Gio Ponti Armchair Model 803 for Cassina, Italy, 1954
View Similar Items
Gio Ponti Armchair Model 803 for Cassina, Italy, 1954
About the Item
- Creator:Gio Ponti (Designer),Figli di Amadeo Cassina (Author)
- Dimensions:Height: 29.53 in (75 cm)Width: 29.53 in (75 cm)Depth: 29.53 in (75 cm)Seat Height: 0.4 in (1 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950-1960
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Rovereta, SM
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU3757315157412
Gio Ponti
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.
- Pair of Gio Ponti Armchairs Italian I.S.A. Bergamo, 1950sBy Gio Ponti, ISA BergamoLocated in Rovereta, SMPair of Gio Ponti armchairs velvet upholstery, I.S.A. Bergamo manufacturer, Italy, 1950s.Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsWood
- Very rare pair of "Triennale" armchairs by Gio Ponti for I.S.A. BergamoBy Gio Ponti, ISA BergamoLocated in Rovereta, SMVery Rare "Triennial" Armchairs Designer: Gio Ponti Manufacturer: I.S.A. Bergamo . Date made: 1951 Country of origin: Italy Literature: Domus, no. 280 March 1953 Irene de Gut...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Armchairs
MaterialsBrass
- Pair Armchairs Ico Parisi for Cassina, Italian Midcentury, "Model 865", 1955By Ico Parisi, CassinaLocated in Rovereta, SMPair armchairs Ico Parisi for Cassina, Italian Midcentury, "Model 865", 1955.Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsSteel
- Rara Coppia di Poltrone Disegnate da Gio Ponti 1950 ItaliaBy Gio PontiLocated in Rovereta, SMRara e sofisticata coppia di poltrone italiane di metà secolo provenienti da un'importante villa di Bologna. Disegnate da Gio Ponti, boucle e legno, anni '50 Il legno è stato luc...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- Rare Pair "Giulia" Armchair Model 877 by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina 1957By Cassina, Gianfranco FrattiniLocated in Rovereta, SMRare Pair Giulia armchair Model 877 by Gianfranco Frattini For Cassina 1957.Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsWood
- Pair Gio Ponti Consoles for Giordano Chiesa Italy, 1964By Gio PontiLocated in Rovereta, SMPair of console tables by Gio Ponti, Manufactured for the Parco dei Principe Hotel Sorrento, circa 1961 Ash Formica Brass Giordano Chiesa Italy, 1964Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Console Tables
MaterialsFormica, Wood
- Gio Ponti Armchair, Model 803 by Cassina, Italy, 1954By Cassina, Gio PontiLocated in The Hague, NLThis rare armchair was designed by Gio Ponti and produced by Cassina, Italy in 1954. The model was numbered 803 and is one of the most iconic and recognizable Ponti designs produced ...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Upholstery, Walnut
- A Pair of Model 803 Armchairs by Gio Ponti for Cassina, 1950sBy Gio Ponti, CassinaLocated in Helsinki, FIA Pair of model 803 armchairs by Gio Ponti for Cassina, 1950s. Oak and fabric upholstery. Good vintage condition, minor patina consistent with age and use. The armchairs are sold as ...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Oak
- Pair of Armchairs, Mod. 803, Design by Gio Ponti, Cassina Production Italy, 1954By Gio PontiLocated in Napoli, ITPair of armchairs, mod. 803, designed by Gio Ponti and produced by Cassina, Italy, 1954. Full restored and newly upholster in cotton velvet rust with rust satin sides. Bibliography...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsWood
- Gio Ponti Pair of Armchairs, Model "803" Manufactured by Cassina Italy, 1955By Gio PontiLocated in Barcelona, ESGio Ponti Pair of armchairs, model «803» Manufactured by Cassina Italy, 1955 Walnut, fabric. From the archives of Side Gallery, Barcelona Measurements 80 cm x 75 cm x 81.5 H...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Walnut
- Gio Ponti Model 811 armchair made of walnut and rubber, Cassina, Italy, 1957By Figli di Amadeo Cassina, Gio PontiLocated in Chiavari, LiguriaA rare armchair Model 811, with a walnut structure and rubber bands, designed by Gio Ponti and produced in Italy by Cassina in 1957. There are artifacts from past decades that, due ...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsRubber, Walnut
- Mid Century 1950s Model 803 Armchair by Gio PontiBy Cassina, Gio PontiLocated in London, LondonArmchair by Gio Ponti Model 803 New upholstery Stained beech legs Made by Cassina Retailed by Illums Bolihus (label attached) Upholstered in Pierre Frey fabric with...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Velvet, Beech
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.