Folding Screen

Piero Fornasetti

Black lacquer, black and white print on lacquered composite wood, gold-plated metal fittings. Four panels connected by hinges, mounted on eight rollers. Different continuous designs on both sides "Staircase" and "Renaissance Skyscraper". The recto side of the panels features a variation on the architectural designs for 'Ideal House', with fantastical depictions of Renaissance skyscrapers; the verso side shows the 1953 design 'The Little Staircase', which Fornasetti also incorporated into his 1955 installation 'Metaphysical Room'—a series of 32 folding screen panels intended to encourage meditation. The overall designs are from around 1952 and 1955.