1950s Rare Wall Coat Hanger With Shelf by Fontana Arte
View Similar Items
1950s Rare Wall Coat Hanger With Shelf by Fontana Arte
About the Item
- Creator:Fontana Arte (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 11.03 in (28 cm)Width: 55.12 in (140 cm)Depth: 11.82 in (30 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1950
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:London, GB
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU99571769122
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.
- Coat Hanger with Mirror and Glass Wrought Iron Shelf by Pierluigi Colli, 1950sBy Pier Luigi ColliLocated in Montelabbate, PUGlass & Wrought Iron Shelf by Pierluigi Colli, 1950s.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Shelves
MaterialsMetal, Gold
- Rare Wall Shelf by Constant Nieuwenhuys for Asmeta, Netherlands, 1950sBy Asmeta, Constant NieuwenhuysLocated in Schagen, NLVery rare metal wall shelf designed by Dutch artist and designer Constant Nieuwenhuys for Asmeta (ASsendelftse METAalwarenfabriek). The shelf remains in good condition with light ...Category
Vintage 1950s Dutch Mid-Century Modern Shelves
MaterialsSheet Metal
- Artek Wall Shelf by Alvar Aalto, 1950sBy Artek, Alvar AaltoLocated in Turku, FIArtek's wall shelf 112B is an elegant and practical shelf that can be used for books, decorative lamps or small items. Alvar Aalto designed the wall shelf 112 in 1936. This one was ...Category
Mid-20th Century Finnish Scandinavian Modern Shelves
MaterialsBirch
$806 Sale Price20% Off - 1950s Cesare Lacca Magazine Rack for Fontana ArteBy Cesare LaccaLocated in London, LambethBorn Naples in 1972 Italian architect designer Cesare Lacca created modernist furniture and metalwork throughout the 1950s This unusual magazi...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Shelves
MaterialsSteel
- 1950s Wall Shelf and Mirror by Ludvig PontoppidanBy Ludvig PontoppidanLocated in Sagaponack, NYAn elegant, finely detailed and beautifully crafted mirror and accompanying wall shelf with a drawer in warm teak. The drawer in the shelf has handcut dovetail joints and is accessed...Category
Vintage 1950s Scandinavian Modern Wall Mirrors
MaterialsTeak
$10,500 / set - Ilmari Lappalainen, 'Leo' Book Shelf / Wall Shelf for Asko, 1950sBy Ilmari LappalainenLocated in Los Gatos, CAIlmari Lappalainen, a mid-20th century 'Leo' Book shelf/wall shelf for Asko. Stained and lacquered birch. Measures: Width 105 cm. Height 87 cm.Category
Vintage 1950s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Shelves
MaterialsBirch