Ward Bennett created everything from interiors and furniture to textiles and flatware. The unsung New York City-born modernist designer drew on the work of Le Corbusier and Auguste Rodin, studied art with the likes of Abstract Expressionist painter Hans Hofmann and counted legendary American luxury house Tiffany & Co. among his clients. For decades, Bennett created and filled spaces that were elegant, minimalist and deeply appealed to everyone who laid eyes on them.
Bennett left home and school at the young age of 13. He found work in Manhattan’s Garment District, and within a few years, Bennett traveled to Europe on behalf of a clothing manufacturer to gather ideas for modern garments. He lived abroad as a young man, and when he returned to New York, during the early 1940s, he assisted fashion entrepreneur Hattie Carnegie as a window dresser.
Bennett would also go on to share a sculpture studio with artist Louise Nevelson. He ventured into the world of jewelry design, creating necklaces, bracelets and other pieces with Richard Pousette-Dart. The Whitney Museum of American Art exhibited his sculptures, and it wouldn’t be long before the Museum of Modern Art included Bennett’s personal adornments with accessories by the likes of Alexander Calder, Harry Bertoia and Anni Albers in its 1946 “Modern Handmade Jewelry” show.
Bennett didn’t take the plunge into interior design work until he was 30 years old — his inaugural project was an apartment in Manhattan and his clients were family members. He had no formal training in architecture or decorating — and would ultimately design a mere handful of houses in his life — so for his inviting leather office chairs, marble-topped tables and sleek storage cabinets, Bennett relied only on what he learned in the fashion world. Soon, every time he redecorated his own home — an elaborate apartment comprising former maids’ quarters in New York City’s magnificent Dakota building — it earned splashy coverage in the newspapers.
Bennett’s client list eventually included David Rockefeller and Chase Manhattan Bank, Tiffany & Co., Sasaki, Italian industrialist Gianni Agnelli, and others, and during the 1970s he became in-house designer for Brickel Associates, a role that would endure for more than two decades. His work is on permanent view at the Museum of Modern Art and the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York.
On 1stDibs, find vintage Ward Bennett seating, decorative objects and more.
Low Profile Lounge Chair in Leather Attributed to Carlo de Carli, Italy, 1960's
By Selig, Lawrence Peabody, Carlo di Carli
Located in Deland, FL
Simultaneously stylish and understated this exceptionally beautiful lounge chair, attributed to Carlo de Carli for Cassina, has recently undergone a comprehensive restoration process...
Leather, Wood
Rare Lounge Chair & Ottoman in the Manner of Adrian Pearsall, USA, c. 1960s
By Adrian Pearsall
Located in Deland, FL
Introducing a custom-made, studio craft lounge chair and ottoman set designed in the manner of Adrian Pearsall. Recently restored by our craftsmen this extraordinary set, designed in...
Oak
Rare "Mrs." Lounge Chair in Walnut, George Mulhauser for Plycraft, USA, c. 1960s
Located in Deland, FL
Introducing a true Mid Century Modern masterpiece: the Low Back Swivel Lounge Chair designed by lauded George Mulhauser. This iconic model, known as the "Mrs. Chair", has recently undergone a comprehensive restoration process making it ideal for collectors and designers alike searching for an authentic Plycraft bentwood chair...
Walnut
Mrs. Lounge Chair in Walnut & Vinyl by George Mulhauser for Plycraft, c. 1960s
By George Mulhauser, Plycraft
Located in Deland, FL
Introducing a true Mid Century Modern masterpiece: the Low Back Lounge Chair designed by George Mulhauser. This iconic model, known as the "Mrs. Chair", is in 100% original, vintage condition making it ideal for collectors and designers alike searching for an authentic Plycraft bentwood chair. Constructed from a bentwood walnut shell with mesmerizing woodgrains, this chair is both durable and stylish and an iconic piece of American Mid-Century Modern design. George Mulhauser was an American industrial designer who gained fame in the 1950s and 1960s for his furniture designs. He was one of the most important designers of the Mid-Century Modern era, and his designs were frequently featured in the pages of the most prestigious design publications of the time. He was a major player in the furniture design industry and his designs were considered as modern for all...
Walnut
Model 596 Chair, Lawrence Peabody & Ib Kofod Larsen, Selig, Denmark, c. 1950's
Located in Deland, FL
Introducing an ultra-rare Model 596 Lounge Chair in solid Beech originally designed by the renowned Lawrence Peabody for Selig. This iconic armchair has recently been fully restored ...
Beech
Early Jens Risom Model 108 Arm Chair for Risom Designs in Walnut, USA, c. 1950s
By Jens Risom
Located in Deland, FL
A rare and elegant 1950's walnut armchair, Model 108, designed by Jens Risom for Risom Designs Inc. This collectable chair is found in it's original Naugahyd...
Walnut
Paul Tuttle 'Zeta' Lounge Chair in Brown Leather with Chrome Base
By Paul Tuttle
Located in Queens, NY
American Mid-Century 'Zeta' form lounge chair with chocolate brown leather upholstery and a polished square tube chrome cantilever base and frame. (PAUL TUTTLE FOR STRASSEL)
Metal, Chrome
Ward Bennett Scissor Lounge Chair
By Ward Bennett
Located in Gladstone, NJ
Ward Bennett Scissor Lounge Chair
Chrome
Modernist Dutch Lounge Chair in Enameled Steel and Patinated Brown Leather 1950s
Located in Meer, VAN
Modernist Dutch Lounge Chair in Enameled Steel and Patinated Brown Leather 1950s. A wonderful mid century lounge chair designed by Wim Rietveld, the son of Gerrit Rieveld. Beautiful...
Steel
Milo Baughman, Scoop Lounge Chair, Iron, Brown Fabric, USA, 1950s
By Milo Baughman
Located in Stamford, CT
Milo Baughman, American Mid-Century Modern, Iron, Brown Fabric, "Scoop" Lounge Chair, USA, 1950s A lacquered iron and beige fabric "Scoop" lounge chair designed by Milo Baughman for...
Iron
Milo Baughman Scoop Armchair for Thayer Coggin, Brown Velour & Chrome
By Thayer Coggin, Milo Baughman
Located in Queens, NY
American Mid-Century scoop armchair with brown velour upholstered seat, back, and arms with button tufted detail along the seam where the seat and back join, supported by a thin squa...
Metal, Chrome
1960-1969 Italy Warm Burnt Orange Chrome-Frame Lounge Chair
Located in High Point, NC
Chrome-frame lounge chair in Warm Burnt Orange. Its warm burnt orange finish sets off tubular chrome frame, burnt orange cushions, a hallmark of of the mid-century period Italy craft...
Metal
