Piero Fornasetti Iconic Table Lamp, 1960
View Similar Items
Piero Fornasetti Iconic Table Lamp, 1960
About the Item
- Creator:Fornasetti (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 16.93 in (43 cm)Diameter: 3.94 in (10 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1965
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Paris, FR
- Reference Number:1stDibs: 15060210011207
Fornasetti
The Italian artist, illustrator and furniture maker Piero Fornasetti was one of the wittiest and most imaginative design 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 the 19th-century 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 desks to dinner plates, lamps and umbrella stands. His work is archly clever, often surreal 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 his 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 Fornasetti’s collaborator and patron. Beginning in the early 1950s, they created a striking a 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.
- Piero Fornasetti White and Brass Table Lamp, circa 1960By FornasettiLocated in Vienna, ATPiero Fornasetti white and brass table lamp, circa 1960. We can provide you with different shades in different sizes/colors.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
- Piero Fornasetti Style Modern Cylindrical Brass Cammei LampBy Piero FornasettiLocated in Roma, ITEnameled table lamp in white with red transfer printed lithographic cameos of emperors, and patinated brass. The lacquered, cylindrical base features transfer images of Classical Ro...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Pair of Piero Fornasetti Cammei Table LampsBy Piero Fornasetti, FornasettiLocated in Miami, FLA vintage pair of Mid-Century Modern Cameo off-white lamps designed in the 1960s by the Italian master of playful and surreal self-expression, Piero Forna...Category
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal, Brass, Enamel
$6,000 / set - Piero Fornasetti Green Roman Chariot Race Table LampBy Piero Fornasetti, FornasettiLocated in Miami, FLA vintage Mid-Century Modern lamp by Piero Fornasetti, the Italian master celebrated for his playful and surreal self-expression. Its striking green body showcases Neoclassical style...Category
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass, Enamel, Metal
- Piero Fornasetti, Pair of Table Lamp in CéramicBy FornasettiLocated in Saint-Ouen, FRPiero Fornasetti, pair of table lamp in céramic. ceramic height : 39 cmCategory
Vintage 1940s Italian Baroque Revival Table Lamps
MaterialsCeramic
$5,241 / set - Rare Vintage Fornasetti Table LampBy Piero FornasettiLocated in Los Angeles, CAVintage Italian table lamp with painted metal decorated with book motif and butterfly (lithographical and transfer-printed) and brass / made in Milan Italy in the 1980s Original lab...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal