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When you come to visit us at La Quincaillerie, you’re certainly coming to choose your door handles, among other things—but that’s not all. After all, what would these door handles be without the work of designers—their careful consideration of form, aesthetics, proportions, ergonomics, and finishes? It is this thoughtful and creative process that allows us
to offer you door handles that are not only functional but also iconic.
This is true of the designs by Gio Ponti, who was notably involved in the creation of several door hardware items. These have been very successful. But who is Gio Ponti? What is his story?
Giovanni Ponti, known as “Gio” Ponti, was a renowned Italian designer and architect, considered one of the most influential of the 20th century. Many works of decorative art, design, and furniture bear his name. He also designed more than a hundred buildings around the
. Born in 1891 in Milan, Gio Ponti played a key role in the international rise of design and architecture until his death in 1979.
The Work of Gio Ponti: Between Design and Architecture
Gio Ponti’s career began with architecture studies at the Polytechnic University of Milan, which were interrupted by the outbreak of World War I.
After finally graduating in 1921, Gio opened an architectural firm with two of his colleagues (Emilio Lancie and Mino Fiocchi) and immediately focused his practice on interior design.
He initially concentrated on ceramics and was soon appointed artistic director of Richard Ginori, the famous porcelain company.
With Gio’s arrival in the artistic division, the company took a new artistic direction, drawing on reimagined traditional inspirations. In 1925, Gio Ponti achieved recognition. Indeed, just four years after beginning his career in the design world, he won the Grand Prize for Ceramics at the International Exhibition of Decorative Arts. On that occasion, Gio met Tony Bouilhet, the heir to the French silverware house Christofle: drawing on their shared cultural backgrounds, they would go on to create numerous designs together.
He went on to collaborate with the glassmakers Venini and Fontana and founded one of their lighting subsidiaries, Fontana Arte. He then designed a furniture collection for the La Rinascente department store in Milan. Furniture, lighting, bathroom fixtures, textiles, and ceramics—Gio Ponti dabbled in everything.
A passionate advocate, Gio Ponti championed Italian craftsmanship but also emphasized the need to engage with the global industry. To this end, he founded the magazine *Domus* in 1928 with the aim of showcasing the cutting edge of design and architecture of the time while supporting Italian designers and their creations. Domus quickly became a global benchmark, introducing Europe to the work of numerous artists, including Le Corbusier and the Eameses. He later founded the Milan Triennale, an Italian cultural institution, which allowed him to further promote Italian designers. For Gio Ponti, the 1930s were primarily marked by construction and architecture, particularly in Milan. He ceased his commercial activities during World War II and subsequently became a key figure in the postwar revival of Italian design. Notably, he designed the Pirelli Tower—one of his best-known works—in collaboration with engineer Pier Luigi Nervi. He also taught at the Polytechnic University of Milan, where he had studied, and trained several generations of designers.
In the fields of design and furniture, Gio strives to balance practicality and aesthetics.
His best-known creations include his Cornuta espresso machine, designed in collaboration with La Pavoni, and his Visetta sewing machine for Visa. He has also designed textiles, bathroom fixtures, cutlery, lighting fixtures, furniture, and door handles.
Gio Ponti's Door Handles: His Collaboration with Olivari
Gio Ponti began collaborating with Olivari, an Italian manufacturer of door handles and accessories, in 1956. Founded in 1911, Olivari manufactures door handles and accessories at its factory located in Italy, near Milan. The company is renowned for the quality of its products and its innovative designs.
To this end, Olivari has collaborated with numerous designers, each more renowned or inventive than the next. Among them are Sergio Asti, Joe Colombo, Giorgetto Giugiaro, Ferdinand A. Porsche, Rodolfo Bonetto, and Giotto Stoppino, as well as Paolo Portoghesi, Oscar Tusquets, Vico Magistretti, Andrea Branzi, and Massimo Iosa Ghini, among others…During his collaboration with Olivari, Gio Ponti created, among other things, the door handle known as the “Lama.” This door handle is one of the most sought-after items among our customers who are enthusiasts of design and history.
This model has stood the test of time without losing any of its aesthetic appeal, which is almost universally admired.
On the La Quincaillerie website, the pair of Lama door handles by Gio Ponti is available in 6 finishes with thick rosettes:
The Lama Gio Ponti door handle set is available in 11 finishes with slim rosettes:
You can find the Lama design on window handles for a coordinating look:
In the mid-1950s, the fruitful collaboration between Ernesto Olivari and Gio Ponti also gave rise to the Cono model. The pair of Cono door handles was used in the spectacular Villa Planchart (1953–1957) in Caracas, Venezuela.
The Cono door handle set by Gio Ponti is available on the La Quincaillerie website in 6 finishes.
Feel free to stop by our store, La Quincaillerie, on Boulevard Saint Germain in Paris’s 5th arrondissement—our staff will be happy to tell you the story behind these handles.
