As a child, I used to draw robots all the time. Some of these early drawings (from when I was five years old) were kept by my father and became an art installation many years later at Sketch London in 2014. Later Sir Paul Smith decided to show them in some of his flagship stores and sell them online as prints. 

I started my product design career in 1995 when a manufacturer asked me to design a chair, for which I came up with a concept that was a best seller for many years. This led to many other successful designs for a wide range of clients, such as the Stone-Wool rugs collection for Nani Marquina (which has been on the market for more than 20 years), the Jazz lamp for Vibia and the Sit Street Furniture collection for Escofet.

From 2012 to 2019, I was the creative director at the Coll & Cortés Gallery (London and Madrid) and from 2015 till present of Colnaghi (London and New York), following its acquisition by Coll & Cortés. In 2016 I designed Colnaghi’s 400 sq. metre gallery on Bury Street in London's St. James's. There I created a distinctive gallery space suited to the challenges of art dealing in the 21st century, while at the same time respecting the historic traditions of Colnaghi, which is one of the world's oldest and most prestigious art dealerships.

I'm self-taught and this has allowed me to approach design with great freedom and disregard for so-called rules.

My activities have ranged from commercial product design to art-world projects, such as creating sculptures, art installations, graphic design and branding. I've managed to make my ideas alive in many different shapes and countries during the last 30 years and throughout it has been a constant search for meaning, beauty, and fun.

“Diego Fortunato is an artist and designer known for his ability to alter our perception and pleasure of both space and reality”.

Tim Warner-Johnson, Director of Colnaghi Gallery, London 2016.