Few design objects are as immediately recognizable as Piero Fornasetti’s (1913-1988) ceramic plates. They are boldly graphic and deliciously surreal, boasting an array of trompe l'oeil motifs that range from fish and flowers to the face of Lina Cavalieri -- a nineteenth-century opera singer. But Fornasetti did not stop at ceramics. Between the 1940s and the 1980s, the Milanese artist and designer created over 13,000 works. He churned out furniture, fabrics, and a swathe of decorative objects -- from trays and paperweights to screens and umbrella stands -- emblazoned with his distinct and irreverent designs.
Fornasetti is the subject of a major retrospective currently on view at the Louvre’s Les Arts Décoratifs, in Paris. To read more about the Piero Fornasetti exhibit, visit InCollect.com.
