Patricia Urquiola starts every project with a question, not a sketch

Q: Is Patricia Urquiola Italian?

No, and the confusion is telling. Urquiola is Spanish, born in Oviedo. She moved to Milan to complete her studies at the Politecnico under Achille Castiglioni, stayed, built her practice there and has directed Cassina since 2015. The work is deeply embedded in Italian manufacturing culture. The designer is not. It's a distinction worth making: her outsider perspective is part of what gives the work its edge.

Mutina ceramic surfaces designed by Patricia Urquiola in an office reception

Before anything is drawn in her studio, one question gets asked: who is actually going to use this? Patricia Urquiola — born in Oviedo, trained in Milan under Achille Castiglioni — built an entire methodology on that discipline. She calls it rhizomatic: no hierarchy between craft and industry, between heritage and experiment; material, process and user carry the same weight in every decision. It is the kind of rigour that put her work in the MoMA and the V&A, and made her creative director of Cassina in 2015.

At La Mercanti her hand arrives through Mutina, the ceramic surfaces she art-directs and designs for: floors and walls with an authored language, specified for receptions and boardrooms where the room is read before anyone speaks about it.

Azulej

£ 222 /box

Mutina

Bas-Relief

£ 486 /box

Mutina

Celosia

£ 462 /box

Mutina

Chamotte

£ 468 /box

Mutina

Déchirer

£ 592 /box

Mutina

Jali

£ 77 /box

Mutina

Mater

£ 986 /box

Mutina

FAQ

Is Patricia Urquiola Italian?

No, and the confusion is telling. Urquiola is Spanish, born in Oviedo. She moved to Milan to complete her studies at the Politecnico under Achille Castiglioni, stayed, built her practice there and has directed Cassina since 2015. The work is deeply embedded in Italian manufacturing culture. The designer is not. It's a distinction worth making: her outsider perspective is part of what gives the work its edge.