Cole & Son's Fornasetti wallpapers bring designs from the archive of Italian artist Piero Fornasetti onto the wall, from drifting clouds to hidden keys and cheeky monkeys. This guide walks through nine key designs, explains where each one comes from, and suggests the rooms where it works best.
Calm and atmospheric: Nuvolette and Chiavi Segrete
Nuvolette is a smaller-scale version of the Nuvole mural and one of Fornasetti's most enduring designs. The sky was a recurring vision for Piero Fornasetti, and these “little clouds” are delicate etchings of rolling, tempestuous skies. The colourways are understated: Slate Blue, Soot & Snow, Gilver & Charcoal, Black & White, Stone and Pearl.
Best for: bedrooms and landings. The constant movement of the clouds is soothing rather than busy, and the softer colourways sit happily with plain bedding and painted woodwork.
Chiavi Segrete combines two Fornasetti motifs: dense, mystical leaves concealing antique keys. The eye travels through the foliage hunting for each “secret key”. Colourways range from muted shades to true-to-life spring greens, with autumn leaves and wintry greys too.
Best for: hallways and studies. It rewards a second look as you pass, and the leafy greens bring the garden indoors.
Stories and character: Ex Libris and Teatro
Piero Fornasetti collected books on the applied arts, and they recur throughout the atelier's archive. Ex Libris is a trompe-l'oeil library of leather-bound books, adapted from a 1953 Fornasetti screen, in Metallic Gold & Magenta, Multi, Stone & Linen and Oat & Charcoal.
Best for: a study, home office or reading nook. It also makes a witty choice for a downstairs cloakroom, where it surprises guests.
Teatro comes from Fornasetti's love of music and theatre and his interest in the Italian Commedia dell'arte. Conceived in the 1950s, it shows elegant theatregoers in intricate line work.
Best for: a dining room or snug, where the audience of figures adds a sense of occasion to an evening.
Entertaining: Cocktails and Arance
Cocktails comes from “Oggetti Cocktail”, an ice bucket Fornasetti designed in the 1950s, and shows stylised mid-century bottles and glassware. Choose the vibrant Multi palette, true to the original sketches, a softer Pastel or monochrome Soot & Snow.
Best for: a bar area, dining room or kitchen-diner. The Soot & Snow version is a smart option if you want the motif without lots of colour.
Arance is a bold repeat of blood oranges, oranges and lemons. The citrus first appeared on the 1950s tray “Fette d'arancia” and was later reworked by Barnaba Fornasetti in the 1990s as a fabric print. It comes on Seafoam, Cream or Ink grounds.
Best for: kitchens and breakfast rooms. On Cream it feels fresh and sunny; on Ink it is richer and moodier.
Nature and drama: Uccelli, Frutto Proibito and Acquario
Uccelli, meaning “birds”, began as Fornasetti folding screens of brightly coloured birds perched on sparse branches. Each roll holds two drops that form a full decorative panel 104cm wide by 240cm high, so you can hang a single panel as a feature or repeat it to create an aviary.
Best for: a feature wall behind a bed, sofa or sideboard, where the panel reads almost like artwork.
Frutto Proibito mixes archival motifs from the 1940s and 1950s: mischievous monkeys, first conceived as wooden panels for the Milanese patisserie Dulciora, sitting among pomegranate branches.
Best for: a dining room or living room with plenty of personality.
Acquario draws on the fish that appear in some of Fornasetti's earliest work, from silk scarves to porcelain. Its whimsical composition and scale make a striking wallcovering.
Best for: bathrooms and cloakrooms, where an underwater theme feels natural.
Explore the collection
Browse all of our Fornasetti pieces, or see the wider range of Cole & Son wallpapers. If you are torn between designs, visit our shop in Somerset or contact the team and we will help you choose.
