International Awards

Design contests are an exercise in creativity, the staging of a major intellectual effort that aims to make the experience of living in contemporary space unique, without placing limits on creativity and talent.  

The challenge moves along the thread of the relationship between form, function and innovation, where Laminam’s large, extremely versatile and highly technical surfaces, performing both as external façade cladding and surface used as a furnishing accessory, fear no rivals.  

Sub Zero and Wolf Kitchen Design Contest – Western Canada/ And the Oscar goes to… 

“Living Lounge”: minimalist kitchen in Laminam Pietra Grey 

Living Lounge is a spacious luxury home along the Assiniboine River in Winnipeg (Western Canada), nestled in wooded greenery with all the perks of a boutique hotel. A lunge to functional minimalism that the Secter Architecture+Design studio always favours in its projects. The layout of the residence is developed on the ground floor with a large open-plan living area surrounded by windows, together with a kitchen and island area, strategically positioned to capture natural light in the evening hours. In perfect in-outdoor continuity, the rooms open onto an outdoor patio that also includes a sauna and a fully equipped kitchen overlooking the river. The lines are clear and clean and, without giving in to the praise of design innovation, the designers do not renounce a certain sophistication in their choice of furnishing materials; this is evident in the open-plan living room+kitchen: we are talking about “Living Lounge”, rightly awarded the Sub Zero, Wolf and Cove Kitchen Design Contest – Western Canada.

The Sub-Zero, Wolf and Cove Kitchen Design Contest is organised every two years and has celebrated the international design community for the past 25 years by rewarding the design of exceptional, innovative kitchens that are exemplary in their choice of materials and organisation of space. The KDC is free of charge and open to professionals from all over the world who wish to submit one or more projects (carried out in the previous two years) that involve the use of refrigeration and cooking products from Sub-Zero and Wolf, the companies sponsoring the contest. The design studio can nominate its kitchen project, choosing the relevant style category from the three available:  contemporary (with rigid architectural forms, clean lines and neutral palettes); traditional (from neoclassical geometries, through the colonial-inspired colour palette of wood, to the floral patterns and pastel shades of French country); and transitional (merging aesthetic and colour elements of the previous ones).  

The kitchen selected for the Sub Zero and Wolf Kitchen Design Contest – Western Canada is made of Laminam Pietra Grey Naturale, chosen in the large 1620 x 3240 size with Laminam 12 thickness for top, backsplash, counter, cabinet shelves. The homogeneous background of the slab in the I Naturali series is inspired by the grey calcite marble variety of the same name and recalls the shades of coal and graphite. The delicate slate-coloured veining of Pietra Grey contributes to the search for aesthetic continuity, and the versatility of the slab allows for a meticulous definition of the spaces: the kitchen includes a bar area created with Laminam shelves set in a specially created concealed space behind ultra-modern aluminium doors. The discovery of space and custom design continue in the practical spice cabinet, concealed by sliding doors in Laminam – where Pietra Grey is also used for the worktop and cooking area.  A linear and practical layout prevails in the kitchen, according to the hallmark of the technical performance of Laminam surfaces in food processing, while the lounge room takes us back to the soft and cosy atmospheres of home intimacy, thanks to the half-light of the trees that permeates the room.  

 Architects Lloyd and Dovide Secter, father and son at the head of Secter Architecture+Design studio, worked four-handedly on the project, translating a living concept that is as simple as it is successful into the rooms. Simple, because it follows a minimalist theme of no boundary walls, large windows, a few select pieces of furniture and a colour palette that ranges from taupe, to grey, to the brown of natural wood, with hints of pearl white. Successful, because it enhances aesthetics and design “out of the box” that invites the discovery of spaces. 

Chosen from many contestants, the panel of jurors – consisting of architects, kitchen designers, interior designers – chose “Living Lounge” as a finalist for the final contest and were awarded the prize for Western Canada. 

Rossinicinque Contemporary Living with External Façade Collection to redesign urban space  

Rossinicinque is the new residential setting against the backdrop of a lush garden returned to the City. Shapes, colours and lights design a sophisticated building, an expression of an elegant and contemporary lifestyle. The project by To.ma.si Edilizia and Architects Mei and Pilia Associati is shortlisted in 2020 in the prestigious THE PLAN AWARD, the annual international award sponsored by one of today’s most acclaimed Italian architecture and design magazines. The award honours excellence in architecture, interior design and urban planning, with 20 thematic categories and more than 1,000 nominated projects each year. The contest is an opportunity for professionals to get involved with their innovative proposals, becoming part of an international community and contributing to the debate on the most topical issues in design. The quality of the contest is underlined by an international jury composed of leading figures from the fields of planning, design, real estate and education.  

 In addition to the awards at Rossinicinque Contemporary Living, also Silver Winner of the Grands Prix du Design 2021 for the Residential Building category. Each year, the Grand Prix celebrates the creative talent of international professionals, spanning architecture, building and real estate, interior design, landscaping, photography and product design. The contest is a gateway to extensive media coverage, reaching new markets and connecting with new customers.  

The backdrop for the selected project is the city of Cagliari, which develops close to the hills and close to the coast, according to a settlement pattern consisting mainly of residential buildings facing roads.

“In this landscape context the Urban Revolution project is developed with a reconstruction intervention that “challenges” the status quo of the area by interrupting the visual and constructive monotony of the terraced buildings” – To.ma.si srl. 

The strong, essential lines of Rossinicinque impose themselves on the horizontal, mitigating the perception of the building’s impressiveness through perspective plays. Together with the windows and terraces, two architectural elements stand out in the design: the wall partitions form a geometric pattern that creates a play of light and shadow, and the dark grey brise-soleil, a suitable finish to protect the interior spaces from the strong summer sun and a leitmotif for the entire complex.  

It wraps around all the terraces of the building, connecting the back with the front, thus giving a homogeneous reading to the entire building and creating a play of colour contrasts with the large Laminam surfaces applied as an external façade cladding. Chosen in the Neve shade of the Collection series in Laminam 3+ thickness and 500 x 1500 mm size, the neutral shade with a hint of silver recalls a feeling of freshness, fills spaces and volumes, restoring style, elegance, but also softness.