Ticino marble is reborn: Cristallina Design, authentic luxury for the future

On June 10, 2025, Villa Principe Leopoldo will be the exclusive setting for the official launch event of Crystalline Design. This innovative project aims to enhance the precious Cristallina marble, a material that emerges from the Swiss Alps with an ancient history, dating back over 200 million years and born from the calcification of Triassic corals. A marble that, as described, “speaks of depth, light, silence” and that now finds a new and fascinating voice in unique design creations.

After the success of its international debut at Fuorisalone 2025 in Milan, where Cristallina Design was able to tell the story of Ticino through its excellent material and the stories that derive from it, the brand finally presents itself in Switzerland. Not just a brand, but a real cultural and design project that intertwines art, design and the deep bond with the territory. The goal is clear: to highlight a rare and noble material, still little known outside the national borders, and to propose a new vision of Swiss luxury, a luxury that is rooted, authentic and emotional.

The soul of Cristallina Design has its roots in Cristallina SA, the company that since 2010 has managed the only active marble quarry in Switzerland, located at high altitude in the Maggia Valley. This marble, with its evocative marine origins and distinctive crystalline structure, has already been used in prestigious architectural and design works, including the Bucherer in Zurich and the famous church of Mogno, a masterpiece by architect Mario Botta. Today, Cristallina marble is transformed from raw material into a true formal, symbolic and poetic language. Extraction takes place in tunnels, only on commission, in full respect of the mountain environment. Production takes advantage of both the Biasca laboratory, a space of over 3000 mXNUMX powered by solar energy and equipped with an internal water recycling system, and the collaboration with international artisan centers highly specialized in marble processing, selected for their technical and aesthetic excellence. The result is a sustainable, conscious and original project, conceived for the world of design, artisan craftsmanship and timeless luxury.

A crucial aspect of this project is the collaboration launched in November 2023 with ECAL, École cantonale d'art de Lausanne, as part of the MAS in Luxury & Craftsmanship. ECAL is one of the most renowned schools in the world in high-end design, with consolidated partnerships with international fashion houses such as Hermès, Rolex and Louis Vuitton. Cristallina Design offered young designers the unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the quarry, the laboratories and the heart of the Ticino landscape, inviting them to get to know the material and the territory in depth. From this synergy, the first six collections were born, signed by six young international talents already established in the world of design and architecture. Each of them was able to interpret Cristallina marble not as a simple material, but as an “identity, emotional and narrative root”.

Among the collections, different and fascinating visions stand out:

• Christian by Alix Malamaire (France) celebrates the encounter between wine and marble, enhancing the tasting experience through plays of light and reflections.
• corals by Min Jun Choi (South Korea) explores the geological origins of Cristallina marble, transforming the stone into a fascinating paradox between deep time and visual lightness.
• Blooming by Esther Alcalde (Spain), inspired by Ticino gardens and everyday life, proposes sculptural forms that accompany conviviality and memory.
• Nature by Nuttiya Ratchtrachenchai (Thailand) draws inspiration from the primordial strength of the Maggia Valley, alternating smooth and rough surfaces to evoke the power of the landscape.
• Lavizzara by John Stagaman (USA), a rigorous and symbolic collection, inspired by the geometry of the quarry, the Church of Mogno and the motifs of the Alpine landscape.
• Void Collection by Helena Choi (South Korea) reflects on the lightness of marble through the use of negative space, allowing for multiple uses and interactions.

The launch event on June 10 at Villa Principe Leopoldo will be an exclusive and invitation-only event, designed for architects, interior designers, journalists, collectors and design lovers. For the first time, the collections will be presented to the public in a setting that blends art and nature, offering an immersive experience of storytelling, vision, music and beauty. The official distribution will begin this evening, allowing you to express interest, pre-order, become a partner or choose to take home an iconic object, a symbol of luxury that speaks of authenticity, roots and lasting beauty.

The event is scheduled for Tuesday, June 10, 2025, at 18:00 p.m., at Villa Principe Leopoldo in Lugano. The collections will be exhibited in a setting that combines landscape, material, and design vision. The evening will be opened by Eleonora Grigoletto, architect, writer, and author for ELLE Decor, who will guide the public in a symbolic reading of the project. The event will be presented by Alice Pedrazzini, a well-known face of RSI, with musical accompaniment by the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana and Jasmine Gitti.

Eleonora Grigoletto emphasizes the intrinsic singularity of marble, which stands out for its ability to resist industrial standardization. Thanks to its natural veining and colors, each marble object is unique and unrepeatable. This peculiarity is even more evident in the creations of Cristallina Design, made with marble from the Peccia quarry, characterized by 14 shades and 56 nuances, which make it rare and exclusive. Marble thus becomes a symbol of exclusivity and prestige, giving value and identity to each creation.

Cristallina Design does not offer simple objects, but real creations capable of telling a story, evoking an emotion and embodying an identity. Each piece is unique and bears the imprint of the Swiss Alps, of the Peccia quarry and of the depth of time and matter. In an era dominated by standardization, Cristallina Design chooses the path of authenticity and rootedness, offering collections that transcend fashion and are designed to be lived, loved, used, but also contemplated and passed down. Each creation is a fusion of art and design, of contemporary aesthetics and symbolic depth. They are sculptural, functional pieces, made of the highest quality Swiss marble, capable of embellishing a space and generating deep connections. Owning a Cristallina Design object means choosing a rare, authentic fragment, capable of evoking emotions and beauty: a sober but extraordinary luxury, a cultural privilege, a gesture of conscious beauty. It is a brand for those who seek uniqueness and excellence, wanting something that is not only beautiful to look at, but also to live every day.

Natascia Finocchiaro Maurino, founder and CEO of Cristallina Design, expresses the deep desire to give a new voice to the precious Cristallina marble, showing its soul through the language of design. The marble, which has lived silently in the mountains of Ticino for centuries, now speaks to the world in new, exciting and contemporary forms. The debut at the Fuorisalone was only the first step; with the launch event in Lugano, Cristallina Design enters the market with the strength of an authentic story that unites territory, culture and timeless beauty. For the founder, marble is “living matter. It tells stories, it excites, it reminds us who we are”. Her creativity, which has always found expression in painting, fashion and furniture, now translates into a project that aims to enhance image and identity.

The encounter with Cristallina marble, during her experience in marketing for the parent company, represented a turning point: an instinctive connection with a noble material with an extraordinary geological history, but still little known. From here was born the desire to transform it into the protagonist of a cultural, emotional and everyday project. Working with the only marble extracted in Switzerland is an honor. Cristallina is a brilliant, elegant stone, rich in nuances and meanings, born millions of years ago from the transformation of corals. It is a material that speaks of roots, time and identity, and with Cristallina Design it takes on new life in everyday objects that combine art, design and function. Objects that are lived in the present, but that are destined to last, to tell stories and to transmit emotions.

For Natascia Finocchiaro Maurino, true luxury is never ostentation, but coherence with oneself, an experience that touches authentic chords and the feeling of being seen and valued. A luxury object must be able to excite, make you feel at home and evoke who we are and who we want to become. The bond with the territory is central to this vision: Cristallina Design is a tribute to Ticino, Switzerland and an ancient knowledge that deserves to be rediscovered with new eyes. It is not just a brand, but a way to tell the hidden wealth of a territory that breathes beauty, competence and truth. The personal aesthetic of the founder and the brand is based on three key words: authenticity, harmony and coherence. A balanced beauty that does not pretend or show off, but enhances every nuance with respect. Cristallina Design reflects this vision: it does not seek to amaze, but to resonate with an essential, elegant and profound aesthetic. Truth guides her role as CEO: being true to yourself and others, respecting matter, valuing talent and building something that can last. Cristallina Design is a feminine and cultural vision of design, a project that speaks with the heart through matter.

Cristallina Design would like to thank ECAL, École cantonale d'art de Lausanne, for having contributed with vision, competence and creativity to the birth of the first collections. A heartfelt thanks also to the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana for the musical accompaniment that will enrich the evening, and to Welcome Ticino for the enthusiastic support. A special thanks goes to Cristallina Marmo, the marble and the quarry from which everything originates, and to Graniti Maurino, the historic parent company with over 130 years of experience, which in 2010 acquired the Cristallina quarry, making this new project of value and vision possible.

Cristallina Design is born from the encounter between matter and vision, but it comes to life thanks to those who believe in the strength of union, in the multiplicity of skills, in the fusion of talents and in the beauty of authentic relationships. It is thanks to those who choose to be there with courage, passion and the desire to leave a mark that a project like this comes true and brings value to the world.