Fornasetti: Practical Madness

His designs endure in an astonishing variety of forms: chairs, desks, screens, pianos, plates, masks and other objects all present the artists timeless vocabulary. Fornasettis endless invention is celebrated here in a book published to coincide with a major retrospective exhibition in Paris. His visual puns and decorative devices are set out in the context of his paintings, little considered until now. Bibliophilia occupies centre stage, with graphic schemes, designs for imaginary libraries and bookcases set in ironic interiors. The book gathers a plentiful array of his famous Themes and Variations, a series of plate designs drawing on over 500 variations on the face of a famous operatic beauty. A full chronology of Fornasettis life and work accompanies the text.