An occasional table with a black lacquered wood base and ground glass tops, designed by Gio Ponti in 1932 and produced by the Italian company Luigi Fontana & C.
This side table, though small in size, embodies the era when international aesthetic influences, combined with extraordinary Italian talents, materialized into objects and architectural structures meant to endure over time.
Milan, 1932: during a spring trade fair, the city, already a leader in industry, hosts a vast exhibition of objects reflecting a future vision marked by mechanization and rationality. In the same year, Gio Ponti, known for his designs for the Richard Ginori manufactory, embarked on creating some furniture commissioned by the Counts Cicogna, an aristocratic family that, while tied to traditions, was open to modern innovations.
From his original sketches, preserved in the archives, emerges the intention to create a piece of furniture that departs from the traditional perception of wood as the primary material. The very concept of a table is radically revisited, with two perpendicular disks at the base evoking the stylized image of large industrial machinery, with gears and pulleys, enabling mass production of the designed objects.
The black base, initially intended in an alpaca alloy - similar to that of common cutlery and crockery of the time -, recalls the austere solidity of metal, while the circular shape suggests a motionless yet infinite movement, perhaps an echo of the restless wheels of Depero's futurist motorcycles.
This design also reflects international influences, such as the Bauhaus grammar, evident in the choice of colors and materials.
What gives the end table its unique personality is the tactile sensation of rationality conveyed by the perfectly circular crystal tops, produced by the Luigi Fontana & C. manufacturer, future Fontana Arte, which influenced decorative arts throughout the century through its collaborations with the greatest Italian and international designers and architects.
Owning and incorporating this piece into an interior setting means engaging with an aesthetic and design tradition that continues to offer valuable lessons in taste and contemporaneity.
The end table is offered in its original version and accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. The specimen offered, with a polished wood base, corresponds to the description and photograph in the 1934 edition of "L'Arredamento Moderno".
Dimensions: 51x51x70h cm.
