Gio Ponti, Superleggera Chair (model 699), 1957. Lacquered ash and cane; 32 3/8 x 15 7/8 x 18 in. Manufactured by Cassina, Meda, Italy. Denver Art Museum: Funds from 1996 Design Council Benefit, 1997.305.

height: 32 3/8 in, 82.2325 cm; width: 15 7/8 in, 40.3225 cm; depth: 18 in, 45.7200 cm; seat height: 17 3/4 in, 45.085 cm

Architecture and Design

Architecture and Design

This object is currently on view

Inspired by lightweight chairs made in the Italian town of Chiavari, Superleggera (Superlight) was the culmination of Gio Ponti’s attempt to create the lightest chair possible. By eliminating all unnecessary weight, material, and structure, Ponti created a chair that weighs only 3.75 pounds. Its frame, made of ash, is light but also strong. This desire for lightness is also present in other areas of Ponti’s practice, including the façade of the Denver Art Museum. 

Purchased 1996 at (Christie's), London by the Denver Art Museum.

• "Modern Living: Giò Ponti and the 20th-Century Aesthetics of Design" — Georgia Museum of Art, 6/10/2017 - 9/17/2017
• “Gio Ponti: Designer of a Thousand Talents” — Denver Art Museum, 10/24/2021 – 12/31/2022