Oh, Gio

I've had a design crush on Gio Ponti for years, but it has gone into overdrive in the last 6 months -- Wright sold an amazing number of objects from the Villa Arreaza in Caracas that had me drooling for days, and I seem to keep running into his works. Late august I spied these marvelous jars in Milan:



The same room had a masterwork portrait by Ribera -- I didn't even bother trying to photograph it, knowing how poorly it would translate. But trust me ...



I'm painting the diagonal brickwork pattern found on these jars in the back of a bookcase built into our upstairs hall ( a la Charleston) -- love it.

This beauty would have looked quite fine on our downstairs mantle; we need nautical crap with an edge. No pleasure craft, this -- try a ghost ship come to get you:





Reminds me of lacquer ... Dunand? Anyway, I want it but can't have it. Sold for 13,750 USD.