Giovanni Chevalley graduated with a degree in civil engineering from the Regia Scuola di Applicazioni per Ingegneri di Torino (today’s Politecnico) in 1891. Soon after graduating, he entered the architectural studio of Count Carlo Ceppi and worked for him for five years., during which he participated in the restauration of the Chiesa della Consolata in Turin. A passionate collector of ancient objects, paintings, ceramics, and furniture, he restored numerous historical villas, palaces, and castles, such as the Agnelli villa in Villar Perosa (1945-47). In 1895, he became an assistant to Carlo Ceppi, who held the chair in architecture at the University of Turin. In 1899, he opened his own architectural firm. In 1908, he was awarded one of the architecture chairs at the Politecnico of Turin, and in 1912 he moved on to teach drawing and architecture at the University of Turin. One of the key interpreters of the style known as barocco torinese, in 1912 he authored the volume Gli architetti, l’architettura, e de decorazione delle ville piemontesi del XVIII secolo.

With architect Vittorio Morelli di Popolo, he designed he Alpine Village (funded by the Italian Touring Club) for the Exposition of Turin in 1911.