The Architecture of Bathing: A Dialogue Between Past and Present

At the Palazzo Crespi on Corso Matteotti, designed by Piero Portaluppi and opened for the first time as an exhibition venue during Milan Design Week, Kaldewei, together with Parasite 2.0 and Bianca Felicori, founder of Forgotten Architecture, initiates a dialogue between past and present, placing the culture of the bathroom at the centre of discourse.

Between 1928 and 1932, Portaluppi designed the Palazzo Crespi in Milan for the Crespi family, a dynasty of industrialists and co-owners of the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The building is considered one of the most representative examples of Milanese residential architecture of the era. Its meticulously composed façade follows the principle of progressive lightness, with darker marble tones at the base gradually giving way to lighter shades above. A plinth of arcades, pilaster-defined floors, and recessed upper levels with terraces establish a clear architectural rhythm.

Materiality forms a central starting point of the exhibition. In addition to examples of Kaldewei steel enamel, selected types of marble used by Portaluppi are presented, opening a dialogue between historical architectural materiality and contemporary design practice.

A highlight of the installation is the new shade of dusty pink developed specifically for “Bubbles of Time.” Created by Kaldewei for this project, the bespoke shade draws on Portaluppi’s marble tones and translates their atmosphere into a contemporary colour palette, serving as a bridge between past and present.

In the basement, Kaldewei presents iconic products within an exhibition concept developed by Parasite 2.0, placing them in dialogue with key bathroom designs by Portaluppi, including those in the Villa Necchi in Milan and the Villa Panza in Varese. Contemporary photographs and selected monographs extend the curatorial narrative and situate Kaldewei products within the architectural history of the bathroom’s evolution.

At the heart of the installation is a reinterpretation of the Meisterstück Classic Duo Oval as the archetypal form of the freestanding bathtub. Its timeless silhouette creates a dialogue between historical bathing culture and a contemporary understanding of space, materiality, and comfort. The Nuio Duo Zen Edition advances this narrative, articulating the bathroom as a space of tranquillity, focus, and sensorial experience.

Design-oriented shower solutions and precisely crafted washbowls complement the presentation and demonstrate how Kaldewei steel enamel functions as an architectural material across bathroom elements.

The exhibition, based on extensive archival research by Bianca Felicori, completes the narrative and reveals how the bathroom was historically conceived as a ritual space where technology, material culture, and living experience converge.

With Bubbles of Time, Kaldewei translates Portaluppi’s architectural vision into a contemporary perspective through iconic products and new colour concepts. In this way, the bathroom becomes an integral part of modern residential architecture, and Kaldewei products emerge as enduring elements accompanying this evolution across generations.