Loro Piana Presents New 'Blooming Clay' Collection at Il Fioraio Flower Kiosk

Loro Piana returns to Il Fioraio, the vibrant flower kiosk in the seaside town of Forte dei Marmi, presenting new works from its ongoing 'Blooming Clay' project, a celebration of flowers, craftsmanship, and ceramics.

French ceramic artist Karim Rashad, returning for the second year, presents a new series of handcrafted vases. This season’s collaboration transforms Loro Piana’s signature textures, fluidity, and elegance into exquisite forms, achieving a harmonious balance between refinement and artistic functionality. Though seemingly simple, each piece is shaped by intuition and a keen sense of balance. Tactile surfaces and substantial weight enhance their presence, designed not only to be seen but also to be felt.

Mathilde Martin, a French ceramicist collaborating with Loro Piana for the first time this season, presents four sculptural vases of varying sizes, embodying balance and permanence through their forms.

Crafted by hand in Martin’s Paris studio using the coil technique, these vases are made from chamotte clay and fired at high temperatures. Each piece reflects a direct dialogue between artist and material, requiring advanced craftsmanship to achieve precise shapes.

The collaboration with Martin focuses on her core artistic philosophy: engaging directly with raw materials, refining pure forms, and reducing color to its most essential expression. This collection features only warm white and black matte finishes, emphasizing form and texture, with subtle variations in size, surface, and finish adding unique value to each piece.

The rounded space of Il Fioraio immerses visitors in the Loro Piana universe. Ivory-colored clay-finished walls, oak and chestnut fixtures, softly curved alcoves, and striped deck chairs enhance the Mediterranean atmosphere and summer mood. Inside, vibrant flowers complement the one-of-a-kind artistic vases, creating a festive ambiance for a special day at the seaside resort.

These special pieces are designed for lasting appreciation—meant to be enjoyed visually, used in daily life, and ultimately passed down to future generations.

About Karim Rashad

Rashad has spent over two decades at the intersection of beauty and craftsmanship, initially as a makeup artist and later as a ceramicist. He has collaborated with prestigious fashion brands, masterfully balancing light, texture, and precision. Over time, his deep interest in materials led him to ceramics as a new medium of expression—a natural evolution. Today, Rashad fluidly moves between fashion and ceramics, continuing his pursuit of harmony, craftsmanship, and timeless beauty.

Based between Paris and his studio in southern France, Rashad has studied ceramics across France, Denmark, and Japan, exploring new techniques and possibilities. In 2021, he co-founded hors-séries, a Paris-based atelier and gallery dedicated to contemporary ceramics and its creators. More than a creative hub, it has become his personal laboratory for exploring form and texture. Though deceptively simple, his works are shaped by intuition and balance. Surfaces invite touch, weight conveys presence, and each piece is designed to be experienced, not just observed.

About Mathilde Martin

A Paris-based French designer and ceramicist, Martin founded her studio in 2016, focusing on flower vases as both functional objects and sculptural forms. Her handcrafted works, made using traditional techniques like coiling, demonstrate refined proportions and surface tension through masterful volume control, expressing a distinct artistic identity. Primarily using durable stoneware from Burgundy, her pieces emphasize structure over decoration, characterized by matte black and white finishes.

Over the past decade, Martin has collaborated with architects and designers to create custom pieces for commercial spaces, private residences, and exhibitions, consistently challenging the boundaries between object and sculpture. In 2025, she was selected for a residency at Villa Albertine in New York, and in March 2026, she debuted her first solo exhibition at MATTER and SHAPE in Paris.