Material Xperience 2014 opened in Rotterdam today to an audience of architects, designers, material innovators and manufacturers. Our curated materials’ exhibition, special items and a seminar programme represent the theme, ‘The Smart Environment’.

The first day’s sessions featured four expert seminars, which focused on nature as an inspiration for design, light as a smart material, and the usage of smart materials in architecture and design.

Michael Pawlyn spoke of the advantages of looking more closely at nature, using leaves, bone structure and the shape of insects as examples.

Philips Lighting CDO Rogier van der Heide showed an impressive array of projects, from early work on Zaha Hadid pavilions to the renovated Rijksmusem in Amsterdam, the first museum in the world to use LED lighting exclusively.

Exhibitors note the specific audience of professional designers, many of whom are interested in the materials and products on display, as well as in the stories behind them.

The story continues at the Materia Exhibition, where an interactive laboratory has been set up to enable visitors to really interact with the smart materials at the show.

Among the popular items are UV-reactive coatings, lights integrated into glass panels and translucent concrete.

Some of the most popular items on show are the ten ‘wall of fame’ articles. These include Newspaperwood, the ‘wood’ that is indeed made of newspapers, a breathing, bi-metal façade and a leather made of mushroom spores.

The fun continues tomorrow, and we’ll have the review online by the end of the day. Follow the action on Twitter and Facebook to make sure you don’t miss anything.