A rare art deco straw holder designed by Gio Ponti for Bar Pasticceria Alemagna at Piazza Duomo in Milano.

The shape is simple and sleek and elegant. Signed ‘Broggi Milano’ for Hot. Europa as in Hotel Europa on the bottom. In good condition without dents.

Gio Ponti (1891-1979) is considered one of the most influential designers of the 20th century. He designed buildings, ocean liners, furniture, lighting, ceramics, silverware. And has had countless colaborations with producers and other notable designers. Besides that he started the famous and influential ‘Domus’ magazine about architecture, furniture and design.

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.

From the collection of La contessa arreda