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Gio Ponti

Italian, 1891-1979

An architect, furniture and industrial designer and editor, Gio Ponti was arguably the most influential figure in 20th-century Italian modernism.

Ponti designed thousands of furnishings and products — from cabinets, mirrors 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.

Ponti's 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, which was 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 vintage Gio Ponti desks, dining chairs, coffee tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.

Average Sold Price
$3,684
Styles
Materials
Related Creators
Iconic Designs from Gio Ponti
Explore timeless pieces that have earned their place in history.
Gio Ponti Leggera
Gio Ponti Leggera
Gio Ponti Superleggera
Gio Ponti Superleggera
Bilia Lamp
Bilia Lamp
Pirellone Floor Lamp
Pirellone Floor Lamp
Luna Sospensione, Ceiling Lamp by Gio Ponti for TATO
By Gio Ponti, Tato
Located in Gargallo, NO
Pendant lamp with polycarbonate shade and brass metallic accents in various finishings, designed by Gio Ponti and re-edited by TATO since 2017. Bulbs: 3xLED E27-220V or E26-110V (not...
Category

2010s Italian Mid-Century Modern Gio Ponti

Materials

Brass, Iron

Set of 6 Gio Ponti (Attributed.) Coffe Cups for Krupp, Milano, Art Déco 1930s
By Gio Ponti
Located in Argelato, BO
Set of 6 Alpaca cups, Arthur Krupp, Milan 1930. The cups, clearly Art Dèco in style, were made in the 1930s in Milan for Krupp, exactly in the perio...
Category

1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Gio Ponti

Materials

Alpaca

Gio Ponti F.A. 33 Medium Mirror in Brass
By Gio Ponti, Gubi
Located in Glendale, CA
Gio Ponti F.A. 33 medium mirror in brass. The F.A. 33 mirror was originally designed by Gio Ponti in 1933 for Fontana Arte, the period’s most prominent lamp, glass, and mirror manufa...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Gio Ponti

Materials

Brass

Gio Ponti F.A. 33 Medium Mirror in Brass
Gio Ponti F.A. 33 Medium Mirror in Brass
H 31.5 in W 21.25 in D 1 in
Soliflore Vases by Gio Ponti for Krupp Milano, 1930's
By Gio Ponti, Arthur Krupp
Located in Albano Laziale, Rome/Lazio
The so called Soliflore vase designed by Gio Ponti for Arthur Krupp, Milano- Designed for the VI Triennale in 1936. And produced between the 1930's through to the 1950's. The sha...
Category

20th Century Italian Art Deco Gio Ponti

Materials

Silver Plate

Writing Desk in Solid Ash Wood Molteni&C by Gio Ponti D.847.1 - made in Italy
By Gio Ponti, Molteni & C
Located in New York, NY
D.847.1 Console Table by Gio Ponti - Expert-crafted in Italy exclusively by Molteni&C Expert craftsmanship has given this gorgeous console table a new life drawn from its original I...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Gio Ponti

Materials

Brass

Gio Ponti F.A. 33 Medium Mirror in Black Brass
By Gio Ponti, Gubi
Located in Glendale, CA
Gio Ponti F.A. 33 medium mirror in black brass. The F.A. 33 Mirror was originally designed by Gio Ponti in 1933 for Fontana Arte, the period’s most prominent lamp, glass, and mirror ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Gio Ponti

Materials

Brass

Gio Ponti F.A. 33 Medium Mirror in Black Brass
Gio Ponti F.A. 33 Medium Mirror in Black Brass
H 31.49 in W 21.25 in D 0.98 in
Gio Ponti Large Randaccio Mirror
By Gio Ponti, Gubi
Located in Glendale, CA
Gio Ponti large Randaccio mirror. Executed in brass and glass. Ponti created the Randaccio Mirror in 1925 for his home on Via Randaccio in Milan. Char...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Gio Ponti

Materials

Brass

Gio Ponti Large Randaccio Mirror
Gio Ponti Large Randaccio Mirror
H 29.92 in W 27.56 in D 0.67 in
Gio Ponti Medium Randaccio Mirror
By Gio Ponti, Gubi
Located in Glendale, CA
Gio Ponti medium Randaccio mirror. Executed in brass and glass. Ponti created the Randaccio Mirror in 1925 for his home on Via Randaccio in Milan. Cha...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Gio Ponti

Materials

Brass

Gio Ponti Medium Randaccio Mirror
Gio Ponti Medium Randaccio Mirror
H 25.98 in W 23.62 in D 0.67 in
Browse all Furniture from Gio Ponti
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Creators Similar to Gio Ponti

More Gio Ponti Designs
Gio Ponti Leggera
Gio Ponti Leggera
Average Price
$8,227
Number Available
31
Gio Ponti Leggera
By Gio Ponti
Materials
Wood, Fabric, Hardwood, Ash
Styles
Mid Century Modern
The Leggera chair is as striking on its own as it is in any setting, which is just as Giò Ponti (1891–1979) intended.  The gifted Milanese architect — who also designed, taught and wrote — studied architecture at the esteemed Polytechnic University of Milan, graduating in 1921. A stint in an architectural office followed, as did award-winning porcelain designs for Richard Ginori. In 1928, Ponti launched the revered design journal Domus, promoting the Novocento movement, which decried the “fa...
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Gio Ponti Superleggera
Gio Ponti Superleggera
Average Price
$15,476
Number Available
25
Gio Ponti Superleggera
By Gio Ponti
Materials
Metal, Brass, Glass, Wood, Natural Fiber
Styles
Mid Century Modern
Shop All
Bilia Lamp
Bilia Lamp
Average Price
$4,216
Number Available
3
Bilia Lamp
By Gio Ponti
Materials
Glass, Metal, Aluminum, Art Glass, Blown Glass
Styles
Modern
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Pirellone Floor Lamp
Pirellone Floor Lamp
Average Price
$2,902
Number Available
1
Pirellone Floor Lamp
By Gio Ponti
Materials
Glass
Styles
Mid Century Modern
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Gio Ponti furniture for sale on 1stDibs.

Gio Ponti furniture are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of wood and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Gio Ponti furniture, although brown editions of this piece are particularly popular. We have 567 vintage editions of these items in-stock, while there is 129 modern edition to choose from as well. Many of the original furniture by Gio Ponti were created in the mid-century modern style in europe during the 20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider furniture by Afra & Tobia Scarpa, Mario Bellini, and Osvaldo Borsani. Prices for Gio Ponti furniture can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $83 and can go as high as $88,000, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $7,193.

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