The Return of Concrete Flooring

Once darling to the architects and interior designers, the concrete flooring slowly faded away in favour of marble, granite, tiles and wooden flooring. However, technological advances and innovations in concrete flooring have revived it as a great design alternative in decorative flooring. Designers today are in awe of the minimalistic touch provided by Concrete flooring to the entire decor. Its industrial look has become the new chick in the town. SURFACES REPORTER looks deep into the world of Concrete Flooring to dig out the trends and how it’s going to be with this material in the design world.

The above photo is of Farzi Cafe, Kamala Mills, Mumbai - The entire restaurant is made of concrete walls, flooring, candle stands and even the salt and pepper shakers are created with a raw touch of concrete. Within its 4,400-sq. ft. space, the design shows play of light and material, each used in a way to accentuate the raw beauty of the space. The long bar, facing the entire seating has a character of its own – industrial vibe reflecting shifting imagery behind it, at this restaurant, sitting by the bar might even become a popular choice.

THE ‘FADE OUT’ AND ‘FADE IN’ OF CONCRETE FLOORING 

Concrete as a construction and flooring material has a rich history behind. The oldest evidence of use of concrete in construction goes back to 6500 BC in Syria. Use of concrete as decorative surface material dates back to as early as 1000 BC in Greece; Greeks were setting colourful pebbles and later, bits of flat pottery and stone into concrete floors before they set, to create the first mosaic surfaces. Decorative concrete flooring was quite common during the Roman republic. However, after the end of roman civilisation, the art of decorative concrete flooring was lost until some British engineer reinvented the wheel in 1756. Taking it forward another Englishman invented the formula of creating what we know as Portland cement – a dominant material in modern day concrete.