Emilio Stecher AG (Oberrieden)

If you meet someone who knows little or nothing about natural stone - how do you explain the material to them?

Emilio Stecher: I like to compare stone with wood: Stone has also grown naturally, only much more slowly, during millions and millions of years. For me, natural stone is something living, unique, just like each of us humans. A special inclusion in the rock, which may look like a low-pressure area on the weather map or like the world-famous mole on Cindy Crawford's face - that's what makes the unique character of every natural stone. No two stones are alike.

And each one has its own special properties ...

Exactly. That's something else I try to convey to customers. The differences are enormous, for example between the igneous rocks formed in the earth's interior, such as granite, the sedimentary rocks, such as sandstone and limestone, and finally the metamorphic rocks, such as marble, which were initially also sedimentary rocks, but then plunged back into the earth's interior, where they were compressed and finally "baked" again to form new natural stone. The customers are usually immediately fascinated, and when I tell them that the youngest rocks are only between 10,000 and 60,000 years old, but the oldest are already around 1.3 billion years old - then they are even more so. The time dimensions for the formation of natural stones are hardly comprehensible for us humans.

**Which stones are currently particularly popular?

Among the native materials, for example, Ticino and Graubünden gneiss such as Onsernone, Cresciano, Iragna, Calanca, Andeer and especially Valser. The Ticino Cristallina marble from Peccia and our native gray sandstones are also increasingly appreciated. In addition to gray and greenish tones, as in the case of the aforementioned stones, beige is also in high demand. Travertine, whether honed or polished and newly mostly open-pored instead of trowelled, has many friends. We ourselves offer the beige Visso Montenegro, a very attractive material that can be used in all finishes, both indoors and outdoors. In addition to polished and sanded surface finishes, sandblasted and brushed finishes are increasingly in demand, but antique finishes such as tumbled and leathered are also "in" today.

While large square stone slabs used to dominate facades in the past, today one increasingly sees decidedly small-scale natural stone cladding. Is this a sustainable trend?

The fact is that wall claddings made of natural stone slips are currently extremely popular, both indoors and outdoors. This development was founded by the Swiss architect Peter Zumthor with his now world-famous thermal spa in Vals. However, Zumthor's facades are solid and not simply glued on.

Relatively new are also backlit natural stone applications. What was the trigger here?

Transparent natural stones such as onyx are now very popular, especially in bars and restaurants, but also in reception rooms of banks, hotels and even museums, as well as in upscale residential construction. This development has been made possible by new processing methods using reinforcement and resinaturation. Our company has now even developed an onyx bed! Its pleasant light atmosphere makes human skin look very erotic. - You see: New and attractive developments are always possible even with an ancient material.

What's new in natural stone for the garden and the rest of the outdoor area?

Whether swimming pond or swimming pool, pergola, seating area, barbecue area or winter garden: Natural stone is always the right building block in the garden, whether in rough, flamed or bush-hammered finish. Relatively new are surfaces such as sandblasted or brushed. In terms of color, Mediterranean colors are increasingly in demand in addition to the classic gray stone varieties. Beige or reddish tones are able to conjure up splashes of color in the domestic garden and make us feel permanently on vacation.

**The care of natural stone floors is not easy. What tips do you give to keep a stone floor beautiful for as long as possible?

Polished marble and limestone floors are a little tricky at the beginning in terms of scratches or stains. However, after about two years of use, they take on a beautiful patina. This is created by proper and expedient cleaning with modern care products. In the process, nutrients are added to the floor like the famous soft soap "Mamma Steinfels" in the old days. Just look at old architectural monuments, for example in southern Europe: Their floor coverings have been beautiful for centuries. With proper care, even marble or limestone floors remain timelessly attractive. All floor coverings made of hard stone are even more indestructible.

In conclusion: What future do you see for natural stone as a building material?

Natural products such as wood and natural stone always have a future. This was already the case in prehistoric times, when these were the first two building materials, and it will remain so. I think that natural stone can become even more important in the coming years, especially from the point of view of sustainability. And think of Stone Henge, the Egyptian pyramids, the Great Wall of China, the Acropolis in Athens or the Colosseum in Rome: only natural stone lasts for millennia and survives every culture!

**Natural stone still has the image of an expensive material.

Completely wrongly! I can clearly prove this with our company statistics. Since 1984, our natural stone prices have fallen by an average of 20 percent, even though wages have doubled during this time. Inexpensive imports from the Third World have meant that natural stone in outdoor areas has even replaced concrete composite stones in some cases. Also in the interior area finished natural stone floors are to be had today already starting from 100 francs per square meter. Natural stone thus easily competes with other materials such as parquet, ceramics, porcelain stoneware or textile floor coverings. Whereby stone scores particularly well in terms of intrinsic value, individuality, durability and ease of care. The cheapest granites are also very competitive when it comes to kitchen tops. But you're right: unfortunately, the word "expensive" for natural stone still haunts some people's minds. The reason for this is probably that marble used to be considered particularly exclusive, a product for the "upper ten thousand".