A tavola con Giò Ponti. Gli angeli apparecchiano

The other side of Giò Ponti, one of the greatest architects of the twentieth century, whom we wish to introduce to the public by examining his approach to the design of lived space – that is, everything that most deeply permeates our daily lives through objects, environments, colours and decorations that complement the ritual of food.

And it is precisely this unique narrative of food presented by the Mercatino del Gusto – now in its 26th edition – that also focuses on the ‘ability to design ideas’, drawing on the culture of design and ‘a form of design thinking ahead of its time’. Through the exhibition of tableware designed by Giò Ponti, which captures the ritual of conviviality with its accessories, food – in harmony with this Mediterranean architecture – becomes “a narrative of phenomena and habits, of social behaviours that interact on an equal footing with design, culture, art, the economy, the landscape and nature”.

It is, therefore, an exhibition showcasing the elements that accompany the daily act of eating, starting with the cutlery sets by Arthur Krupp and Christofle, moving on to table accessories such as dessert stands, fruit bowls and trays, and Sabattini’s silverware. And then there are the many ceramic plates produced by Richard Ginori or ‘Ceramiche Pozzi’, the ‘Bottiglie Abitate’ reissued by Ceramica di Imola, and the Venini bottles, right through to the designs of the first American-style fabric placemats from 1955.

These objects help us to better understand and interpret the complexity of Ponti’s work, which simultaneously embraced nationalist codes with a particular focus on tradition, classicism and forms considered marginal, such as decoration.

A body of work – and therefore an exhibition – entirely characterised by Italian spirit and, as such, belonging to a ‘humanistic tradition’; a body of work rich in imagination, attentive to decoration and a love of traditional materials such as wood, paper, textiles, ceramics and glass, yet one that also explored materials that were new at the time, such as aluminium, crystal and plastics. All this whilst remaining faithful to the rigour of design, which, for the architect Ponti, must always respect form and function in order to ensure a sort of intellectual – and perhaps moral – civilisation, restoring objects to what should have been their true, original form.

And so, in Maglie – a place where the ‘Mercatino del Gusto’ event uses food to express culture, cultural exchange and openness towards other regions – the inclusion of works by the Milanese architect Giò Ponti, a master of Mediterranean style whose work is dedicated to the world of the table, can only add value to this event. Let us not forget that one of Ponti’s most significant architectural projects, the Co-Cathedral of Taranto, was built in Puglia and stands as one of the symbols of 20th-century architecture. Its openwork ‘sail’, over 40 metres high, soars majestically, and Ponti himself often remarked that everyone would remember him as the designer of the Pirelli skyscraper in Milan rather than for the Co-Cathedral of Taranto, his final architectural work, which he loved so dearly.
A true tribute to the region of Puglia.

Cintya Concari and Roberto Marcatti
Editors