Rare Executive Desk by Gio Ponti
View Similar Items
Rare Executive Desk by Gio Ponti
About the Item
- Creator:Gio Ponti (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31 in (78.74 cm)Width: 75 in (190.5 cm)Depth: 34 in (86.36 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Miami, FL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU82652351042
Gio Ponti
An architect, furniture and industrial designer and editor, Gio Ponti was arguably the most influential figure in 20th-century Italian modernism.
Ponti (1891–1979) designed thousands of furnishings and products — from cabinets, lamps 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.
His 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 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 Gio Ponti furniture on 1stDibs.
- Dry Bar Suite, in the style of Gio Ponti, Italy 1950By Gio PontiLocated in Miami, FLDry bar suite, in the style of Gio Ponti, Italy 1950 An exceptional dark cherry wood veneer and brass 1950's Italian bar suite comprised of: A curved dry bar...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Dry Bars
MaterialsBrass
$12,800 / set - Oak Settee by Guillerme and Chambron , 1960'sBy Guillerme et ChambronLocated in Miami, FLOak settee by Guillerme and Chambron for Votre Maison, 1960s The model “Denis” boasts a stunning organic modern aesthetic. Sculptural sofa features an open back with slender spills ...Category
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Settees
MaterialsLeather, Fabric, Oak
- Tapestry by Herbert Bayer Titled Event, 1980By Herbert BayerLocated in Miami, FLHerbert Bayer "Event" tapestry, 1980. Signed lower left, "Bayer" and with insignia to lower right. Verso with signed, titled, dated and numbered (2/3) label. Produced by the Munchener Gobelin-Manufaktur. Tapestry 60...Category
20th Century Mid-Century Modern Tapestries
MaterialsWool, Oak
- Pair of Oak Settees by Guillerme and Chambron, 1960'sBy Guillerme et Chambron, Votre MaisonLocated in Miami, FLPair of oak settees by Guillerme and Chambron for Votre Maison, France 1960's. The model “Denis” boasts a stunning organic modern aesthetic. Sculptural sofa features an open back wit...Category
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Settees
MaterialsOak, Leather, Fabric
On Hold$16,000 / set - Mid-Century Oak Sofa by Guillerme et Chambron, France 1960By Guillerme et Chambron, Votre MaisonLocated in Miami, FLMid-Century modern oak settee by Guillerme et Chambron, France 1950. Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple with iconic finger back. Retains a beautiful warm patina. Newly upholstered Available to view in situ in our Miami gallery...Category
Vintage 1960s French Mid-Century Modern Settees
MaterialsUpholstery, Oak
- Two Door Oak Cabinet by Guillerme et Chambron, France 1960By Guillerme et ChambronLocated in Miami, FLTwo door oak cabinet cupboard by Guillerme et Chambron, France 1960 Front doors have decorative inlaid panels, with glazed ceramic handles by artist Boleslaw Danikowski Two front do...Category
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Cabinets
MaterialsCeramic, Oak
- Rare Gio Ponti DeskBy Gio PontiLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA Gio Ponti desk manufactured in Italy by Giordano Chiesa. An early example with 2 tone drawer fronts. Purchased at the Singer Showroom in NYC. Purchased from the original family ...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsWalnut
$29,500 - Rare Gio Ponti Administrative DeskBy Gio PontiLocated in Los Angeles, CAGio Ponti desk designed in limited edition for city offices of Forlì, Italy. Original red Formica writing surface on European beechwood with 8 floating drawers. Brass base on legs. ...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsFormica, Beech
- Italian Walnut Executive Desk in the Style of Gio PontiBy Gio PontiLocated in New York, NYA uniquely designed Italian walnut executive desk having a beautifully grained floating top over a central structure of curved design with drawers and open storage throughout, the wh...Category
Mid-20th Century Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsBrass
- Black Onyx Glass & Walnut Italian Mid-Century Modern Executive Desk by Gio PontiBy Schirolli, Gio PontiLocated in New York, NYA Rare and Elegant Italian MId-Century Modern Neoclassical Desk / Writing Table by Gio Ponti in solid walnut with an inset top of black onyx glass and brass details. Ponti's design a...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsOnyx, Brass
- Gio Ponti Original 1950's DeskBy Gio PontiLocated in London, GBAn architect, furniture and industrial designer and editor, Giò Ponti was arguably the most influential figure in 20th-century Italian Modernism. Ponti designed thousands of furnishi...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsBrass
- Italian Desk by Gio Ponti Attributed, 1950sBy Gio PontiLocated in Palermo, PAItalian desk by Gio Ponti attributed, 1950s. Dimensions: H= 78 cm; W= 180 cm; D= 85 cm.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsGlass, Wood
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.