Published by Architect Magazine on March 18, 2025. Excerpts below; to read the full article, click here.

Demonstrating Valencia’s resilience and determination a mere four months after the DANA floods ravaged the city, Spanish tile fair Cevisama returned to Feria Valencia, drawing more than 70,000 attendees from all over the world. And, as expected, it didn’t disappoint: Throughout the fair, we encountered visual and textural innovations made possible by the Spanish manufacturers’ exploration of the latest ceramic glazing and printing technologies—two areas in which the country leads the way.

“The degree of the color ranges tile producers can get using printers have greatly increased over the years, but the real cutting edge of the technology now is being able to print volume on a surface in an additive way or create effects that actually reduce volume from the surface in a subtractive way in tandem with the graphic file that’s being printed,” says Ryan Fasan, Tile of Spain consultant.

At the space of exhibitor Museum, for instance, a wall displayed the manufacturer’s new Brazilian-granite–inspired Artic line but in an experimental “shaped” finish using a mélange of techniques and technologies, from digitally applying glaze and adding reliefs to traditional inkjet printing and saturation. The realistic result was a literal showstopper, making everyone walking by pause to touch and closely inspect the surface. “This is why tile has really moved into a league of its own in terms of biomimicry, using nature as inspiration and recreating stone in a matter of hours instead of millions of years,” says Fasan.

But Cevisama 2025 wasn’t only a showcase for innovation, it was also one for design ideas. One of the top trends we spotted was a return to terracotta, with some tiles going full-on traditional and some featuring contemporary spins such as color accents added for visual punch. Stone, concrete, and wood looks were still heavily represented, though revisited in different ways: Think warmer tones for both stone and concrete, more wood-parquet patterns and slat groupings pre-laid out on large-format tiles, and more blending of these simulated materials.

Modern extruded tiles, yet another area in which the Spanish excel, brought retro breeze blocks back into the limelight with new shapes. And standard tile types, such as the subway and skinny subway, were introduced in some new upbeat and optimistic hues. The following is just a sampling of all these styles and innovations that caught our attention at the fair.

Harmony: In & Out

A fusion of brutalist architecture and 60s fashion, this whimsical series consists of a double-tile design: square frames and square units that nest perfectly at their centers. Though a simple geometric concept, In & Out allows a multitude of unique layout possibilities since the frames and their square counterparts can be specified and used separately or combined. The frames measure 8.8-inches square and come in three colors while the centers measure 4.8-inches square and come in three different but complementing colors for mixing and matching.

Realonda: Bari

Bari brings back the rustic elegance of terracotta in a 13-inch-square format and three different shades, Sand, Terra, and Cotto. But the collection’s decorative Lattice tile recontextualizes the material with a modern geometric pattern that adds depth. Optional accent colors are also available in this pattern.

Cevica: Funky

This collection of 2-by-11.8-inch tiles injects retro-mod personality and energy into any space thanks to its palette of 12 vibrant colors, ranging from bubble-gum pink to cobalt blue. It’s skinny format makes it possible to wrapped curved walls and columns.

Architect Magazine: Cevisama 2025 Showcases the Future of Spanish Tile