Mathera / Nuova Mineralia

A project designed by Diego Grandi for Mathera by SAIB.
Cortile d’Onore – Università degli Studi di Milano

The study of matter is at the heart of sustainable design. This is the principle of the installation that pays homage to the geometries of the stone world through a recycled and recyclable material that draws its innovative value from stone.

A metaphysical landscape of oversized minerals closed in large showcases that form a sort of museum itinerary: this is Diego Grandi’s concept for the installation Nuova Mineralia set up in the Cortile d’Onore. The project considers the strategic importance of the choice of materials from the perspective of responsible and sustainable design, showcasing the potential for creative expression of a new generation material that is totally recycled and recyclable: Mathera by SAIB, designed by Grandi himself for the company that has made regeneration its manifesto.

The stone aggregates that make up its surface – stone powders and recomposed quartz with effects that evoke, but do not imitate the models of Nature – are reinterpreted in an installation consisting of polygonal and faceted monoliths whose geometries recall those of minerals and crystals.

With different colors and textures, these elements draw an alienating but, at the same time, familiar scenario, giving life to a display that, even in its name, hints at discoveries and new worlds, territories of experimentation in which matter becomes an expression of deep values.