Master woodworker David N. Ebner is an integral contributor to the American Studio furniture movement. Along with like-minded artisans such as George Nakashima, Sam Maloof, Arthur Espenet Carpenter and Wharton Esherick, the New York native advocates for the craft of well-made furniture that is not mass-produced. As Ebner himself has stated, “[I am] creating the antiques of tomorrow.”
Ebner was born in 1945 in Buffalo and attended the School for American Craftsmen at the Rochester Institute of Technology. There, he studied under celebrated American furniture maker Wendell Castle who taught Ebner “the artistic approach” to woodworking. After graduating, Ebner sought to further his education at the London School of Furniture Making. Then, following a two-year stint in the US Armed Forces, he decided to pursue a career as a woodworker and furniture designer, opening a studio on Long Island, New York, in 1973.
As a devotee of Castle’s teachings of creating furniture as a form of functional art, Ebner eschewed the trend of making furniture out of plastics and other synthetic materials — which gained steam with the likes of venturesome Scandinavian modernist designer Verner Panton during the 1960s and 1970s — embracing instead the American Craftsman style that formed the basis of the American Studio furniture movement.
Working with a range of woods, Ebner has designed sculptural live-edge dining room tables, shapely bamboo stools and side tables characterized by swooping organic curves, and statement-making cabinets in lustrous sapele wood, each elegantly hand-carved. “... Each piece is treated as an art object with concern for my material and honesty to its inherent qualities,” Ebner has said. “For me, one’s creative ability is demonstrated in the diversity of the pieces and what one learns from change.”
Ebner has exhibited extensively throughout his career, including shows at the American Crafts Museum and Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York, the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln, Massachusetts, and the Guild Hall Museum in East Hampton. His works are in permanent collections at the Smithsonian Institute, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Art Institute of Chicago.
Find vintage David N. Ebner chairs, tables, benches and decorative objects on 1stDibs.
Brookhaven Chair by American Studio Craft Artist David N. Ebner
By David N. Ebner
Located in Bellport, NY
The Brookhaven chair, in red oak, by American studio craft artist David N. Ebner. Available in alternate woods. Note: All works signed by the artis...
Oak
$1,700
H 73.125 in W 13 in D 14.5 in
American Studio Craft Architectural Lattice High Back Sculptural Chair
By Charles Rennie Mackintosh
Located in Troy, MI
Dramatic hand crafted lattice back chair in mixed hardwoods USA circa 1980s Architectural high back chair with vertical lattice design in contrasting cherry and maple with exposed a...
Cherry, Hardwood, Maple
$2,867 / set
H 38.78 in W 17.52 in D 18.71 in
Arts & Crafts Side Chairs by Onder den Sint Maarten, Walnut, 1900s
By Onder den Sint Maarten
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Magnificent and rare pair of Arts & Crafts side chairs. Design by the famous Dutch furniture company Onder den Sint Maarten. Striking Dutch design from the 1900s. Solid walnut ba...
Fabric, Walnut
Petite Arts and Crafts Celtic Revival Side Chair
Located in London, GB
Petite arts and crafts Celtic revival side chair. C1910.
Wood
Cataract Chair II by Raka Studio
By Raka Studio
Located in Cape Girardeau, MO
Cataract II a side/filler chair made in solid ashwood by bending wood. Three of the legs have been made using the wood-bending technique to adopt an abstract natural wave-like design...
Velvet, Ash, Bentwood
Arts & Crafts American Oak Side Chair, C.1920
Located in San Francisco, CA
Arts & Crafts American oak side chair, C.1920 Hand carved - Custom made - Leather upholstery Measures: 19" wide x 16" deep x 18" high at the seat x 39" high at the back ...
Oak
American Modern Cove Single Chair by Artist Roy McMakin
By Roy McMakin
Located in San Diego, CA
Single chair by American artist Roy Mcmakin. solid wood construction, Roy McMakin is an American artist, designer, and furniture maker known for his unique fusion of fine art, archit...
Wood
Michael Taylor Teak Klismos Chair, Hand-Crafted American Classic
By Michael Taylor
Located in San Francisco, CA
Michael Taylor was a iconic interior designer, and also designed a number of pieces of furniture. The Klismos design dates back to Ancient Egyptian chairs as well as Ancient Greek. ...
Teak
$1,250
H 38.88 in W 17.25 in D 18.75 in
Postmodern Sculptural Studio Crafted Steel Dining or Side Chair, 1990s
Located in Miami, FL
Postmodern artist designed contemporary welded steel dining, side or desk chair from the 1990s.
Steel
Childs Chair by David Rowland for Thonet
By David Rowland, Thonet
Located in Oklahoma City, OK
Presenting a truly rare and exceptional piece of design history - the Child's Softech Chair, designed by the renowned David Rowland for Thonet...
Metal
Sculptural Carved Wood Chair, Artist Crafted, 1980s
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Sensational sculptural chair carved from a single piece of wood. Countless hours of carving and sanding went into producing such a fine piece. Newly upholstered seat. Signed and...
Hardwood
Arts & Crafts Art Nouveau Kerfschnitt Side Chair, 1900s
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Magnificent and rare Arts & Crafts Art Nouveau side chair. Striking Dutch design from the 1900s. Solid fruitwood base with original hand-carved so-called kerfschnitt decorative eleme...
Fruitwood
$16,416Sale Price / set|20% Off
H 33.08 in W 23.63 in D 23.63 in
Contemporary Dining Set of 8 Chairs Crafted from American Oak
Located in New York, NY
Fully upholstered dining chairs designed with a comfortable amount of cushioning on both the seat and backrest to meet all your comfort needs. Fabric structure: Bric Velvet. Structur...
Velvet, Oak