Gio Ponti (born Nov. 18, 1891, Milan, Italy—died Sept. 15, 1979, Milan) graduated in 1921 from the Milan Polytechnic. From 1923 to 1938 he designed for the Richard-Ginori pottery factory. In 1928 he founded the magazine Domus, serving as its editor until 1946. Ponti began his architectural career in 1923, designing neo-classical 'Novecento Italiano' houses.
Around 1933, Ponti formed the Studio Ponti-Fornaroli-Soncini. In 1950, he won the commission to design the 32-story Pirelli Tower in collaboration with Pier Luigi Nervi and Arturo Danusso. Commissions included designs for for Caracas, Venezuela, ( Villa Planchart), Baghdad, Hong Kong, Eindhoven , the Denver Art Museum, the churches San Francesco in 1963, the church at Ospedale San Carlo in 1967, and the Taranto Cathedral in 1971.