nin Hao restaurant becomes a cultural platform that embraces shared belonging.

images courtesy of Plan Plan

nin hao merges Chinese motifs with an adaptable spatial grid

New York-based Plan Plan’s design harnesses the raw spatial potential of the corner site, characterized by its natural light, height, and openness, to generate a soft atmosphere. Daylight filters through the curtains and lands on a tall wall of polycarbonate panels, transforming that surface into a glowing lantern at dusk. Beneath this ambient environment, warm-hued cement tiles echo traditional Chinese gray bricks, appearing as floors, seats, and even leaning surfaces. Meanwhile, linear planters with succulent greens and a delicate ceiling grid suspend floating sculptures and lighting, bringing layers of visual interest at multiple heights. 

Rather than fixing the space to a single visual identity, Nin Hao is built around a flexible framework that encourages transformation. A bold 3.7-meter-long red communal table and a round green table—convertible into a Mahjong table—invite social encounters, storytelling, and play. One wall remains intentionally minimal to accommodate rotating art installations, while a grid system overhead allows sculptural and lighting compositions to shift seasonally. This open-ended design approach enables the restaurant to grow and adapt, drawing in new audiences and interpretations over time.

Two themed bathrooms are lined with custom mosaics depicting historic Chinese and American landscape paintings—Qiu Ying’s Spring Morning in the Han Palace and George Henry Boughton’s Hudson River Valley from Fort Putnam. One bathroom includes a two-way mirror that offers a discreet view into the dining space, adding a note of theatrical surprise and reflecting the restaurant’s playful take on visibility and privacy.

design studio Plan Plan transforms a 167-square-meter corner site into Nin Hao restaurant

a Fujianese restaurant infused with cultural memory

the dining room is defined by its layered transparency

sunlight travels across warm cement tiles and glowing polycarbonate surfaces

bathed in daylight from its five-meter, south- and east-facing curtain walls

Nin Hao becomes a platform that embraces shared belonging

two themed bathrooms are lined with custom mosaics

depicting historic Chinese and American landscape paintings

project info:

name: Nin Hao
architect: Plan Plan
location: Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, New York

area: 167 square meters (1,800 square feet)

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: thomai tsimpou | designboom

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