Italian Three-Light Brass Applique by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, 1940s
View Similar Items
Italian Three-Light Brass Applique by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, 1940s
About the Item
- Creator:Fontana Arte (Manufacturer),Pietro Chiesa (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 17.72 in (45 cm)Width: 9.45 in (24 cm)Depth: 12.6 in (32 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1940s
- Condition:
- Seller Location:MIlano, IT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU4860218783092
Fontana Arte
Best known for its elegant and innovative vintage lighting fixtures, the Milan-based firm Fontana Arte pioneered one of the key features of 20th-century and contemporary Italian design: the union of artistry and industry wrought by partnerships between creative talents — chiefly architects — and entrepreneurial businesses. Fontana Arte is further distinguished by having had as artistic director, in succession, four of Italy’s most inventive modernist designers: Gio Ponti, Pietro Chiesa, French transplant Max Ingrand and Gae Aulenti.
The bread and butter of the glassmaking company that Luigi Fontana founded in 1881 was plate-glass panels for the construction industry. In 1930, Fontana met Ponti — then the artistic director of the Richard Ginori ceramics workshop and the editor of the influential magazine Domus — at a biannual design exhibition that became the precursor to today’s Milan Design Triennale, and the two hatched an idea for a furniture and housewares firm. Fontana Arte was incorporated in 1932 with Ponti as its chief of design. He contributed several lamps that remain among the company’s signature works, including the orb-atop-cone Bilia table lamp and the 0024 pendant — a stratified hanging sphere.
The following year, Fontana Arte partnered with the influential Milan studio glassmaker and retailer Pietro Chiesa, who took over as artistic director. Chiesa’s designs for lighting — as well as for tables and items including vases and ashtrays — express an appreciation for fluidity and simplicity of line, as seen in works such as his flute-shaped Luminator floor lamp and the 1932 Fontana table — an arched sheet of glass that is held in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
Six years after Chiesa’s 1948 death, the École des Beaux Arts–trained Max Ingrand took over as head of design at Fontana Arte. Ingrand brought a similarly expressive formal sensibility to wares such as lamps and mirrors, but he also had a masterful eye for the manipulation of glass surfaces — whether they be cut, frosted, acid-etched or sand-blasted. His classic design is the Fontana table lamp of 1954, which has a truncated cone shade and curved body, both of which are made of pure, chic white-frosted glass.
Following Ingrand, the often-audacious Italian architect Gae Aulenti served as the company’s artistic director from 1979 to 1996, and while she generally insisted that furnishings take second place aesthetically to architecture, she made an exception for Fontana Arte pieces such as the Tavolo con Ruote series of glass coffee and dining tables on wheels, bold lighting pieces such as the Parola series and the Giova, a combination flower vase and table lamp. As a key incubator of modern design under Aulenti’s tenure, Fontana Arte remained true to its long-held commitment — creating objects that have never been less than daring.
Find vintage Fontana Arte lighting fixtures such as pendants, table lamps and more on 1stDibs.
- Mod. 1736 Coffee Table by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, 1950sBy Fontana Arte, Pietro ChiesaLocated in MIlano, ITMod. 1736 coffee table by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, 1950s Impressive Italian coffee table from 1950s, designed by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte from fifties. Structure is in black lacquered metal and brass, while a strong and heavy tray stands on it. The top is in green water glass...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofa Tables
MaterialsMetal, Brass
- Italian Mid-Century Brass and Glass Applique Zero Quattro of Fontana Arte, 1950sBy Fontana Arte, Zero QuattroLocated in MIlano, ITItalian Mid-Century Modern brass and glass leaves applique by Zero Quattro section of Fontana Arte, 1950s Wall lamp with brass structure equipped with supports necessary for the sus...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
MaterialsBrass
- Italian Mid-Century Modern Vase Cartoccio in Satin Glass by Pietro Chiesa, 1940sBy Pietro ChiesaLocated in MIlano, ITItalian Mid-Century Modern Vase Cartoccio in satin glass by Pietro Chiesa, 1940s Vase model Cartoccio of irregularly shaped in satin glass. Designed by Pietro Chiesa in 1940s. Ver...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Italian space age Opaline glass steel chandelier by Fontana Arte, 1940sBy Fontana ArteLocated in MIlano, ITItalian space age Opaline glass steel chandelier by Fontana Arte, 1940s Chandelier in matte opaline glass and steel. The dome diffuser has a chromed ...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Space Age Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsSteel
- Italian red chandelier Lampara by Roberto Menghi for Fontana Arte, 1960sBy Fontana Arte, Roberto MenghiLocated in MIlano, ITItalian red chandelier Lampara by Roberto Menghi for Fontana Arte, 1960s Chandelier mod. Lampara with round base in orange-red lacquered aluminum. It has a dome-shaped lampshade lacq...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsMetal
- Italian red chandelier Lampara by Roberto Menghi for Fontana Arte, 1960sBy Fontana Arte, Roberto MenghiLocated in MIlano, ITItalian red chandelier Lampara by Roberto Menghi for Fontana Arte, 1960s Chandelier mod. Lampara with round base in orange-red lacquered aluminum. It has a dome-shaped lampshade lacq...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsMetal
- Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte Model 1537 Wall Lamp, Italy 1940sBy Fontana Arte, Pietro ChiesaLocated in Naples, ITWall lamp model 1537 from 1940 by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, made of opaline glass and brass. A highly refined design by one of the greatest masters of lighting, this exceptiona...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
MaterialsBrass
- Pietro Chiesa, Pair of Wall Lights, Brass, Paper, Fontana Arte, Italy, 1940sBy Pietro Chiesa, Fontana ArteLocated in High Point, NCA pair of sizable six-armed, brass wall lights with parchment paper lampshades, designed by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, Italy, 1940s. Shade dimensions : 2.5" x 5" x 5" lit...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
MaterialsBrass
- Lantern by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, Italy, 1940sBy Pietro Chiesa, Fontana ArteLocated in Bochum, NRWElegant lantern designed by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, made in Italy in the 1940s. Black lacquered aluminium structure with brass finishes, conical bent transparent glass body p...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsBrass, Metal
$2,629 Sale Price25% Off - Pair of 1940s Model #1537 Sconces by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana ArteBy Pietro Chiesa, Fontana ArteLocated in Glendale, CAPair of 1940s Model #1537 Sconces by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte. Executed in opaline glass and metal in Italy, circa late 1930s / early 1940s. A highly refined design by one of t...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
MaterialsMetal
- Italian Mid-Century Chandelier by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte, 1940sBy Pietro Chiesa, Fontana ArteLocated in Traversetolo, ITElegant and stylish Italian mid-century chandelier of Pietro Chiesa per Fontana Arte, from the 1940s. Two lights, polished brass structure, green aluminum lamp...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsAluminum, Brass
- Pair of Sconces by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana ArteBy Pietro Chiesa, Fontana ArteLocated in Los Angeles, CAPair of Sconces by Pietro Chiesa for Fontana Arte. Designed and manufactured in Italy, circa 1940s. Brass with opaline glass diffusers. Each light takes two E27 40w maximum bulbs. Bu...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
MaterialsBrass