fornasetti: armistizio collection

‘bishop table’ by barnaba fornasetti all images courtesy of fornasetti

for milan design week 2011 milanese atelier fornasetti presents ‘armistizio’ (armistice), a collection of office furniture, at their showroom spazio fornasetti. designed by barnaba fornasetti son of the late piero fornasetti, the series of furniture pieces draw on the renaissance engravings of armour, mêlée weapons and antique illustrations of firearms. here, archival drawings such as the ‘spade e fucili’ and ‘pugnali e pistole’, previously used to embellish a variety of objects, are revisited by barnaba, updated and applied in a new context for ‘armistizio.

detail of the firearm archival drawings that are boldly colored

in this collection, the drawings are applied in a pop-art mode to furniture pieces: a dividing screen, desk, wall organizer, office and meeting chairs, small bureau, cabinet with drawers, nesting tables, bench with emphasis on acid and digital tones ranging from yellow to green to pink. they are all hand-printed silver leaf decorations which give contrast to the black-lacquered surfaces of the pieces which they adorn. the overall shapes of the ‘armistizio’ collection feature decidedly square linear shapes and also includes a wall organizer reminiscent of early 20th century coat racks, a frame with a rounded mirror and even a treasure chest. the assortment of weapons, full-body armours in their colorful fusion of antique and modern, provide something unexpected.

‘sergeant bench’ by barnaba fornasetti

detail of the ‘sergeant bench’ drawing