A PAIR OF UNIQUE AND IMPORTANT ARMCHAIRS, CIRCA 1946

cf. R. Aloi, L'Arredamento Moderno, Milan, 1949, fig. 577;
U. La Pietra, Gio Ponti, Milan, 1988, p. 120;
I. De Guttry, M.P. Maino, Il Mobile Italiano degli Anni 40 E '50, Bari, 1992, p. 234 for an example of chairs of a similar model.


These carved walnut armchairs exhibit a disquieting yet whimsical flair. Arguably influenced by the metaphysical art of Giorgio de Chirico and of his brother, the painter Andrea Salvinio, they are at once anthropomorphic and architectural. The voids carved into them read both as a human outline and as a signifier of the builders' trade: the keystone. Originally such chair designs appeared at the University of Padua in 1940 and then at rare intervals in private commissions where they were placed in dialogue with artifacts representative of the then current artistic ambient. In his countless chair designs, Ponti drew extensively upon 18th and 19th century models, tirelessly drafting new ideas with recurrent flights of fantasy. Such a challenging mindset is plain to see in this exceptional pair.

This lot is sold with a certificate of authentication from the Gio Ponti Archive.