Gio Ponti

Background

Giovanni "Gio" Ponti (1891–1979) was born in Milan. After serving on the front in World War I, where he earned military decorations, he graduated in architecture from the Politecnico di Milano in 1921. He worked with Emilio Lancia in the 1920s, became artistic director of Richard-Ginori porcelain in 1923 and founded Domus magazine in 1928, which he directed for most of his life. He taught at the Milan Polytechnic from 1936 to 1961.

Signature Style

An architect, industrial designer, furniture designer, artist, writer and publisher, Ponti pursued lightness and transparency and often designed buildings "from top to bottom", interiors and furniture included. He championed an Italian art of living and helped renew Italian design after the Second World War.

Notable Works

• Pirelli Tower, Milan (1956–1960, with Pier Luigi Nervi)
• Villa Planchart, Caracas (1953–1957)
• Superleggera chair (Cassina, 1957)
• Taranto Cathedral (1970) and the Denver Art Museum envelope (1971)
• D.154.2 armchair, reissued by Molteni&C

Legacy

Ponti built more than a hundred buildings in a career spanning six decades, helped create the Compasso d'Oro award in 1954 and won it in 1956. Molteni&C exclusively reproduces a selection of his works in collaboration with the Gio Ponti Archives.