In 1990, legendary Danish designer Nanna Ditzel won the Gold Prix Award at the International Furniture Design Competition in Asahikawa, Japan, for her Bench for Two. The innovative piece marked a new career phase for Ditzel, who at age 67, had begun turning to the natural world for inspiration, creating forms made possible through experimentation with flexible veneers.
Ditzel was also embarking on a new partnership, with Fredericia Furniture, taking up residence as the company’s second in-house designer, after the great Børge Mogensen. The designs she created there in the 1990s, including the iconic Trinidad chair, became notable components of the oeuvre she produced over her six-decade career, helping to solidify her position as one of Danish modernism’s most influential and innovative designers.
The Bench for Two is an eloquent expression of Ditzel’s design ethos during this period. Using new wood veneers invented for aircraft interiors and with a shape evocative of a butterfly, the piece is warm and welcoming, allowing sitters to enjoy intimate eye contact and tête-à-têtes.
“The Bench for Two design reimagines traditional seating as both practical furniture and a conversation piece, embodying Ditzel’s aim to create accessible yet striking work,” says Jelmar Hufen, of H. Gallery, which is offering the piece on 1stDibs. “It has a beautiful sense of sculptural simplicity to it. The form is clean and minimal, yet it carries a strong personality. I think the bench challenges the expectation of what a bench should be, turning it into something more dynamic, which is what makes it stand out and remain a design icon to this day.”
The Bench for Two reflects the human-first approach that makes Ditzel’s designs distinctive. Early in her career, she proclaimed, “Life should be as delightful as possible,” and that goal informs all her work. For Ditzel, family and career were tightly linked, and she saw good design as a way of creating shared closeness by fostering relaxation and, if possible, fun.
“I’m drawn to Nanna Ditzel’s work for the way it balances playfulness with precision,” Hufen says. “Her designs feel inventive without being overwhelming. She often explored new forms, but always with a clear understanding of how people will actually use and experience them.”
Early on, Ditzel performed these explorations in partnership with her husband, Jørgen Ditzel. Together, they developed the concept of a “stairscape,” where people could unwind, meditate and talk. Introduced as the Padded Cell in 1952, this versatile assemblage of playfully shaped cushions could be arranged in various configurations and even terraced so users could enjoy conversations from different levels while seated or lying down.
Parents of three daughters — Dennie, Lulu and Vita — the Ditzels conformed their design practice to the needs of children. In 1954, the couple created the chic ND54 high chair, a Scandinavian classic still manufactured by Carl Hansen. Jørgen died in 1961 at age 39, leaving Nanna to raise their family and manage their design studio.
Forward-thinking in her recognition of the importance of play for children, in 1968 she introduced the Fairy Tale Room, a stairscape reimagined as a multilayered public play space, in a library outside Copenhagen. Ditzel also designed innovative and iconic pieces of children’s furniture, like the Toad stool, debuting in 1962, and the Lulu cradle, in 1964.
Her creativity was not limited to furniture. Ditzel was one of the first female jewelry designers for Georg Jensen, and she designed textiles, including the Hallingdal 65 upholstery fabric, which is still in production.
Ditzel died in 2005. As is fitting for someone whose career was so intertwined with her family life, her three daughters and her granddaughter Camilla Ditzel carry forward her legacy today at Nanna Ditzel Design.
