Over the course of its history, Fornasetti has created a unique and artistic visual language capable of turning furniture, accessories and porcelain into genuine conversation pieces. Its approach is characterised by a blend of humour, nostalgia, metaphor and allusion that endows everyday objects with a certain cultural charm. Founded by eclectic artist Piero Fornasetti in 1940, the renowned Milanese atelier is now led by his son, artistic director Barnaba Fornasetti. Everything is still made strictly by hand in Milan, meaning that every piece produced through the various phases of the production cycle is unique, and every Fornasetti object remains an authentic piece of art.

The Mani e Farfalle vase was first imagined in 1940, when Piero Fornasetti translated his devotion to drawing and the decorative arts into glass. Presented at the VII Milan Triennale, the work stands as an ode to nature. For Homo Faber 2026, Barnaba Fornasetti reinterprets this piece from the archive, emphasising its ethereal quality. White becomes surface and light, allowing the delicate motif of hands and butterflies, emblematic of Fornasetti’s poetic and surreal language, to emerge. The vase is brought to life through the craftsmanship of Barbini Specchi Veneziani in Murano.