The Nexion Ombre Collection has been awarded the iF DESIGN AWARD 2026in the Product Design category, one of the most respected international recognitions for design excellence.
This award acknowledges a precise design vision: a surface conceived as an architectural element capable of shaping light, perception, and emotional experience.
Ombre represents a new way of thinking about surfaces, where depth becomes structure and imperfection becomes meaning. Designed to actively participate in the composition of contemporary spaces, it offers architects and designers a tool to work with light, rhythm, and materiality, while ensuring durability, scalability, and creative freedom for real-world projects.
Recognizing innovation and impact: the iF DESIGN AWARD
Run by the independent iF Design Foundation in Germany, the iF DESIGN AWARD has been a global benchmark for design excellence for over 70 years. Each year, an international jury of design and sustainability experts evaluates thousands of projects according to key criteria: form, function, differentiation, and idea.
In 2026, the Nexion Ombre Collection received the award in the Product Design discipline within the Tiles category, standing out for its ability to reinterpret surface design through light, depth, and material expression. Selected from more than 10,000 entries across 68 countries, Ombre was recognized for elevating the surface into an architectural language, where texture becomes structure and material becomes narrative.
This recognition positions Nexion among the leading innovators in contemporary surface design, confirming Ombre as a project where conceptual research and technical performance converge. Its sculptural reliefs, tactile quality, and distinctive design identity fully embody the criteria of the award, demonstrating how a surface can unite aesthetic vision, functional value, and design originality in a single architectural solution.
Ombre, a spatial design element
Presented at Milano Design Week 2025, Ombre immediately drew the attention of architects and designers for its sculptural surfaces and distinctive design approach.
The collection redefines the role of the surface in contemporary architecture. Ombre interacts with light, depth, and texture to shape spatial perception. Patterns emerge and fade with changing illumination, while shadows and highlights continuously redefine volumes, creating environments that feel dynamic, layered, and alive.
Its five sculptural structures – Punto, Croce, Forme, Trame, and Picché – together with a carefully balanced palette of earthy tones, generate a tactile and visual language that modulates light and introduces rhythm into space. Through relief and repetition, architects can work with contrast, movement, and continuity, composing interiors and façades where material becomes an active architectural element.
As Ar. Massimo Falato explains, Ombre is rooted in a philosophy of truth and authenticity, a reinterpretation of natural materials where imperfection becomes meaning and depth becomes structure. In this vision, the surface evolves into an architectural element that actively participates in design.
Crafted through a balance of artisanal handwork and advanced sintering technology, Ombre offers durable, versatile, and scalable solutions for both interior and exterior applications. By making light, texture, and depth integral to spatial experience, the collection opens new compositional possibilities, enabling designers to shape perception, enrich atmospheres, and elevate the quality of projects beyond aesthetics alone.
What makes Ombre award-winning
Ombre stood out to the iF DESIGN AWARD jury for its ability to translate conceptual design into tangible architectural value. The collection embodies the core criteria evaluated by the award – form, function, differentiation, and idea – turning surfaces into tools for creativity, perception, and spatial storytelling.
Form
Ombre’s five sculptural structures – Punto, Croce, Forme, Trame, and Picché – create a three-dimensional surface language. Light and shadow interact across each motif, producing subtle variations throughout the day. This dynamic interplay adds depth, rhythm, and an experiential dimension to walls and floors.
Function
Conceived with architects and designers in mind, Ombre combines beauty and performance. Its surfaces are durable, versatile, and scalable, suitable for both interior and exterior applications. Easy to integrate, Ombre enhances projects without compromising real-world usability.
Differentiation
Ombre introduces a signature worn effect, where patterns fade like memories, creating surfaces with unique depth and tactility. It moves beyond imitation, establishing a new material language that balances artisanal craft with advanced sintering technology.
Idea
Ombre represents a shift in the role of surfaces: from decorative elements to active participants in design. By shaping light, texture, color, and shadow, it enables architects to craft emotionally engaging, spatially rich environments, where every surface contributes to the identity of the space.
Design, beauty, and method: the minds behind Ombre
The vision of the Ombre Collection is brought to life by Debora Laterza, Gianluca Mariani, Marco Barbieri and Nexion Design Team, whose expertise and creativity shaped every detail of the surfaces. Their work exemplifies the seamless fusion of Indo-Italian design philosophy that defines Nexion: technical mastery meets aesthetic sophistication, and every surface becomes an active element in architectural storytelling.
Winning the iF DESIGN AWARD 2026 confirms the value of Nexion’s method: a disciplined, innovative approach that balances conceptual depth, material exploration, and functional excellence. It recognizes the brand’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of what surfaces can achieve, inspiring architects and designers to imagine new ways of shaping spaces that are both beautiful and meaningful.
We look forward to celebrating this achievement with the international design community.
