Is Le Acque di Cielo a washbasin model?

No. It is a palette of six gloss glazes that Ceramica Cielo presented in 2020 and that is applied to various pieces in its catalogue, such as the washbasins in the I Catini and Le Bacinelle collections.

What are its six tones?

Oltremare, Smeraldo, Alga, Corallo, Ninfea and Anemone. The names are kept in Italian in Cielo’s product sheets and orders.

How does it differ from Le Terre di Cielo?

In the finish. Le Terre di Cielo is Cielo’s matt range, with 16 tones in 2021; Le Acque di Cielo is gloss, with 6. They are conceived as complementary and can be combined in the same project.

How is Cielo’s glazed ceramic cleaned?

According to the brand’s manual, with a mild detergent for sanitaryware, warm water and a soft or microfibre cloth, avoiding abrasive or aggressive products. It is advisable to dry the piece after use and, with hard water, to clean it regularly to prevent limescale.

It Matters Journal

Le Acque di Cielo, colourful and glossy ceramics

Le Acque di Cielo, six gloss glazes by Ceramica Cielo that complement the matt tones of Le Terre di Cielo: shades, pieces and key points for specifying.

Products27 May 20216 min read

Le Acque di Cielo, colourful and glossy ceramics

Faced with the complexity that links ceramics to the work of glazing, Cielo, which presents itself as the first company in the world to create a range of ceramic colours of this kind, undertook in 2013 a programme of design and style research that led to the use of colour in bathroom furniture with Le Terre di Cielo, a range of matt tones. Le Acque di Cielo is the next step in that research: six gloss glazes that Ceramica Cielo presented in February 2020, added to the matt tones to widen the possible combinations in washbasins and other ceramic pieces.

In this article we look at what exactly Le Acque di Cielo is, what its six tones are and how they relate to the matt tones of Le Terre di Cielo, which pieces it could be ordered on in 2021 and what to bear in mind when specifying coloured ceramics in the bathroom.

Six round countertop basins glazed in green, red, yellow, blue, teal and pink on white pedestals — Countertop basins in Le Acque di Cielo tones on white pedestals. Image: Ceramica Cielo website.

A palette of glazes, not a collection of washbasins

Ceramica Cielo draws on its long experience in ceramics, exploring the material’s potential and creating innovative, cosmopolitan style solutions, to present Le Acque di Cielo. The original version of this article described it as a new collection of washbasins; in fact, according to Cielo’s press release, it is a palette of gloss glazes: a finish applied to the brand’s ceramic pieces, not a specific model.

The palette, developed under the art direction of Andrea Parisio and Giuseppe Pezzano, brings together bright, intense gloss glazes inspired by nature. It originates in an experimental process that seeks to understand the essence and origin of colour and to investigate its relationship with nature. Cielo describes it as the result of ‘alchemical experiments’ exploring the relationship between colour and architecture, and presented it with the slogan ‘Colour is our attitude!’.

Six gloss tones inspired by nature

Le Acque di Cielo renews the concept of colour applied to ceramics through six shades: Oltremare (ultramarine), Smeraldo (emerald), Alga, Corallo (coral), Ninfea (water lily) and Anemone (anemone). The name of the palette echoes that of the matt range: acque means ‘waters’ in Italian, and terre ‘earths’.

Range	Finish	Tones	On Catino Ovale
Gloss white	Gloss	1	Washbasin and ceramic shelf
Le Terre di Cielo	Matt	16	Washbasin and ceramic shelf; structure in Cemento only
Le Acque di Cielo	Gloss	6	Washbasin, ceramic shelf and metal structure

Cielo’s ceramic finish ranges in 2021 and where they could be applied on the Catino Ovale washbasin. Data from Cielo product sheets (2021).

Overhead view of six round countertop basins glazed in yellow, red, pink, teal, blue and green — The six Le Acque di Cielo tones on countertop basins, seen from above. Image: Ceramica Cielo.

Gloss and matt: Le Acque and Le Terre di Cielo

The gloss effect of Le Acque di Cielo complements the characteristic matt texture of Le Terre di Cielo and, according to the brand, offers a different tactile and visual experience and gives the ceramic a luminous look of its own. The two ranges are designed to coexist: Cielo proposes combinations ranging from the most sober and traditional to the boldest, mixing the colours with one another and with other surfaces such as wood, stone, leather or metal.

In 2021 Le Terre di Cielo comprised sixteen matt tones: Talco, Pomice, Brina, Cemento, Basalto, Lavagna, Fango, Cacao, Arenaria, Avena, Muschio, Agave, Lino, Canapa, Cipria and Polvere. Cielo explained the process behind these coloured glazes as follows: once tested, the glaze is sprayed onto the already dried pieces and becomes part of them during firing, at between 1,230 and 1,250 °C; each tone results from a selection of oxides of metallic and mineral origin added to the base mix, such as cobalt for blue or chromium for green.

Which pieces it is applied to

As a finish, Le Acque di Cielo is chosen piece by piece within Cielo’s catalogue. In the 2021 product sheets, for example, the six tones appeared as an option on the Catino Ovale washbasin from the I Catini collection and on the Tino countertop bowl from the Le Bacinelle collection, alongside gloss white and the matt tones.

Catino Ovale, by Andrea Parisio and Giuseppe Pezzano, is a modular system measuring 70 × 50 cm and 83 cm high: a ceramic washbasin, with or without a tap hole, on a painted steel structure, completed with a ceramic or marble shelf or a lacquered or wooden drawer. In its 2021 product sheet, Le Acque di Cielo could be chosen for the washbasin, for the ceramic shelf and also for the metal structure, so the ensemble can be in a single tone or combine several.

Built around the exploration of the relationship between colour and architecture, the palette is designed to offer architects and interior designers maximum customisation and compositional freedom. It stands for creativity, identity and design ‘without limits’, and makes it possible to respond in a tailored way to the most specific requirements without neglecting aesthetics.

Yellow round washbasin on a yellow metal structure with a grey shelf, beneath an oval gold-framed mirror — Catino Tondo with washbasin and structure in yellow and a grey shelf. Image: Ceramica Cielo website.

Three countertop basins in red, pink and green on a white worktop, with wall-mounted taps and a round mirror with shelves — Three coloured countertop basins on a continuous worktop, with wall-mounted taps. Image: Ceramica Cielo website.

Green round washbasin on a green metal structure with a shelf in the same colour, next to a staircase — Catino Tondo in green, with washbasin, structure and shelf in the same tone. Image: Ceramica Cielo website.

Key points for specifying coloured ceramics

Beyond the choice of tone, these are the points worth resolving at the design stage:

Piece by piece: the finish is chosen for each product, and not all products accept the same ranges, nor on all their components. It is advisable to confirm in the current product sheet which tones the washbasin, shelf or structure can take.
Gloss or matt: the gloss tones of Le Acque di Cielo give intense reflections; the matt tones of Le Terre di Cielo a more material-looking surface. They can be combined in the same bathroom or the same ensemble.
Physical sample: Cielo warns that the colours seen on screen are indicative, and handmade production allows for slight variations in tone. To combine several pieces, or the ceramics with the taps and wall and floor coverings, it is advisable to work with real samples.
Maintenance: Cielo recommends a mild detergent, warm water and a soft or microfibre cloth; abrasive or aggressive products can damage and dull the ceramic. Drying the piece after use and cleaning it regularly in hard-water areas prevents limescale build-up.

Handmade ceramics

In short, Le Acque di Cielo is a design palette created in detail on handmade ceramics, able to meet every demand for originality. Ceramica Cielo is based in Fabrica di Roma (Viterbo) and presents its products as ‘Hand Made in Italy’. The brand explains that its pieces are made using traditional processes and that small variations in colour or tone between them are inherent to handmade production, not defects.

Andrea Parisio and Giuseppe Pezzano have been Cielo’s art directors since 2015. In addition to the research into colour, they have designed collections for the brand such as I Catini, presented in 2016, and Multiplo.

Production hall with coloured countertop basins on benches and metal trolleys and a Cielo worker in the background — Basins glazed in Le Acque di Cielo tones at the Cielo factory, alongside other pieces in progress. Image: Ceramica Cielo.

Epilogue (2026): Le Acque di Cielo is still on Cielo’s colours page with the same six tones, alongside Le Terre di Cielo and a more recent gloss range, Essential colors, with white, black, Fumo and Talpa.

Frequently asked questions

Is Le Acque di Cielo a washbasin model?: No. It is a palette of six gloss glazes that Ceramica Cielo presented in 2020 and that is applied to various pieces in its catalogue, such as the washbasins in the I Catini and Le Bacinelle collections.
What are its six tones?: Oltremare, Smeraldo, Alga, Corallo, Ninfea and Anemone. The names are kept in Italian in Cielo’s product sheets and orders.
How does it differ from Le Terre di Cielo?: In the finish. Le Terre di Cielo is Cielo’s matt range, with 16 tones in 2021; Le Acque di Cielo is gloss, with 6. They are conceived as complementary and can be combined in the same project.
How is Cielo’s glazed ceramic cleaned?: According to the brand’s manual, with a mild detergent for sanitaryware, warm water and a soft or microfibre cloth, avoiding abrasive or aggressive products. It is advisable to dry the piece after use and, with hard water, to clean it regularly to prevent limescale.

At Matter we help you choose bathroom ceramics and combine their colour with the taps, furniture and wall and floor coverings. Come to our material library to see coloured ceramic finishes and compare them with your technical team.

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