Gio Ponti

He needs no introduction: Gio Ponti is one of the pioneering figures of 20th-century design and architecture. Having graduated in 1921 with a degree in architecture from the Polytechnic University of Milan, his home town, he went on to specialise in interior design, without neglecting his original vocation.

He described himself as ‘a painter who fell in love with architecture’, which led him to combine art and technique. He then began to create interior designs, patterns and ceramics. Barely two years after leaving university, he became artistic director of the porcelain manufacturer Richard Ginori and was awarded the Grand Prix for Ceramics at the International Exhibition of Decorative Arts in 1925. A few years later, he co-founded and edited the magazine *Domus*, which covers art, architecture and interior design, and is still published today.

Gio Ponti was commissioned to design buildings such as the iconic Pirelli skyscraper in Milan and the Denver Art Museum in Colorado. He made a name for himself in the world of architecture with his avant-garde and innovative designs.

However, he began to apply his talent to the design of interior furniture. Gio Ponti was passionate about craftsmanship and innovation. Throughout his career, he created numerous design icons, such as the Uovo table lamp and the Superleggera chair. Obsessed with the quality of his pieces, Ponti threw the prototype of the Superleggera chair from the fourth floor to test its fragility before putting it on sale. Over the course of his six-decade career, Gio Ponti collaborated with numerous brands such as Gubi, Cassina and Moltenic&C, leaving behind a profound influence and legacy on Italian culture more than forty years after his death.