Tea Service, Richard Ginori- San Cristoforo, Milan, 1930s
About the Item
- Creator:Richard-Ginori San Cristoforo (Maker),Gio Ponti (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 6.3 in (16 cm)Width: 10.63 in (27 cm)Depth: 7.09 in (18 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 26
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:Porcelain,Other
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1930s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. one cup is missing.
- Seller Location:Milano, IT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1721219334272
Gio Ponti
An architect, furniture and industrial designer and editor, Gio Ponti was arguably the most influential figure in 20th-century Italian modernism.
Ponti designed thousands of furnishings and products — from cabinets, mirrors 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.
Ponti's 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, which was 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 vintage Gio Ponti desks, dining chairs, coffee tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Milan, Italy
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 10 days of delivery.
- Vase Giovanni Gariboldi Ginori San Cristoforo Ceramic Milan, Italy, 1950By Giovanni GariboldiLocated in Milano, ITLarge vase in green lacquered ceramic with a milk white relief decoration. Giovanni Gariboldi, Richard-Ginori, San Cristoforo manifacturing. Brand under the base.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsCeramic
- Tete a Tete service in Porcelain by Ginori - Italy ca. 1880.By Richard GinoriLocated in Milano, ITGinori porcelain tete a tete service with decoration executed by the Richard Ginori manufactory. Decoration with retouché decal with mythological motif. Manufacture mark under the ba...Category
Antique 1880s Italian Other Tea Sets
MaterialsPorcelain
- Martin Hall & Co 925 Sterling Silver Tea and Coffee ServiceBy Non-Standard Furniture and LightingLocated in Milano, ITEngraved and chiseled 925 sterling silver tea and coffee set. Fruit and leaf catchers. The service consists of teapot, coffee pot, milk jug and sugar bowl. Silver and silversmith's m...Category
Vintage 1950s English Mid-Century Modern Sheffield and Silverplate
MaterialsSilver
- Herend Hungary Coffee Set Porcelain, 20th CenturyBy HerendLocated in Milano, ITPorcelain coffee set decorated with plant motifs, gilded edges, lid's handles shaped as roses. Manufacture's brand under the base. It is made of coffee pot, sugar bowl, creamer and 1...Category
20th Century Hungarian Other Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Vase R. Ginori Ceramic, Italy, 1950sBy Richard GinoriLocated in Milano, ITGlazed ceramic vase with relief decoration at the base. Maker's brand under the base.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsCeramic
- Vaso con Coperchio Vetro Murano Italia Anni '30By Non-Standard Furniture and LightingLocated in Milano, ITVaso in vetro trasparente. Presa del coperchio a foggia di pesce in vetro con inclusioni in oro.Category
Vintage 1930s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsMurano Glass
- S.C. Richard S. Cristoforo Porcelain Tea Service, Italy 1930sLocated in Naples, ITAntique white and pink porcelain tea set, six cups, six saucers, sugar bowl, coffee pot and milk jug, very good condition, 1930s, saucer diamete...Category
Vintage 1930s Italian Mid-Century Modern Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Giovanni Gariboldi Ceramic Vase for Richard Ginori San Cristoforo, Italy 1930sBy Giovanni Gariboldi, Richard GinoriLocated in Niederdorfelden, HessenCeramic vase designed by Giovanni Gariboldi in the 1930's for Richard Ginori, San Cristoforo, Italy. Bulbous white ceramic vase with a small opening and gold gilding. Richard - G...Category
Vintage 1930s Italian Art Deco Vases
MaterialsMetal, Brass
- Richard Ginori for San Cristoforo Set of Two Vases by Giovanni Gariboldi, 1940sBy Giovanni Gariboldi, Richard Ginori, Richard-Ginori San CristoforoLocated in Byron Bay, NSWStunning set of two Italian ceramic vases in mat red and green colors, innovative design and modern look considering the age. Both in good/fair condition, wear consistent with the a...Category
Vintage 1940s Italian Art Deco Ceramics
MaterialsCeramic
- 70-Piece Ceramic Dinner Service, San Cristoforo Richard Ginori. late 1800sLocated in Palermo, IT70-piece ceramic dinner service, San Cristoforo Richard Ginori, made in Italy, late 1800s (1873-1896) This company manufactured from 1873 to 1896, so this set was produced in this t...Category
Antique 1890s Italian Ceramics
MaterialsCeramic
- Richard Ginori 33-Piece Gilt Demitasse ServiceBy Richard GinoriLocated in Vista, CA33-piece white and green porcelain Richard Ginori demitasse service for 8, with gilt trim, scalloped rims and brand stamp at undersides. Includes 12 d...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Richard Ginori Porcelain Coffee Service 1960 ItalyBy Richard GinoriLocated in Milano, ITRichard Ginori Porcelain coffee service 1960 Italy.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Other Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
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.