Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Italian, 1913-1988
The Italian artist and designer Piero Fornasetti was one of the wittiest and most imaginative talents of the 20th century. He crafted an inimitable decorative style from a personal vocabulary of images that included birds, butterflies, hot-air balloons, architecture and — most frequently, and in some 500 variations — an enigmatic woman’s face based on that of Cavalieri. Fornasetti used transfer prints of these images, rendered in the style of engravings, to decorate an endless variety of furnishings and housewares that ranged from chairs, tables and decorative objects to dinner plates, table lamps and umbrella stands. His work is archly clever, often Surrealist and always fun.
Fornasetti was born in Milan, the son of an accountant, and he lived his entire life in the city. He showed artistic talent as a child and enrolled at Milan’s Brera Academy of Fine Art in 1930, but was expelled after two years for consistently failing to follow his professors’ orders.
A group of Fornasetti's hand-painted silk scarves, displayed in the 1933 Triennale di Milano, caught the eye of the architect and designer Gio Ponti, who, in the 1940s, became the artist's collaborator and patron. Beginning in the early 1950s, they created a striking series of desks, bureaus and secretaries that pair Ponti’s signature angular forms with Fornasetti’s decorative motifs — lighthearted arrangements of flowers and birds on some pieces, austere architectural imagery on others. The two worked together on numerous commissions for interiors, though their greatest project has been lost: the first-class lounges and restaurants of the luxury ocean liner Andrea Doria, which sank in 1956.
Fornasetti furnishings occupy an unusual and compelling niche in the decorative arts: they are odd yet pack a serious punch. They act, essentially, as functional sculpture. A large Fornasetti piece such as a cabinet or a desk can change the character of an entire room; his smaller works have the aesthetic power of a vase of flowers, providing a bright and alluring decorative note. The chimerical, fish-nor-fowl nature of Fornasetti’s work may be its greatest strength. It stands on its own. Bringing the Fornasetti look into the future is Barnaba Fornasetti, who took the reins of the company after his father's death.
Find vintage Piero Fornasetti dinner plates, chairs, tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
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Creator: Piero Fornasetti
Mid century Piero Fornasetti “Bassorilievo” pattern magazine rack
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Henley-on Thames, Oxfordshire
Piero Fornasetti Magazine rack with wooden frame and
silk-screened “Bassorilievo” decoration.
Prod. Fornasetti, Italy, circa 1950
(minor losses, crazing to the paint and oxidisati...
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Piero Fornasetti Cameos model Umbrella stand
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Henley-on Thames, Oxfordshire
Piero Fornasetti Umbrella stand in metal
printed gold cameos and brass.
Piero Fornasetti, Italy circa 1960
(minor losses to the surface decoration)
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Steel
20th Century Italian Round Umbrella & Stick Stand By Piero Fornasetti c.1950
By Fornasetti, Piero Fornasetti
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
A vintage 20th Century Italian metal stick stand, designed by Piero Fornasetti, features a unique design with umbrellas and sticks encircling the outer cover. The interior is painted...
Category
20th Century Italian Other Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Piero Fornasetti Red Wrought Iron and and Blue Glass Coat Stand, Italy, 1959
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Milan, IT
Rare and beautiful Piero Fornasetti red painted wrought iron and blue opaline glass sphere coat Stand, Italy, 1959
Reference:
B. Fornasetti / La Bottega Fantastica / p. 514 Electa ...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Brass, Wrought Iron
Piero Fornasetti Coat Stand Made of Painted Wrought Iron, Opaline Glass, Brass
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
A beautiful coat hanger designed by Piero Fornasetti and produced in the 1960s.
Made of a wrought iron structure painted in an vibrant red, it can be distinguished by its blue opaline glass on top and high quality construction enriched with brass details.
This cape stand is in very good condition with just some signs due to age and use on the original paint and some oxidation on the brass details. Great patina and opaline glass ball in pristine order.
Dimensions: Base max 64cm - Height 206cm
Literature: B. Fornasetti, by M. Casadio, ''Fornasetti l'artista alchimista, La bottega...
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Brass, Wrought Iron
Piero Fornasetti Trompe l'oeil Floral Umbrella Stand
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Stamford, CT
Wonderfully designed 'Cesto di Dalie' ( Basket of Dahlias) umbrella stand by Piero Fornasetti, circa 1950s. The metal umbrella stand displaying a Trompe l'oeil of a floor wicker bask...
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
20th Century, Piero Fornasetti Red Coat Rack 1955
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Turin, Turin
The company's origins start from the art print shop Piero Fornasetti opened in the 1930s in Milan. The "Stamperia d'Arte Fornasetti" enjoyed some success in Milan's cultural milieu; ...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Iron
Piero Fornasetti 'Barbone' Dog Umbrella Stand
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in New York, NY
Delightful Piero Fornasetti Umbrella Stand depicting a Poodle. Italy 1962, with back drip-tray.
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Piero Fornasetti, Umbrella Stand, 1950/60s
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Stockholm, SE
Umbrella stand with malachite pattern designed by Piero Fornasetti. Italy 1950/60s.
Signs of use, botten with smalls signs of rust.
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Early Mid-Century Modern 'Roman Arch' Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti 1950s
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Munich, DE
Early, extremely rare and highly decorative Mid-Century Modern umbrella stand "Roman Arch". Designed by Piero Fornasetti for Fornasetti Milano, Italy, 1950s.
Makers mark at the botto...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal, Brass
‘Levriero Afgano’ Afghan Hound Dog Umbrella Stand, Piero Fornasetti Italy c.1955
By Fornasetti, Piero Fornasetti
Located in London, GB
An early ‘Afghan Hound’ umbrella stand by the incredibly creative, Piero Fornasetti, c.1955. One of the eight trompe l’oeil dog umbrella stands For...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Steel
Piero Fornasetti ‘Soriano’ Cat Umbrella Stand, Italy
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in London, GB
A fabulous light-colored version of the tromp l’oeil Tabby cat umbrella stand designed by Piero Fornasetti. Originally designed in the 1950s, this piece is from a more recent, very l...
Category
Early 2000s Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
'Cesto Di Dalie' Trompe L'oeil Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti, Italy, 1955
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in London, GB
A 'Cesto Di Dalie' (Basket with Dahlias) trompe l'oeil umbrella stand by the incomparable Piero Fornasetti, Italy. Depicting a colourful basket of cut dahlia flowers, this early 1950...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Steel
Piero Fornasetti Magazine Rack
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Henley-on Thames, Oxfordshire
Piero Fornasetti magazine rack with wooden frame and
Hand colored silk-screened decoration.
Fornasetti label to the base.
Atelier Fornasetti, Italy, circa 1950.
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Brass, Steel
Fornasetti Neoclassical Trompe l'oeil Vasi Antichi Umbrella Stand
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Rio Vista, CA
Sublime Piero Fornasetti umbrella stand crafted from hand silk screened and lacquered metal. Trompe l'oeil vasi antichi or antique vases features Greco-Roman decorated vases in a cur...
Category
20th Century Italian Neoclassical Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Iron
Metal Umbrella Stand "Collie" Metal Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Montreal, QC
'Collie' lithographically printed and painted umbrella stand by Piero Fornasetti for Fornasetti Milano,
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Piero Fornasetti Magazine Stand
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in New York, NY
Magazine stand designed and manufactured by Piero Fornasetti in the 1950s. Lithographic transfer print depicting a basket of colorful flowers. Has brass legs and a center handle. Ori...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Brass
Piero Fornasetti Trompe L’oeil Rovine Umberella Stand Black and White
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Long Island, NY
Piero Fornasetti Milano Trompe L’oeil Rovine .It is Hand Silkscreened and Laquered Metal Umberella Stand in Black/White
Category
1980s Italian International Style Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
PIERO FORNASETTI Portaombrelli metallo serigrafato/ottone. Serie LE CARROZZE.
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Milano, IT
PIERO FORNASETTI - della serie - LE CARROZZE.
Portaombrelli anni 50 , in metallo serigrafato e ottone, non più in produzione in ottimo stato, marchio stampato sotto la base e conteni...
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal, Brass
'Cesto di Dalie' Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti, 1950s Italy, Signed
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This rare and highly sought-after collectors item is the 'Cesto di Dalie' umbrella stand by Piero Fornasetti, circa 1950s, signed underneath with a Fornasetti medallion label. This h...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Early Piero Fornasetti Butterflies Farfalle Umbrella Stand
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Chicago, IL
This appears to be a finer earlier example than others I have reviewed.
Note the composition and detail of the illustration, The "Shadow" under the butterfly, the brass rim has a...
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Trompe Oeil "Vasi Antichi" Metal Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Montreal, QC
Trompe Oeil "Vasi Antichi" Metal Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti Italy, c. 1955 / c. 1960 lithographic transfer print over steel with hand-coloring, ena...
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Steel
"Cappelli" Tole Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in East Hampton, NY
Hand coloured trompe l'oeil transfer printed on metal "Cappelli" (hats) Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti.
Category
20th Century Italian Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Tôle
1960 Piero Fornasetti Italian Design Black & White Brass Metal Magazine Rack
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Brescia, IT
Magazine Rack
Piero Fornasetti
Italy, 1960
Black and White Metal and Brass Details
Very good Condiction (brass magazine martition missed)
Original 1960
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Piero Fornasetti Gravure Italian Mid Century Modern Brass Magazine Rack Stand
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Piero Fornasetti Gravure Italian Mid Century Modern Brass Magazine Rack Stand. Item features a solid brass tripod base, iron rod, lithograph transfer enameled metal, decorated magazi...
Category
Mid-20th Century Unknown Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal, Brass
Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti, Italy, 1950s
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in New York, NY
Metal umbrella stand in trompe l’oeil lithography depicting a Collie. Original condition.
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Fornasetti Umbrella Holder
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Gloucestershire, GB
Metal umbrella stand by Piero Fornasetti. Italy, circa 1960. With a brass rim and wonderful printed gold cameos throughout depicting ancient subjects. There are minor losses to the s...
Category
20th Century Italian Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Brass
"Capelli" 'Hats' Patterned Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Palm Desert, CA
This is a rare umbrella stand by Piero Fornasetti, utilizing a Capelli or hat pattern as a motif. Clustered colorful hats line the front of the stand. An umbrella stand is fixed to t...
Category
1990s Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Tin, Iron
20th Century Piero Fornasetti Umbrella Stand Theme Bottles Wine in Printed Metal
By Piero Fornasetti, Fornasetti
Located in Turin, Turin
Umbrella stand by Piero Fornasetti themed with bottles on a typical italian wine barrel, in silkscreened sheet metal from the 1950s. Good condition...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Sheet Metal, Brass
'Bassoitti' Metal Umbrella Stand by Piero Fornasetti
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Montreal, QC
Bassoitti lithographically printed and painted metal umbrella stand by Piero Fornasetti for Fornasetti Milano.
Category
1950s Italian Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Piero Fornasetti Strumenti Musicali Magazine Rack, 1950s
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Miami, FL
A rare and early magazine stand or portariviste designed and manufactured by the Italian master of playful and surreal self-expression Piero Fornasetti in the 1950s. The vintage rack...
Category
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal, Brass, Enamel
Pierro Fornasetti, rare magazine rack made for Ohlssons, Malmö Sweden 1950s
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Stockholm, SE
A rare magazine rack, model Damasco, made by Piero Fornasetti exclusively for Ohlssons in Malmö, Sweden in the 1950s.
This item has been verified by Fornasetti archives. Informatio...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Metal
Piero Fornasetti Strumenti Musicali Magazine Rack
By Piero Fornasetti
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Magazine rack by Italian designer and artist, Piero Fornasetti, circa 1950s, Italy. The rack features a musical themed lithograph printed on plywood with a wire brass divider on the ...
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
Materials
Brass
Piero Fornasetti racks and stands for sale on 1stDibs.
Piero Fornasetti racks and stands are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of metal and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Piero Fornasetti racks and stands, although brown editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original racks and stands by Piero Fornasetti were created in the mid-century modern style in europe during the 20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider racks and stands by Ico Parisi, Giancarlo Piretti, and Ettore Sottsass. Prices for Piero Fornasetti racks and stands can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $2,100 and can go as high as $9,500, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $4,500.
Creators Similar to Piero Fornasetti
Questions About Piero Fornasetti Racks and Stands
- Who is Piero Fornasetti?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertMarch 22, 2022Piero Fornasetti was an Italian artist and designer born in Milan, Italy, in 1913. In 1950, he founded an atelier in the city, creating furniture and home decorations. Fornasetti died on October 9, 1988. His company, Fornasetti, continues to produce hand-decorated decor under the guidance of his son Barnaba Fornasetti. Find a collection of Fornasetti on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertMay 14, 2024Piero Fornasetti is famous for his work as a designer. The Italian artist was one of the wittiest and most imaginative talents of the 20th century. Fornasetti crafted an inimitable decorative style from a personal vocabulary of images that included birds, butterflies, hot-air balloons, architecture and — most frequently, and in some 500 variations — an enigmatic woman's face based on that of opera singer Lina Cavalieri. Fornasetti used transfer prints of these images, rendered in the style of engravings, to decorate an endless variety of furnishings and housewares that ranged from chairs, tables and decorative objects to dinner plates, table lamps and umbrella stands. His work is archly clever, often Surrealist and always fun. On 1stDibs, shop an assortment of Piero Fornasetti pieces.
- 1stDibs ExpertMarch 22, 2022Whether or not Piero Fornasetti images are in the public domain depends on the image. The artist produced more than 11,000 works during his lifetime. Only some no longer carry a copyright and are in the public domain. Shop a range of Fornasetti on 1stDibs.
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