PEDESTAL DESK

It is probable that Giovanni Fumagalli, an engineer and owner of a 'Studio d'Arte', purchased or commissioned this suite from Vittorio Zecchin during or immediately after the 'Prima Esposizione delle Art Decorative di Monza', where the models were exhibited to enthusiastic acclaim. The 1923 exhibition was Zecchin's first in which he presented his designs for tapestries, glass and furniture, amongst them a 'studio con piccolo ambiente', possibly the suite offered, in addition to the dining furniture reproduced in the Benzi reference. The contemporary illustration reproduced on this page shows items from the suite in situ in Fumagalli's palace, Brescia, alongside tapestries woven by Zecchin. Vittorio Zecchin exhibited at the subsequent Monza Biennales of 1925 and 1927, as well as the Venice Biennales throughout the 1920s and 30s. Subsequent to his appointment as artistic director of the glass manufacturers Cappellin Venini & Co, Zecchin embarked on a highly influential career with most of the leading Venetian glass manufacturers until his death in 1947.