Paris. A major exhibition on Gio Ponti at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs

Considered one of the most influential architects and designers of the twentieth century, Gio Ponti (1891-1979) revolutionized post-war architecture, opening up the way for a new art of living. The exhibition “Tutto Ponti: Gio Ponti, Archi-Designer” at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs (MAD) in Paris covers the entirety of his long career from 1921 to 1978, highlighting numerous aspects of his work from architecture to industrial design, from furniture to lighting, and from the creation of journals, to his incursion into the fields of glassware, ceramics and metalwork. The expression “from the spoon to the city”, attributed to the Italian architect Ernesto Nathan Rogers (1909-1969) in reference to Gio Ponti, perfectly embodies the personality of the Milanese architect, whose projects could range from the infinitely small to the infinitely large. He founded Domus in 1928.

With an exhibition design by Wilmotte & Associés in collaboration with the graphic designer Italo Lupi, “Tutto Ponti” features over 400 pieces, some of which have never left their place of origin, trace this multidisciplinary approach. The exhibition presents a chronological view of Ponti’s six-decade career in the fields of architecture, design, interior design and publishing. Six “period rooms” conclude the visit with spectacular reconstructions emphasizing the global aspect of his work. The main hall – the backbone of the exhibition – is punctuated by five sections featuring major commissions, furniture, lighting and textiles, as well as architectural projects detailed chronologically through drawings, models, photographs and films from the period. Finally, on the Rivoli side, six unique spaces have been conceived, each representing a decade, in order to highlight Ponti’s creations: l’Ange volant in the Parisian aera, the Montecatini building in Milan, the palazzo Bo - Padua University, Gio Ponti’s home on the via Dezza in Milan, the interior of the Parco dei Principi hotel in Sorrento and finally the Villa Planchart in Caracas.

This is the only exhibition ever made in France on the work of Gio Ponti. For the occasion Domus has made available over forty covers taken from the Domus Archive which will be published in the prestigious catalog of the exhibition, with a text by Domus archivist Cristina Moro. To confirm the important involvement of the magazine, Domus will also be the protagonist of the evening organized by the Italian Institute of Culture in Paris on the opening day. Among the participants also the former director Mario Bellini (architect and designer) and Walter Mariotti, current editorial director of Domus and Domusweb.