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.
Mid Century Diminutive Black Lacquer Tufted & Striped Chinoiserie Arm Chair MCM
By Baker Furniture Company
Located in Dayton, OH
This Hollywood Regency or Chinoiserie-style arm chair features a striking, high-gloss black lacquered wood frame that delivers a bold, dramatic aesthetic. Standing at a diminutive he...
Fabric, Lacquer
4 Mid Century Modern Sune Fromell & Jan Hallberg For Edsby Verken Arm Chairs
By Edsby-verken
Located in Dayton, OH
Set of 4 Swedish Modern swivel arm chairs by Sune Fromell & Jan Hallberg for Edsby Verken, circa 1960s. Features a birch frame with a barrel back and...
Birch
Mid Century Hollywood Regency Black Lacquered Swan-Neck Gooseneck Rocking Chair
By Baker Furniture Company
Located in Dayton, OH
This mid-century modern, Hollywood Regency rocking chair, circa 1970s, showcases a high-gloss black lacquered frame that emphasizes its bold, dramatic lines offering a chinoiserie fe...
Fabric, Lacquer
Drexel Heritage Mid Century Modern Distressed Walnut Campaign Style Arm Chair
By Drexel
Located in Dayton, OH
Drexel Heritage Campaign Style Arm Chair, circa 1970s. Features a distressed walnut finish with a curved back and 'x' frame with round brass medallion. Tag along underside. Dimens...
Suede, Walnut
4 Vico Magistretti Italian Mid-Century Modern Carimate Dining Armchairs Leather
By Vico Magistretti
Located in Dayton, OH
Set of four Vico Magistretti Italian Mid-Century Modern 'Carimate' Dining Chairs. The chairs are mininmalist at its finest. Simple lines combined with innovative functionality. Ma...
Leather, Hardwood
Jorgen Baekmark / FDB Mobler Danish Modern Beech Rocking Chair Modernist Rocker
By FDB Møbler, Jorgen Baermark
Located in Dayton, OH
Jorgen Baekmark / FDB Mobler Danish Modern Beech Rocking Chair, circa 1970s. Features a spindle back and spindled tapered legs over a hobby horse style base. Labeled along undersid...
Beech
One Midcentury Ward Bennett Landmark Cane Armchair for Brickel and Associates
By Ward Bennett
Located in Pasadena, TX
Best known for his interiors, Mr. Bennett's projects include residence in New York, London, Venice and Rome, as well as his own quarter, a Manhattan apartment atop the Dakota, a country house in Long Island and a flat in Paris. In the commercial category, works encompass a national network of showrooms for Brickel, projects for Chase Manhattan Bank and consultant plans for the Solow Building Corporation. In 1963, he began a collaboration with Brickel Associates, designing first furniture and later textiles. He is considered a prodigious designer of objects: china, glassware and silver for Tiffany & Co., flatware for Supreme; porcelain for Sasaki; and, leather goods for Hermes. Bennett designs are well represented in the Museum of Modern Art's permanent collection and in the Cooper-Hewitt Museum. One midcentury Ward Bennett cane armchair One Ward Bennett cane chair...
Cane, Oak
Edward Wormley for Dunbar Style Mid Century Cane and Black Lacquer Lounge Chair
By Dunbar Furniture, Edward Wormley
Located in Franklin Park, IL
Edward Wormley for Dunbar Style Mid Century Cane and Black Lacquer Lounge Chair This chair measures: 22.5 wide x 22.5 deep x 29 high, with a seat height of 18.5 and arm height/chair...
Upholstery, Cane, Lacquer
Rare Ebonized Armchair in Maple by Harold Schwartz for Romweber, USA, 1960s
By Harold Schwartz
Located in Deland, FL
Introducing an incredibly rare "Horn" armchair designed by the influential Harrold Schwartz for the lauded Romweber Furniture Co. Painstakingly restored this artfully designed and crafted armchair has a new lease on life and we love the results. Featuring new grey leather upholstery, a jet-black acrylic paint scheme and new medium density foam for maximum comfort and longevity this ultra-stylish accent chair is the very epitome of "one-of-a-kind". With sharp lines, audacious stance and restored brass fasteners this iconic armchair is as comfortable as it is alluring and eye-catching. Harold Schwartz was an American architect, sculpturer and interior designer who gained prominence in the early post-war period and left an indelible mark on the American Mid-Century Modern Design movement with these "Horn" chairs and "Spider" table gaining particular notoriety in the design industry. Schwartz's multifaceted background is evident in every detail with this Horn chair with intricately carved armrests and legs, an architecturally captivating stance and design details like the solid brass feet and backrest fasteners that catch but do not flood the eye. Romweber Furniture Co. was founded in 1879 in Indiana and to this day is still producing primarily case pieces in the state it was founded making it one of the oldest continually operated furniture companies in North America. Specializing in luxurious designs Romweber counts several ex-Presidents and European royalty as it's clients and has designed for and furnished the Carter Library as well as several Governor Mansions and Hotels such as the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island...
Maple
Ebonized Caned-Back Lounge Chair in Walnut, Kipp Stewart, Directional, USA, 1950
By Kipp Stewart
Located in Deland, FL
This striking Mid-Century Modern lounge chair, designed by Kipp Stewart for Directional in the 1950s, blends bold craftsmanship with timeless style. Crafted from walnut with a sleek ...
Mahogany
Paul McCobb Planner Group Black Lacquered Lounge Chair, 1950s
By Planner Group, Paul McCobb
Located in South Bend, IN
A gorgeous Mid-Century Modern club chair or lounge chair By Paul McCobb for Winchendon Furniture, "Planner Group" USA, 1950s Black lacquered walnut frame, with upholstered seat an...
Upholstery, Walnut, Lacquer
Mid-Century Modern Edward Wormley for Dunbar Style Caned Armchair - Sculpted Arm
By Dunbar Furniture, Edward Wormley
Located in St. Louis, MO
In the style of Edward Wormley for Dunbar, single arm chair with sculpted frame and dark ebony frame with cane seat and back. Chair to be refinished prior to shipping, included in pr...
Cane, Mahogany
