Pietro Chiesa (1892-1948) was an Italian designer for furniture and home accessories who is particularly famous for his works with glass. He was one of FontanaArte's founder and art director.
Chiesa studied at the art academy in Brera and completed an apprenticeship as glass worker, before he founded his own studio for glass art in 1921. In 1932 Chiesa started a collaboration with Gio Ponti who gave a new artistic orientation to the glass plates and glass accessories company, founded by Luigi Fontana. The result was FontanaArte, and Pietro Chiesa became the company's art director.
Pietro Chiesa was a significant Art Deco style's advocate, but created designs with a timelessly modern formal language. He designed over 1000 objects for FontanaArte, among them many which are now designer classics and are always included in the FontanaArte portfolio.
The Fontana table designed by Chiesa in 1932 consists of a single, bent glass plate and exudes out of this world elegance and limpidity. The vase Cartoccio made of a unique glass sheet shaped like a delicate and formable paper bag is an impressive demonstration of Pietro Chiesa's talent.
The torch-like Luminator ceiling lamp of metal is one of Chiesa's most famous designer lights. It is still included in FontanaArte's portfolio but its shape has been slightly modernised. The same is true for the Mano table lamp, characterized by a clear, functional shape, and which features a hand-shaped sculpture on the stem. A functional home accessory and a decorative art work are combined in a charming manner.