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.
Ward Bennett Desk or Table Base for Lehigh Leopold / Dunbar
By Ward Bennett, Lehigh Leopold
Located in Chicago, IL
Ward Bennett Desk or Table Base. Listing is for the base only complete with Black steel plate mounts (not shown in photos). The base will require a simple top to be made for it. The...
Aluminum
$2,500 / set
H 10 in W 10 in D 10 in
Ward Bennett Inspired Pair Enameled Steel I-Beam Side or End Tables Mid-Century
By Ward Bennett
Located in Philadelphia, PA
In creating a prototype, Ward Bennett actually cut off a section of a steel I-beam to achieve the raw aesthetic he was after. Here, a pair of solid enameled steel side tables after h...
Enamel, Steel
Edward Wormley for Dunbar Desk in Tawi Walnut & Steel
By Dunbar Furniture, Edward Wormley
Located in New York, NY
An exceptional and rare drop leaf desk by Edward Wormley for Dunbar in Tawi Walnut & Steel. USA, circa 1950. Mid-Century Modern Dunbar Desk Hardwood veneers Berne, Indiana Angular...
Metal
Clean Lined Mid Century Chrome Desk or Dining Table Base - No Glass
By Florence Knoll
Located in Atlanta, GA
Clean Lined Mid Century Chrome Desk or Dining Table Base, in the style of Florence Knoll, American, circa 1960s. This listing is for the chrome base only, no glass included, as it wi...
Metal, Chrome
Coffee Table with Aluminum Base Designed by Ward Bennett for Lehigh
By Lehigh Furniture Company, Ward Bennett
Located in Chicago, IL
Coffee table with aluminum base designed by Ward Bennett for Lehigh. Bennett used variations on this aluminum base on other tables and seating if you are looking to coordinate furnis...
Aluminum
Italian Chrome X-Base Trestle Dining Table or Writing Desk
By Pace Collection
Located in Danville, CA
Rarely seen X-base trestle style dining table base that can be used as either a dining table or writing desk. The base will easily support a glass or stone top as large as 48 x 108 x...
Stone, Chrome
72" Desk or Conference Table by Lehigh Leopold
By Lehigh Leopold
Located in South Charleston, WV
71 5/8 x 35 5/8 x 28.75". Lehigh Leopold circa 1970. May be used as a conference table or executive desk. An exceptional piece of furniture, over engineered and industrial strengt...
Aluminum, Steel
$2,500 / set
H 18 in W 6 in D 6 in
Ward Bennett Inspired Pair Enameled Steel I-Beam Drink Stands or End Tables
By Ward Bennett
Located in Philadelphia, PA
In creating a prototype, Ward Bennett actually cut off a section of a steel I-beam to achieve the raw aesthetic he was after. Here, a pair of solid enameled steel drink stands after ...
Enamel, Steel
Ward Bennett Rosewood and Aluminum Coffee Table by Lehigh
By Lehigh Furniture Company, Ward Bennett
Located in Highland, IN
Ward Bennett's expert use of line and proportion are evident in this beautiful coffee table with a three legged aluminum base supporting a rich rosewood top.
Aluminum
$5,851
H 29.93 in W 88.59 in D 31.5 in
Floating Edward Wormley for Dunbar Executive Extending Desks, 1970s
By Dunbar Furniture, Edward Wormley
Located in Antwerp, BE
A rare and sleek Mid-Century Modern executive desks by Edward Wormley for Dunbar Furniture. The desks features stunning solid walnut grain and sleek midcentury design. The desk is fi...
Nutwood
$3,500 / set
H 14 in W 14.5 in D 14 in
Ward Bennett Inspired Pair Enameled Steel I-Beam Side or End Tables Mid-Century
By Ward Bennett
Located in Philadelphia, PA
In creating a prototype, Ward Bennett actually cut off a section of a steel I-beam to achieve the raw aesthetic he was after. Here, a pair of solid enameled steel side tables after h...
Enamel, Steel
Ilmari Tapiovaara Desk or Table for Laukaan Puu
By Laukaan Puu, Ilmari Tapiovaara
Located in Miami, FL
Table by Ilmari Tapiovaara for Laukaan Puu. Works also well as desk. The table is signed.
Pine
$1,500
H 16.5 in W 20 in D 20 in
1960s Lehigh-Leopold Walnut Side/End Table w/ Legs Attributed to Gordon Bunshaft
By Gordon Bunshaft, Davis Allen, Lehigh Leopold
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a square side table, featuring a chromed-steel frame with a walnut top, produced in the 1960s by the Lehigh-Leopold Corporation in the USA. It is believed to have been custom...
Steel, Chrome
Desk by Ward Bennett
By Lehigh Leopold, Ward Bennett
Located in Miami, FL
Desk by Ward Bennett, black painted wooden top with drawer sitting on a aluminium base.
Aluminum
Sold
H 29 in W 78.5 in D 36.25 in
Ward Bennett Rosewood Executive Architectural Desk for Lehigh Furniture
By Ward Bennett
Located in San Diego, CA
Beautiful rosewood and aluminum desk designed by Ward Bennett for Lehigh Furniture, circa 1960s. Amazing form and design. Rosewood has great color and grain. Top has been refinished and hand oiled to bring out the original beauty of the rosewood wood. Aluminum base has been hand polished and has light normal scratches from age. This is a statement desk...
Oval Writing Table by Ward Bennett
By Lehigh Furniture Company, Ward Bennett
Located in San Juan Capistrano, CA
Oval desk, writing or dining table by Ward Bennett for Lehigh Furniture Company.
Aluminum
Rosewood Architectural Desk by Ward Bennett for Lehigh Furniture
By Ward Bennett
Located in Dallas, TX
A rare desk in cast aluminum with rosewood top. Designed by Ward Bennett for Lehigh Furniture.