Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Swiss, 1915-2004
Decades prior to the mass popularity of neo-industrial cement floors and furniture taking shape, there was Willy Guhl. The Swiss creative is considered one of the first “industrial” designers in his home country. He pioneered a rugged, organic style of modern furniture and decor — stylish planters, shapely seating and lots more — that remains widely coveted by many today.
Guhl was born in 1915 in Stein am Rhein and worked as a carpenter before beginning studies at the Zurich School of Applied Arts (known today as the Zurich University of the Arts), where he would go on to teach for nearly 40 years.
While Guhl is well-known for his range of provocative garden elements as well as his patio and outdoor furniture, today’s legion of mid-century modern enthusiasts are likely familiar with the designer’s iconic Loop chair (introduced in 1954). For this sculptural seat and other furnishings, Guhl tended toward industrial materials, which he bent and shaped into organic forms for a striking juxtaposition. Much of his work is crafted from either concrete or Eternit, a mixture of cement and asbestos developed by the Belgian company Etex, which, in the 1950s, commissioned Guhl and his students at the School of Applied Arts to conceive planters in the material. The resulting vessels — some hourglass-shaped, some in the form of handkerchiefs, all suitable for indoors or exteriors — remain some of Guhl’s most collectible pieces.
Guhl’s affiliation with the Swiss “neo-functional” movement centered on the idea of simplifying design without sacrificing form. According to Guhl, his mission was “achieving the most with the minimum of effort.”
In addition to his work as a designer, Guhl left his mark on subsequent creatives through his 39-year tenure at his alma mater, where he was instructor to the likes of Robert Haussmann, Kurt Thut and Bruno Rey. Modern-day shoppers at IKEA owe Guhl a debt of gratitude too. He was an early advocate of flat-pack furniture, championing its ability to make good design more widely accessible.
At its core, though, Guhl’s work was inherently human-centric: “At the center of my efforts, I put people and their living requirements,” he once said. “My products must be useful to people.” Guhl died in 2004 at the age of 89.
Find a range of vintage Willy Guhl furniture and decorative objects on 1stDibs.
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Creator: Willy Guhl
A Collection of Concrete Marmite Planters by Willy Guhl, 1960's, Switzerland
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A Collection of Concrete Marmite Planters by Willy Guhl, 1960's, Switzerland
H 18" x D 21"
FDV11412
*Wear consistent with age and use.
Collection C...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Willy Guhl Concrete Vase, 1960s Switzerland
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Beautiful concrete vase by Willy Guhl. Thick walls with years of patina in a soft blue color. Delicate and classic lines that start with a thin tapered base and rise to a billowed ou...
Category
1960s Swiss Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Willy Guhl Concrete Drum Table
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Fantastic drum table by Swiss architect Willy Guhl for Eternit. Great scale and unique shape. Suitable for indoor and outdoors. Only one available. New pencil edge glass top. Stunnin...
Category
1960s Swiss Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Monumental Willy Guhl Concrete Urn, 1960s Switzerland
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Unusual concrete urn by Willy Guhl. Rare model and size. Excellent white and green patina. Urn has a delicate cement ridge around the mouth as well as around the widest part of the j...
Category
1960s Swiss Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Massive Willy Guhl Olive Jar Planter, 1960s Switzerland
By Eternit, Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Concrete olive jar planter by Willy Guhl with great patina and prominent presence. Simple and elegant design perfect for any garden or patio. Incredible yellow patina and excellent v...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Concrete Marmite Planters by Willy Guhl
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Fantastic sculptural concrete planters by Willy Guhl. Large jug with handles on both sides and resting on 3 feet. Great patina to each pie...
Category
1960s Swiss Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Vintage Willy Guhl Urn 16.5"
By Willy Guhl
Located in West Hollywood, CA
Vintage willy guhl white urn with distinct weathered patina.
Willy guhl (1915-2004) was a swiss industrial designer renowned for his groundbreaking con...
Category
Mid-20th Century Swiss Mid-Century Modern Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Willy Guhl Pink Concrete Cone Planter on Iron Stand
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Architectural concrete planter by Willy Guhl. Pink cone planter on iron tripod base. Great color and patina. Drainage hole. Unusual piece of collectible Will...
Category
1960s Swiss Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Willy Guhl White Basin Planter, 1960s Switzerland
By Willy Guhl, Eternit
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Large concrete planter by Willy Guhl in a cream paint with light patina. Low profile bin with a large diameter and 25" depth. Sturdy and substa...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Willy Guhl Chalice Shaped Planter, 1960s Switzerland
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Unique concrete planters by Swiss architect Willy Guhl. Planter in the shape of a chalice. Especially unique in that the base matches the top with pointed facets. Great vintage condi...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Willy Guhl Off-Kilter Planters
By Willy Guhl
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Pair of off-kilter planters, designed by Willy Guhl for Eternit. A play on the classic diabolo form. Strong and robust, these tilted garden planters are sculpted from fibrous cement....
Category
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Willy Guhl Square Tiered Planter
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Great sculptural planter by Willy Guhl. Square frame raised on indented square base. All one piece. Good vintage condition and patina.
Category
1960s Swiss Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Willy Guhl Petite Concrete Urn, 1960s Switzerland
By Willy Guhl, Eternit
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Petite concrete urn by Willy Guhl in a beautiful red patina. Urn has a delicate cement ridge around the mouth and two handles right under the upper rim. The body of the jar tapers do...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Vintage Willy Guhl Urn 12.5"
By Willy Guhl
Located in West Hollywood, CA
Vintage willy guhl white urn with distinct weathered patina. These planters are unique and rare.
Willy guhl (1915-2004) was a swiss industrial designer...
Category
19th Century Swiss Mid-Century Modern Antique Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Rare, Very Large Architectural Planter by Willy Guhl
By Willy Guhl
Located in New York, NY
Rare, very large planter / jardinière / architectural element in fiber concrete by Willy Guhl.
The piece is a Minimalist sculpture in a sleek, t...
Category
Mid-20th Century Swiss Mid-Century Modern Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Pair of concrete Diabolo Planters by Willy Guhl with charming painting
By Eternit, Willy Guhl
Located in Frankfurt am Main, DE
A pair of fibre concrete diabolo planters found in Provence. We honestly have no idea who painted them so perfectly, but we think it’s quite beautiful.
Category
1970s Swiss Space Age Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Willy Guhl Vintage Tilted Planters
By Willy Guhl
Located in Bloomfield Hills, MI
As of the mid-20th century, the work of Willy Guhl was a revolutionary feat of industry and design with a distinct style that transcends decades. True to form and function, Guhl worked with a mixture of cement and asbestos from Eternit. The lightweight material was groundbreaking, uncompromising form and structure with an emphasis on functionality. These beautiful tilted planters...
Category
Mid-20th Century Swiss Mid-Century Modern Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Composition
Willy Guhl for Eternit Large Concrete Biomorphic Planters, 1960s
By Eternit, Willy Guhl
Located in New York, NY
Designed by Willy Guhl for Eternit large biomorphic or clam shell shaped concrete planters or jardinières, Switzerland, 1960s. These exquisite planters are made from weather-resistan...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Rectangular Balconia Planter Willy Guhl for Eternit, 1960s
By Willy Guhl
Located in Wichita, KS
Rectangular planter by Swiss architect Willy Guhl for Eternit. Planter is made of cement and has good color and patina. Great lines and clean design. This planter would be magnificen...
Category
Mid-20th Century Swiss Mid-Century Modern Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Set of 3 square Willy Guhl planters in eternit
By Willy Guhl
Located in LYON, FR
Planters in eternit, fiber cement by Willy Guhl, Circa 1950.
An irresistible look for these unusual 33X33 cm square planters, 5 cm high.
Category
1950s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
A Collection of Tilted Planters by Willy Guhl, 1960's, Switzerland
By Willy Guhl
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A Collection of Tilted Planters by Willy Guhl, 1960's, Switzerland
Large // H 18.5" x D 25" // FDV11408
Small // H 14.5" x D 25" // FDV11513
*Wear consistent with age and use.
Col...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Large Domed Dog House by Willy Guhl
By Willy Guhl
Located in Copenhagen K, DK
Designed by Willy Guhl, you have here a modern kennel for your beloved dog. The house is designed in fibrated cement by Eternit Switzerland in the 1960s. The two-piece dome-shaped sh...
Category
1960s Swiss Other Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Brutalist planter, Willy Guhl for Eternit. Switzerland, 1960s
By Willy Guhl
Located in Barcelona, ES
Rectangular planter produced by the company "Eternit" in the 1960s, made of fiber cement, perfect for outdoor designs. Good original condition, with patina and marks that only the pa...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Willy Guhl Large Shallow Planter
By Willy Guhl
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
tabletop Willy Guhl large scale shallow planter.
Priced individually.
Category
1950s Swiss Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Pair of Planters by Willy Guhl
By Willy Guhl
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
This rare pair of planters was made by the Swiss designer, Willy Ghul in the 1950's in natural fiber cement. It's the edition « Eternit AG/Elo, 1954 »...
Category
Mid-20th Century Swiss Mid-Century Modern Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Pair of Planters in Fiber Cement by Willy Guhl
By Willy Guhl
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
This pair of planters, model "oreille d'éléphant" was made of fiber cement by Willy Guhl (1915-2004) in the 1950's.
« Willy Guhl was an inventor, an experimenter, a resercher and a visionary. Despite that, he did not get lost in utopia. He reveals himself to be pragmatic almost a genius. » Robert Haussman
Willy Guhl was part of these historical designers historiques who have contributed to the international reputation of the Swiss design. He was one of the big representative of Neo-Functionalism.
From a carpenter father, he follows a furniture maker formation in the Kunstgewerbeschule of Zurich – School of applied arts of Zurich here he teaches from 1941 -, and becomes the director of the interior architecture department 10 years after. He leads in the late 1940's pionneer reaserches in the plastic furniture field. He develops then a knowledge about moulding technical that we allow him to reveal himself by transposing them on a new material : the Eternit, also called fibercement, which he is one of the first to use in Europe.
The Eternit is a kind of cement reinforce by asbestos and with a fiber texture which allows to create audacious pieces with new shapes. It takes the aspect of larges slabs to which it is possible to give a shape as long as they are not dried. Produced in the origin for the industry, it's a cheap material with an important resistance, so perfectly adapted for the fabrication of external furniture.
Category
Mid-20th Century Swiss Mid-Century Modern Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Architectonic spindle planter by Willy Guhl for Eternit, Switzerland 1950s
By Anton Bee, Eternit, Willy Guhl
Located in ECHT, NL
Mid century spindle planter. designed by Anton Bee and Willy Guhl. Manufactured by Eternit SA, Switzerland in the 1950s. The planter is made from fibre reinforced cement. It has been...
Category
Mid-20th Century European Space Age Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Cement
Willy Guhl 23" Concrete Bowl, 1960s Switzerland
By Willy Guhl, Eternit
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Fantastic cement bowls by Swiss architect Willy Guhl for Eternit. Very unusual size in 23" diameter. Most bowls start at a much larger 31" diameter and are only to be used outdoors d...
Category
1960s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
Materials
Concrete
Willy Guhl building and garden elements for sale on 1stDibs.
Willy Guhl building and garden elements are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of stone and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Willy Guhl building and garden elements, although gray editions of this piece are particularly popular. We have 391 vintage editions of these items in-stock, while there is 5 modern edition to choose from as well. Many of the original building and garden elements by Willy Guhl were created in the mid-century modern style in europe during the 20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider building and garden elements by Eternit, and Anton Bee. Prices for Willy Guhl building and garden elements can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $431 and can go as high as $38,500, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $2,783.
Questions About Willy Guhl Building and Garden Elements
- 1stDibs ExpertJanuary 10, 2025Willy Guhl planters are made out of a variety of materials. For these furnishings, Guhl tended toward industrial materials, which he bent and shaped into organic forms for a striking juxtaposition. Much of his work was crafted from either concrete or Eternit, a mixture of cement and asbestos developed by the Belgian company Etex, which, in the 1950s, commissioned Guhl and his students at the School of Applied Arts to conceive Guhl's now-acclaimed planters in the material. Find a selection of Willy Guhl planters on 1stDibs.