A SET OF FOUR ITALIAN POLYCHROME CERAMIC TILES

Gio Ponti (1891-1979), industrial designer and architect, was born in Milan where his training as an architect was interrupted by the Great War. In 1923, after completing his degree, Ponti became art director for the ceramics manufacturer, Richard Ginori. Until 1930, he turned the company into a symbol of industrial design excellence by decorating simple ceramic forms with elegant neo-classical motifs. 'Industry is the style of the 20th century, its mode of creation,' wrote Ponti after winning the Grand Prix at the 1925 Paris Exhibition.