Exploring the inspiration behind our most popular bathtub…
While our collections continue to expand and evolve, the first bath we ever created remains to be a firm favourite with both our residential and commercial clients. A statement piece found in beautiful homes across the world, the Picasso is also featured in many prestigious five star hotels and luxury destinations, including Claridge’s and The Connaught in London’s Mayfair, and the Gilpin Hotel in the Lake District. Here, we share the story of how the Picasso bath came to life, and the inspiration behind its now iconic design.
Contemporary Elegance
Prior to founding Lusso, CEO Wayne Spriggs gained considerable experience as a successful property developer, and during this time he found it near impossible to source high quality fixtures and fittings without astronomical price tags. To overcome this challenge and fill the evident market gap, Wayne set up Lusso in 2014 with a clear and singular aim – to provide attainable luxury homeware without compromising on design, quality or craftsmanship.
As the hero piece of Lusso’s first collection, the Picasso needed to fully encapsulate our brand mission, so we focused on the traditional shape of a Victorian freestanding bath – long held as a symbol of indulgent relaxation – and reframed it as a modern yet elegant design. The result is a flawless oval bath – immaculately symmetrical and minimalist, with generously deep curves for the ultimate bathing experience.
Made for Life
From day one, we’ve been committed to creating collections that provide long lasting luxury, so it was crucial that we used a durable material to produce the Picasso. The more options we looked at, the more determined we became to find a sustainable material that combines intrinsic strength with an opulent aesthetic, and eventually we discovered Durastone – a refined blend of powdered limestone cast with superior performance resin. Made from responsibly quarried stone that’s carefully selected for its purity, the composite stone is of the highest quality, with no layers or points of weakness, which is why the Picasso – and every stone bath and basin that we’ve launched since – comes with a lifetime guarantee. Durastone is also exceptionally smooth and warm to the touch, and its soft, natural tone pairs perfectly with our choice of matte, polished, and dual finishes.
A Fitting Eponym
We chose to name our first freestanding bath after one of the most influential and prolific artists of the 20th century, Pablo Picasso, whose work is renowned for its bold stylisation. The Spanish-born painter and sculptor co-founded Cubism – an art style that depicts people and objects without using traditional techniques such as linear perspective, and can be seen in Picasso’s many masterpieces including Les Demoiselles d’Avignon and the deeply evocative Guernica. Later throughout his career, Picasso also produced a vast number of paintings and sketches drawn in a single unbroken line, and the confident strokes of this minimalist technique inspired the silhouettes of our very first collection.
In Demand Design
The incredible success and popularity of our original Picasso design encouraged us to later expand the collection. Today it’s available in a wide range of sizes to suit varied bathroom spaces, and alongside the crisp and classic shade of white, it now also comes in a broader selection of muted colours including Pebble Grey, Grigio Earth, and Charcoal. To meet growing demand, we’ve also created a range of countertop basins that mirror the exemplary style of the Picasso, which continues to be our most sought-after bath and an incredibly important milestone in our brand’s history.
To view our full Picasso collection, which is exclusive to Lusso, please click here.
