Gio Ponti for Fontana Arte ‘Parco Dei Principi’ Floor Lamp with White Shade

Gio Ponti for Fontana Arte, floor lamp ‘Parco dei Principi’ model 1967, brass, glass, lacquered metal, bakelite, Italy, circa 1960

This delicate floor lamp by Gio Ponti is derived from the design that has been created for the Hotel Parco dei Principi in Sorrento. In 1959, Gio Ponti was commissioned to create a hotel building on the coast of Sorrento, Italy. In extraordinary location and on the walls of historic remains, Ponti constructed a modern complex which opened its doors in 1962. To this day, the luxurious place visually convinces through Ponti’s approach in designing the different rooms using exclusively the colors blue and white. Ponti initially designed the floor lamp with a blue shade to furnish the private and public rooms of the hotel in Sorrento. Functionality comes into play by means of the adjustable stem and lampshade, allowing the user to adjust the light in any preferred direction. The elegancy of the lamp can be fully appreciated through the thin stem executed in brass. The transparent base further emphasizes the lightness and simplicity of the whole unit. The hemispherical shade in white beautifully compliments with the patinated brass.

Giovanni (Gio) Ponti (1891 – 1979) is one of the most influential Italian designers of the twentieth century. His contribution to architecture, furniture design and the arts has been substantial. Born in Milan in 1891, he attended the Polytechnic University of Milan, where he graduated in Architecture in 1921 after serving the military during World War One. He opened his first studio in 1927 in Milan with architect Emilio Lancia. Soon after, he founded Domus magazine in 1928 with Gianni Mazzocchi, which became one of the most prominent European magazines in architecture and design. Ponti participated during the Triennale exhibitions of the 1930s, and later he became a member of the Triennial committee. A significant shift can be distinguished in his designs between the two World Wars. During the early years, Ponti's style positioned between rationalism and Lombard Classicism that came forward in his use of decorative elements in his furniture and objects. Functionality and a pragmatic approach started to play a bigger role in his later designs. His work as a designer fully took off after World War Two, and he became an important figure in Italian industrial aesthetics that conquered the international markets in the 1950s. Gio Ponti worked together with many designers, such as Antonio Fornaroli and Alberto Rosselli, and his work has been of great inspiration for even more. A few amongst Ponti's followers are Paolo Buffa, Paco Muñoz and Lina Bo Bardi, as with the latter Ponti worked together on a series of projects during the early period of Bo Bardi's career.
 

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