Exceptional display at Villa Necchi Campiglio of Gio Ponti's Trionfo da Tavola

From Dec. 6, 2023 to Jan. 28, 2024, Gio Ponti’s Centrotavola for the Foreign Ministry is exceptionally on display at Villa Necchi Campiglio, Milan, on the occasion of the exhibition Gio Ponti’s Table Triumph from the Museo Ginori at Villa Necchi presented by FAI - Fondo per l’Ambiente Italiano ETS and the Fondazione Museo Archivio Richard Ginori della Manifattura di Doccia. Conceived by Gio Ponti with the collaboration of Tomaso Buzzi and modeled by Italo Griselli for Richard Ginori at the historic Manifattura di Doccia between 1927 and 1929, the centerpiece is a true sculptural work centered on the allegorical figure of ’Italy resting on a shell and surrounded by heraldic animals and other small porcelain elements, in a composition of forty-one original elements intended to reinterpret a neoclassical object, namely the sumptuous centerpieces that imitated the thorn of a Roman circus, in Art Deco taste.

The large Table Triumph, commissioned from the Tuscan company by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and designed to adorn the tables of diplomatic offices on occasions of great representation, is on display for the first time in a house museum, in the Dining Room of Villa Necchi Campiglio. In this context, the work dialogues with the low-relief stuccoes on the ceiling created by Piero Portaluppi and depicting naturalistic motifs, such as trees, flowers, snakes, herons and astrological motifs.

The centerpiece is also a rare testimony to the collaboration between Gio Ponti and Tomaso Buzzi, whose hand is present at Villa Necchi and particularly in the dining room for which he made two large consoles and which he decorated with large 16th-century Brussels tapestries.

The initiative also aims to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the first International Biennial of Decorative Arts held in Monza, where the Ginori factory exhibited the signature ceramics designed by Gio Ponti, who precisely in 1923 became its artistic director. The Monza Biennial was in addition to many others in Italy, and especially in Milan, starting with the exhibition Oro bianco. Three Centuries of Ginori Porcelain being held at the Poldi Pezzoli Museum, aimed at promoting the history and collection of the Ginori Museum, closed since 2014 following the bankruptcy of Richard Ginori and awaiting reopening to the public.

The FAI, in collaboration with Museo Ginori, thus wants to enhance, by telling its story and showing an important work, such as the centerpiece, one of the most important museums in the country, now owned by the Italian state: a unique collection in the world, which counts everyday objects and precious porcelain, monumental sculptures and casts in wax and plaster, and which holds a fund of more than four hundred works designed by Gio Ponti. Also highlighted on the occasion will be Villa Necchi Campiglio’s collection of ceramics, some of them signed by Gio Ponti and produced by Richard Ginori.

Accompanying the visit will be a podcast, curated by Oliva Rucellai, head curator of the Museo Ginori, which recounts the history and making of Gio Ponti’s Centrotavola for the Foreign Ministry.

On the occasion of the exhibition, special guided tours will be organized by FAI, dedicated to the display, the traditions of the house and the story of the Centrotavola, as well as to the Richard Ginori Museum of the Doccia manufactory as an institution to be promoted, starting with its knowledge. For this reason, on the occasion of the exhibition, FAI will organize, in agreement with the Associazione Amici di Doccia, a fundraising event to contribute to the restoration of one of the pieces in its collection.

Hours: Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Last admission at 5 p.m.
Tickets: Full 15 euros, reduced (6-18 years) 9 euros. Family (2 adults and children 6/18 years) 39 euros; FAI and National Trust members free; Children up to 5 years free; University students (up to 25 years) 9 euros.

Image: Gio Ponti’s Table Triumph at Villa Necchi. Photo by Barbara Verduci

Exceptional display at Villa Necchi Campiglio of Gio Ponti's Trionfo da Tavola

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