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.
Gio Ponti Walnut Wastepaper Basket, 1939, Italy
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Gio Ponti Walnut Wastepaper Basket, 1939, Italy A Gio Ponti designed walnut wastepaper basket made for the Vetrocoke offices, Marghera, Venice, circa 1939. Extremely elegant, feat...
Walnut
Rare Art Glass Bottle Morandiana by Gio Ponti for Venini Murano
By Gio Ponti, Venini
Located in Berghuelen, DE
Rare Art Glass Bottle Morandiana by Gio Ponti for Venini Murano A vintage art glass bottle in transparent blue glass with green stopper and a green base fused in incalmo technique. ...
Art Glass
Art Glass Bottle Morandiana by Gio Ponti for Venini Murano
By Paolo Venini, Gio Ponti
Located in Berghuelen, DE
Art Glass Bottle Morandiana by Gio Ponti for Venini Murano A vintage glass bottle in transparent green glass with blue stopper and a blue base fused in incalmo technique. Designed b...
Art Glass
Paolo De Poli and Gio Ponti Enamel Vide Poche, Italy 1956
By Gio Ponti, Paolo De Poli
Located in Milan, IT
Paolo De Poli and Gio Ponti Enamel on Copper Vide Poche, Italy 1956 Original label / Sold through the historical Frangi design store in Milan.
Copper, Enamel
Italian Plates by Gio Ponti for Franco Pozzi, 1960s, Set of 2
By Gio Ponti
Located in Varese, Lombardia
Set of 2 decorative plates designed by Gio Ponti for Ceramica Franco Pozzi from the "Fantasia Italiana" serie. Good condition: Plates have b...
Ceramic
Gio Ponti for Cleto Munari Modernist Silver Plated Serving Plate Italy, 1980s
By Cleto Munari, Gio Ponti
Located in Roma, IT
Wonderful Mid-Century silver-plated serving plate, centerpiece or vide poche, designed by Gio Ponti for Cleto Munari and produced in Italy during the 1980s. Signed on the top by Gio Ponti and bears the Cleto Munari stamp underneath. In fabulous conditions, with no scratches on the upper surface, 4 pieces currently available. Its sleek and efficient design, composed of two subtly offset concentric planes, makes this object not only functional but also a masterclass in geometric elegance, perfectly reflecting the artistic vision of Ponti. This rare piece is ideal to enrich a mid-century modern living room, dining table, or a minimalist bar setup. Dimensions (cm): Diameter – 32 Giovanni “Gio” Ponti, (Milan, November 18, 1891 - Milan, September 16, 1979), is one of the Italian masters of architecture. He was also a designer and essayist and one of the most important of the twentieth century. Other than the great architectural works which carry his unmistakable signature, he created a vast amount of work in the furniture sector. This is demonstrated in his three Milanese houses which were fully furnished in the "Ponti" style. The houses in via Randaccio, 1925, Casa Laporte in via Brin, 1926 and the last in via Dezza, in 1957 is an "expression" of his home design ideas...
Metal, Silver Plate
$2,021
H 17.72 in Dm 8.86 in
Carl Auböck Midcentury Raffia Umbrella Stand, Wastepaper Basket, 1950s, Austria
By Werkstätte Carl Auböck
Located in Biebergemund, Hessen
Very rare simple and elegant midcentury umbrella stand or wastepaper basket designed by Carl Auböck II and manufactured by Werkstätten Auböck in the 1950s, Austria. It's made of raff...
Brass
$571
H 2.17 in W 11.03 in D 6.7 in
Vintage Enameled Copper Vide-Poche / Decorative Bowl Ascribable to Paolo De Poli
By Paolo De Poli
Located in Bresso, Lombardy
Made in Italy, 1960s. This catchall is highly ascribable to Paolo de Poli and its shape seems to recall Gio Ponti's design. It is made in thick enameled copper- This vide-poche is ...
Copper
$1,199Sale Price|62% Off
H 9.26 in Dm 7.88 in
Rare Italian Vase 1930 Embossed Copper Gio Ponti for Nino Ferrari Attributed
By Gio Ponti
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Rare Italian vase 1930 embossed copper Gio Ponti for Nino Ferrari Attributed.
Copper
$9,500
H 10 in W 8.2 in D 6.2 in
Gio Ponti Ceramic Sculpture" Il Pellegrino Stanco" for Richard Ginori, Milano
By Richard Ginori, Gio Ponti
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Great sample of one most important designers of the 20th century, Glazed ceramic, Gio Ponti, made for Richard Ginori and marked S Christoforo, Milano.
Ceramic
Architettura con Armatura Lidded Wastepaper Basket, circa 1960
Located in Houston, TX
1960s Architettura con Armatura lidded wastepaper basket composed of enameled and lithographed tinplate featuring depictions of medieval kinght in full armor and period architecture....
Metal
Gio Ponti for Venini Italian Morandine Art Glass Decanter & Stopper
By Gio Ponti
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
A stunning Italian Venini mid-century blue and green Morandine art glass decanter by the father figure of Italian design Gio Ponti (Italian, 1891-1979) and designed in 1949. Gio Po...
Blown Glass
$1,130
H 1.19 in W 7.09 in D 7.09 in
Vintage Murano Glass Bowl by Sergio Asti For Venini – Swirl Green, 1970s
By Venini
Located in Montecalvoli, IT
Vintage Murano Glass Bowl by Sergio Asti for Venini – Swirl Green, 1970s This vintage Murano glass bowl, designed by Sergio Asti for Venini in the 1970s,...
Murano Glass
Gio Ponti for Venini, A Canne Polychrome Vase, Murano, circa 1950s
By Gio Ponti, Venini
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A commanding example of the a canne technique by Gio Ponti for Venini, executed in a generous upright trumpet form with a gently undulating, free-formed rim. Vertical canes of colore...
Murano Glass
$1,519 / set
H 5.52 in Dm 3.55 in
Set of Three Vintage Ceramic Plates by Ljuba Naumovitch, French Vallauris, 1960s
By Le Grand Chêne 1, Ljuba Naumovitch
Located in Camblanes et Meynac, FR
Set of Three Vintage Ceramic Plates by Ljuba Naumovitch, French Vallauris, 1960s Exceptional set of three plates decorated with women's faces. Emblematic creations of Ljuba Naumovitch in the Atelier Grand Chêne...
Enamel
$1,941
H 14.57 in W 3.94 in D 2.76 in
"Horned Mask" Gio Ponti by Sabattini Silver Plated 1970s Italian Design
By Gio Ponti
Located in Brescia, IT
"Horned Mask" Gio Ponti by Sabattini, 1978 Openwork metal sheet.
Metal
$956Sale Price / set|20% Off
H 10.32 in Dm 6 in
Mid-Century Artisan Striped Cane Bottle Decanters like Gio Ponti for Venini
By Gio Ponti
Located in Hyattsville, MD
Unknown design/maker, unsigned, possibly Murano. An amazing pair of hand-blown art glass bottles with matching stoppers. Thin walled, striping all through botles and the stoppers. ...
Art Glass, Blown Glass
Sergio Asti for Venini Large Murano Glass Ashtray , Italy, 1967
By Venini, Sergio Asti
Located in Milan, IT
Sergio Asti for Venini Glass Large Ashtray. From the renowned DE'MODE'S series Designed on the occasion of the remodeling of the Bar Excelsior at the Excelsior Hotel Lido of Venice....
Murano Glass
Italian Neoclassical Red Leather Wastepaper Basket or Trash Can, 20th Century
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Italian Neoclassical Red Leather Wastepaper Basket or Trash Can, 20th Century Description: This refined Italian wastepaper basket is executed in richly colored red leather and desig...
Leather, Wood
$995Sale Price|20% Off
H 10 in W 13 in D 7.75 in
Austrian Bronze & Iron Neoclassical Trash Can / Wastepaper Basket
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Austrian bronze & iron neoclassical trash can / wastepaper basket Austria, circa early 20th century Of oval form with a continuous trellis, garland and flowerhead motif. Beautiful...
Bronze, Iron
Glass Table Clock by Cleto Munari, Italy, 1980s
By Cleto Munari
Located in Milan, IT
Tiny glass table clock by Cleto Munari. Heavy transparent sphere with silver stripe lays on a black glass plinth.
Silver
Gio Ponti, Waste Paper Basket, Walnut, Brass, Italy, 1950s
By Gio Ponti, Schirolli
Located in High Point, NC
A walnut and brass waste paper basket designed by Gio Ponti and produced by Schirolli, Italy, 1950s.
Brass
Gio Ponti Porcelain Plate for Richard Ginori Velesca Collection 1920s
By Gio Ponti
Located in Milano, MI
Porcelain plate from the Velesca Collection, made by Gio Ponti for Richard Ginori in the 1920s Ø 24.5 cm Gio Ponti was an Italian architect and designer born in Milan in 1891. He i...
Porcelain
Sold
H 0.4 in Dm 12.6 in
Gio Ponti for Cleto Munari Modernist Silver Plated Serving Plate Italy, 1980s
By Gio Ponti, Cleto Munari
Located in Roma, IT
Wonderful Mid-Century silver plated serving plate or vide poche designed and signed by Gio Ponti for Cleto Munari, in Italy during the 1980s. The flat and efficient design on two round decentered levels, make this piece simply irresistible and iconic for midcentury lovers. In amazing conditions with no scratches on the top. This piece will smarten a midcentury living room or a minimal bar. Dimensions (cms): Diameter - 32 Giovanni “Gio” Ponti, (Milan, November 18, 1891 - Milan, September 16, 1979), is one of the Italian masters of architecture. He was also a designer and essayist and one of the most important of the twentieth century. Other than the great architectural works which carry his unmistakable signature, he created a vast amount of work in the furniture sector. This is demonstrated in his three Milanese houses which were fully furnished in the "Ponti" style. The houses in via Randaccio, 1925, Casa Laporte in via Brin, 1926 and the last in via Dezza, in 1957 is an "expression" of his home design ideas. Gio Ponti was an Italian promoter of industrial design and introduced the idea of interior furnishing ranges produced as being a "sophisticated," economic, "democratic" and modern. Molteni&C managed a reissuing project of furniture and furnishings designed by Gio Ponti for products for these private homes and limited editions. After a long journey of research, selection and study of prototypes, the collection was exhibited at the Salone del Mobile 2012. This was thanks to the cooperation and the exclusively signed agreement of the Ponti heirs and the artistic director of Cerri & Associati Studio. Gio Ponti graduated in Architecture at the Polytechnic of Milan at the end of World War I, after he fought on the front line earning military decorations. In 1921 he married Giulia Vimercati, with whom he had four children: Lisa, Giovanna, Letizia and Giulio. In 1927 he opened a studio in Milan with the architect Emilio Lancia. From the beginning of the 1920’s until 1938 he worked with Richard-Ginori Manufactory and renewed its production. In 1928 he founded the Domus magazine with Gianni Mazzocchi. In 1933 he became the artistic director of Fontana Arte which was another success after the one he obtained with Richard-Ginori. In the 1930’s he participated in the Triennale exhibitions and later he successfully managed a few of them. From 1936 to 1961 he was a professor at the Milan Polytechnic, and in 1933 was associated with Antonio Fornaroli and Eugenio Soncini, until 1945. From this partnership major projects were born, including the Montecatini Palace in Milan from 1936 to 1938, in which Ponti created the "integral design" of the building and the interiors. Other works of the period were civil architecture, including the Littoria Tower in Milan in 1933, school buildings such as the School of Mathematics at the University City Rome in 1934 and the Humanities Faculty and the Rectorate of the University of Padua in 1937. There were also residential projects such as Casa Marmont in 1934 and Milan "Domus" from 1931 to 1936. The richness of the artistic production of Cleto Munari, arises out of the discovery that every boundary is undefined, and the consequent need to create a “collection about syllables” or rather a “collection of figures” which, because of their incompleteness, luminously suggest the irrepressible quest of man’s intelligence to transfigure the world, according to his own vision. It is this a perfect complicity between the whisper of the “heart...
Silver Plate, Metal
Gio Ponti Autumn Plate
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Gio Ponti Autumn Plate. Mid-century Gio Ponti for Richard Ginori allegory of Autumn plate. Re-edition dating back to the 1970s of the plates designed by...
Porcelain
Sold
H 1.97 in Dm 9.06 in
An Art Deco Style Porcelain Round Bowl Designed by Gio Ponti for Richard Ginori
By Gio Ponti, Richard Ginori
Located in Aci Castello, IT
An amazing porcelain bowl designed by Giò Ponti and manufactured by Richard Ginori, it's in pwerfect condition probably never used. The bowl is has a distinct and bold Art Deco aesth...
Porcelain
Gio Ponti Alato Collection Bowl Re-edition by RICHARD GINORI
By Gio Ponti
Located in Milano, MI
Cup from the Alato Collection by Gio Ponti from 1927, re-edition by Richard Ginori Ø cm 7 h cm 8 Company of Lombard origin founded in 1896 when the Marquis Carlo Ginori, passionate...
Porcelain
Gio Ponti for Ginori Athletic Dish
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Gio Ponti for Ginori athletic dish. Vintage Richard Ginori shaped nut dish/ small saucer from the athletic series designed by Gio Ponti featuring ...
Porcelain
Sold
H 5.12 in Dm 5.12 in
1957 Spherical Flower Holder Silver Plated Metal by Gio Ponti for Christofle
By Christofle, Gio Ponti
Located in London, GB
This very elegant spherical flower holder was created by the great Italian designer Gio Ponti for Christofle Top luxury brand in 1957, models name "Mars". Silver plated metal with se...
Silver Plate
Sold
H 3.94 in Dm 14.18 in
1930s by Gio Ponti Giovanni Gariboldi for San Cristoforo Ginori Pottery Bowl
By Giovanni Gariboldi, Richard Ginori, Gio Ponti
Located in Brescia, IT
San Cristoforo, 1936 Green and black glazed pottery bowl. Perfect Condition.
Pottery
Set of Three Gio Ponti Plates #2, Italy, 1960s
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Set of three colorful plates designed by Gio Ponti for Ceramica Franco Pozzi. Label on the back. Perfect for bringing a splash of color to any room. Six separate sets with different ...
Set of Five Gio Ponti Plates #2, Italy, 1960s
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Set of five colorful plates designed by Gio Ponti for Ceramica Franco Pozzi. Label on the back. Perfect for bringing a splash of color to any room. Six separate sets with different d...
Single Gio Ponti Plate, Italy, 1960s
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Colorful plate designed by Gio Ponti for Ceramica Franco Pozzi. Label on the back. Perfect for bringing a splash of color to any room. Six separate sets with different designs for a ...
Set of Two Gio Ponti Plates #3, Italy, 1960s
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Set of two colorful plates designed by Gio Ponti for Ceramica Franco Pozzi. Label on the back. Perfect for bringing a splash of color to any room. Three separate sets with different ...
Set of Five Gio Ponti Plates #1, Italy, 1960s
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Set of five colorful plates designed by Gio Ponti for Ceramica Franco Pozzi. Label on the back. Perfect for bringing a splash of color to any room. Six separate sets with different d...
Set of Three Gio Ponti Plates #1, Italy, 1960s
By Gio Ponti
Located in New York, NY
Set of three colorful plates designed by Gio Ponti for Ceramica Franco Pozzi. Label on the back. Perfect for bringing a splash of color to any room. Six separate sets with different ...