Steel Set by Gio Ponti for Calderoni, Italy, 1950s
About the Item
- Creator:
- Dimensions:Height: 0.99 in (2.5 cm)Width: 17.72 in (45 cm)Depth: 10.63 in (27 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 4
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Milan, IT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU945112972241
Gio Ponti
An architect, furniture and industrial designer and editor, Gio Ponti was arguably the most influential figure in 20th-century Italian modernism.
Ponti (1891–1979) designed thousands of furnishings and products — from cabinets, lamps and chairs to ceramics and coffeemakers — and his buildings, including the brawny Pirelli Tower (1956) in his native Milan, and the castle-like Denver Art Museum (1971), were erected in 14 countries. Through Domus, the magazine he founded in 1928, Ponti brought attention to virtually every significant movement and creator in the spheres of modern art and design.
The questing intelligence Ponti brought to Domus is reflected in his work: as protean as he was prolific, Ponti’s style can’t be pegged to a specific genre. In the 1920s, as artistic director for the Tuscan porcelain maker Richard Ginori, he fused old and new; his ceramic forms were modern, but decorated with motifs from Roman antiquity. In pre-war Italy, modernist design was encouraged, and after the conflict, Ponti — along with designers such as Carlo Mollino, Franco Albini, Marco Zanuso — found a receptive audience for their novel, idiosyncratic work. Ponti’s typical furniture forms from the period, such as the wedge-shaped Distex chair, are simple, gently angular, and colorful; equally elegant and functional. In the 1960s and ’70s, Ponti’s style evolved again as he explored biomorphic shapes, and embraced the expressive, experimental designs of Ettore Sottsass Jr., Joe Colombo and others.
His signature furniture piece — the one by which he is represented in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Germany’s Vitra Design Museum and elsewhere — is the sleek Superleggera chair, produced by Cassina starting in 1957. (The name translates as “superlightweight” — advertisements featured a model lifting it with one finger.) Ponti had a playful side, best shown in a collaboration he began in the late 1940s with the graphic artist Piero Fornasetti. Ponti furnishings were decorated with bright finishes and Fornasetti's whimsical lithographic transfer prints of things such as butterflies, birds or flowers; the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts possesses a 1950 secretary from their Architetturra series, which feature case pieces covered in images of building interiors and facades. The grandest project Ponti and Fornasetti undertook, however, lies on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean: the interiors of the luxury liner Andrea Doria, which sank in 1956.
Widely praised retrospectives at the Queens Museum of Art in 2001 and at the Design Museum London in 2002 sparked a renewed interest in Ponti among modern design aficionados. (Marco Romanelli’s monograph written for the London show, offers a fine overview of Ponti’s work.) Today, a wide array of Ponti’s designs are snapped up by savvy collectors who want to give their homes a touch of Italian panache and effortless chic.
Find a range of Gio Ponti furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Milan, Italy
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 14 days of delivery.
- Set of Three Steel Baskets by Gio Ponti for Arthur Krupp, Italy, 1930sBy Gio Ponti, Arthur KruppLocated in Milan, ITSet of three steel baskets attributed to Gio Ponti for Arthur Krupp, Milano.Category
Vintage 1930s Italian Serving Pieces
MaterialsMetal
- Stainless Steel Fish-Dish by Roberto Sambonet for Sambonet, Italy, 1950sLocated in Milan, ITSculptural stainless steel fish-dish by Roberto Sambonet for Sambonet. "In the form of a bivalvular shell for cooking and serving fish whole. It can also ...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Serving Pieces
MaterialsSteel
- Set of 4 Orange Leather "Leggera" Chairs by Gio Ponti for Cassina, Italy, 1950sBy Gio Ponti, CassinaLocated in Milan, ITFour chairs model 646 by Gio Ponti for Cassina. Rare version with upholstered backrest. Set features three chairs come with same color and the fourth one in a different color.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Chairs
MaterialsWood
- Set of Six Ceramic Tiles by Gio Ponti, Italy, 1930sBy Gio Ponti, Richard GinoriLocated in Milan, ITRare set of 6 ceramic tiles by Gio Ponti. Part of the "Ermione" collection, this set shows traditional works of the countryside.Category
Vintage 1930s Italian Decorative Art
MaterialsCeramic
- Set of Two Wood Single Beds by Gio Ponti, Italy, 1940sBy Gio PontiLocated in Milan, ITSet of two single beds by Gio Ponti. Sold with a certificate of expertise from the Gio Ponti Archives.Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- "Vetrate Grossa" Glass Sculpture by Gio Ponti, Italy, 1960sBy Venini, Gio PontiLocated in Milan, IT"Vetrata Grossa" glass sculpture by Gio Ponti for Venini. Colored glass block used as sample to compose screens, large windows or as single sculpture...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Sculptures
MaterialsMetal
- Gio Ponti by Calderoni Italian Design Alpacca Metal Serving Coffee SetBy Gio Ponti, CalderoniLocated in Brescia, ITGio Ponti "Parco Dei Principi Hotel" series by Calderoni, 1940s. Silver alpacca metal excellent condiction. Measures: H 15, H 13, H 12.Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Serving Pieces
MaterialsMetal
- Gio Ponti Midcentury Signed Alpaca Serving Set for Calderoni, 1960sBy Gio Ponti, CalderoniLocated in Koper, SIThis serving set was designed by Gio Ponti for Fratelli Calderoni in the 1950s. It is made of silver plated alpaca, an alloy of copper zinc and nickel. The set includes a milk jug, ...Category
Vintage 1960s Serving Pieces
MaterialsAlpaca
- Gio Ponti Italian Silver Plated Champagne Buckets for Fratelli Calderoni, 1950sBy Gio Ponti, CalderoniLocated in Byron Bay, NSWBeautiful champagne buckets by Gio Ponti design for the Hotel Parco dei Principi in Italy, 1950 very rare pieces both signed. Silver plated.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Barware
MaterialsSilver Plate
- Gio Ponti Silver Plate Soliflores for Fratelli Calderoni, Italy, 1960s, Set of 6By Gio Ponti, CalderoniLocated in Brescia , BresciaEnhance your home decor with this stunning set of six Gio Ponti Silver Plate Soliflores, crafted by Fratelli Calderoni in Italy during the 1960s. Designed by the legendary architect ...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Wine Coolers
MaterialsSilver Plate, Metal
- 1930 Gio Ponti Calderoni Alpacca Argento Monofiore Vaso _ set di 4By Gio Ponti, CalderoniLocated in Brescia, ITGruppo di 4 Monofiore des. Gio Ponti Calderoni, Milano 1930s Alpacca argentato Marchio impresso sul fondo Eccellenti condizioniCategory
Vintage 1930s Italian Art Deco Sheffield and Silverplate
MaterialsMetal
- Three 1950s Alpaca Serving Bowls Designed by Gio Ponti for Fratelli CalderoniBy Gio PontiLocated in Aci Castello, ITThree serving bowl designed by Gio Ponti and manufactured by Fratelli Calderoni in the Fifties. They have been especially made for hotel use, they are marked on the bottom. They have...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Serving Bowls
MaterialsAlpaca
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Barnaba Fornasetti’s Hallucinatory House Has His Father’s Spirit
Behind a nondescript facade in northeastern Milan is the magical residence of Barnaba Fornasetti. It's a shrine to the style developed by his design-legend father, which still defies categorization.
Billy Cotton Layers His Interiors with Lived-In Comfort
The Brooklyn-based designer is adept at styles ranging from austere to over-the-top, espousing an architectural, detail-oriented approach also evident in his line of furniture and lighting.