Set of 2 Pirellone directional tables in rosewood by Gio Ponti for RIMA Italy 1958

Here is an extraordinary set with a fantastic provenance: two important directional tables "Pirellone" by Gio Ponti and Alberto Roselli for Rima Padova, specially designed for the Pirelli Tower in Milan, the first skyscraper in Italy. These beautiful large rosewood tables were not manufactured in very large numbers because they were intended for the meeting and conference rooms of the Pirelli Tower. So we are very proud to have a set of two of these luxurious and limited pieces available now in the gallery! These tables can give your meeting or conference room the look and grandeur your business and customers deserve. There are many things to find on the Internet about the Pirelli building. The Pirelli Foundation, in particular, presents interesting articles inside and outside the building, both designed by Gio Ponti and others, in which one can also see these specific conference tables. From the same Pirelli Foundation: "An interesting element in the history of the tower is that of its interior design. Work of Gio Ponti, who designed it "in relation and continuity with architecture", as can be read in issue 71 of Edilizia Moderna dedicated to the headquarters of Pirelli in September 1960, the project gives a stylistic identity to all the premises and all the furnishings, walls and floors, all covered with rubber and Pirelli linoleum, to doors, elevators, clocks, lamps and other lighting fixtures, in the "democratic" belief that all "inhabitants" of the building, from the president of the company to office workers, must live in the same spaces. Color, particularly important to Ponti - as he himself put it in "Everything in the World Must Be Brightly Coloured", an article he wrote for Pirelli magazine in 1952 - is used as "a means of correcting the monotony and anonymity of spaces" in doors, clad in red linoleum, and on floors, in yellow and black linoleum. Gio Ponti and Alberto Rosselli also chose the furniture: the offices are those that Ponti had designed in 1955 for the RIMA company, with metal frames and wooden or linoleum tops". The tables are made of rosewood and metal and their shape follows that of the building if you look at it from above: oval in shape but not rounded but straight. What also makes these tables very special are the materials that were used: rosewood, the most luxurious and protected of all hardwoods, and metal. At that time, the use of metal was very progressive, as most furniture was made of wood until then, but Gio Ponti used metal to support the heavy tray. With the industrial revolutions, this was a logical step, but Gio Ponti was the first to integrate metal into a piece of furniture of this type, creating the possibility of maintaining a very minimal shape, because metal is solid, and emphasizing the beautiful thin and thin top. Rosewood is very present with its dark flames, still very distinct because these tables are practically not discolored by sunlight. They are always very nicely dark, with chromed metal legs and a metal rim around the table that protects it against the shocks of the chairs. The two tops are in very very good condition! The base shows traces of use but can be rechromed if desired. Additional photos on request. The large tables in the meeting room recall the plan of the "grain of rice" building. The upholstered seats, on the other hand, were made by Arflex, a company created in 1950 on an idea of Pirelli engineer Carlo Barassi, which produced furniture upholstered with Pirelli foam rubber, putting on the market chairs, armchairs, sofas and beds. They were designed by the biggest names in architecture and design of the 1950s, based on the experience gained in the 1930s, when several rationalist architects, including Ponti himself, had carried out the first experiments with upholstered furniture with latex foam, which had been exhibited at the furniture exhibition of the VI Triennale of Milan in 1936. The "Hall" armchairs, designed by Roberto Menghi in 1958, were chosen for the waiting rooms of the tower. The Pirellone was ready to embark on his new life." Publications; Ponti, Fornaroli, Rosselli, Valtolina, Dell'Orto, Gli interni, in "Edilizia Moderna", nr. 71, December 1960, p. 84; Creator: Gio Ponti (Designer) Dimensions: Height: 77 cm (30.32 in) Width: 396 cm (155.91 in.) Depth: 120 cm (47.25 in.) Style: Mid-Century Modern (In the style of) Materials and techniques: Metal, rosewood Place of Origin: Italy Period: 1950-1959 Date of manufacture: 1950s Condition: Good condition

Ref. : 9JC114UD