Zhipeng Tan creates provocative furniture with metal alloys that merges abstraction and Pop art with forms inspired by the natural world. The contemporary Chinese designer’s chairs and stools are topped with seats that mimic the shapes of flower petals, while the graceful legs of his audacious polished brass side tables and dining tables resemble molten gold.
Tan graduated from the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou with a degree in industrial design. Enamored with the organic silhouettes that populate the great outdoors, he grew increasingly interested in sculpture and drew on natural forms in his work, with molded brass as his vehicle for expression. Tan employs the ancient technique of lost-wax casting, which sees metal objects and furnishings cast from wax models. He then trims, welds and polishes the parts to craft tables and seating that are distinctive and unconventional works of art-furniture that are wholly sculptural but serve a functional purpose in one’s living room. In 2015, Tan cofounded the Shanghai-based Mán-Mán Studio with Daishi Luo, a furniture designer and sculptor who studied metal art at Huafan University in Taiwan.
Tan is known for his brass 33 Step chair, which draws heavily on the human anatomy and is named for the 33 vertebrae found in the human spine. Many of his console and coffee tables appear as though the metal table top has reverted to its molten state, with a range of droplet-shaped brass forms at each corner serving as table legs, while smaller elements are “suspended” inches above the floor along the table's underside, creating a striking visual effect.
Many have suggested that Tan’s influences include English sculptor Henry Moore, Catalan artist Joan Miró and Japanese Pop artist Takashi Murakami. Notable firms such as Martyn Lawrence Bullard, Ingrao Inc. and David Scott Interiors have purchased his semi-abstract creations, and Tan’s work can be found in the collections of the Columbus Museum of Art, the HE Art Museum and the Centre Pompidou.
Find Zhipeng Tan furniture on 1stDibs.
$35,000 / item
Echo Bench Polished Brass by Zhipeng Tan
By Zhipeng Tan
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
This visceral and sculptural chair is designed and made by renown artist Zhipeng Tan. Size and color is customizable upon request, lead time is 45-60 days. We ship internationally. ...
Brass
$28,500 / item
Zhipeng Tan, Brass 'Surf' Bench, TanTan Collection
By Zhipeng Tan
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Zhipeng Tan’s ‘Surf’ bench embodies and further extends the concept of his most iconic collection, TanTan collection. “This year, we have been forced to iso...
Brass
Zhipeng Tan, Brass 'Surf 'Large'' Bench, Tantan Collection
By Zhipeng Tan
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Zhipeng Tan’s ‘Surf’ bench embodies and further extends the concept of his most iconic collection, TanTan collection. “This year, we have been forced to iso...
Brass
$33,000 / item
Zhipeng Tan, Brass 'Surf' Bench, TanTan Collection
By Zhipeng Tan
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Zhipeng Tan’s ‘Surf’ bench embodies and further extends the concept of his most iconic collection, TanTan collection. “This year, we have been forced to iso...
Brass
Echo Bench Polished Brass by Zhipeng Tan
By Zhipeng Tan
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
This visceral and sculptural chair is designed and made by renown artist Zhipeng Tan. Size and color is customizable upon request, lead time is 45-60 days. We ship internationally. ...
Brass
$18,682
H 33.6 in W 55.5 in D 19.6 in
Antique Black Forest Bear Bench w. Five Bear Sculptures & Carved Oak Leaf Seat
Located in Lisse, NL
Large and impressive, hand carved and demountable bench with five bear sculptures. This superbly hand carved bench is entirely made of solid wood and therefor too this stunning and highly decorative antique is as strong and stable as the day it was it was made. We cannot single out one detail that is more special than others, because the standing bear sculptures...
Glass, Wood
$17,500 / item
H 37.41 in W 19.69 in D 15.75 in
Polished Brass "33 Step" Bar Chair/Stool by Zhipeng Tan
By Zhipeng Tan
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Tan’s practice, since graduating from the China Academy of Art, has been focused on the ancient technique of lost-wax casting. This ancient foundry process has created an intersection between Tan’s interest in heritage casting techniques and organic forms. The forms designed by Tan vary from being environmental (water drops, tree roots) to being figurative (spinal cords, pelvic structures). The Lily collection brings together the botanical and human motifs most explicitly. The tension between the two references cause the works to become abstracted and take on a slightly surreal quality, whilst maintaining functionality. The 33 Step chair...
Brass
Red Acrylic Lucite Bench Cocktail Table
Located in New York, NY
A beautiful and substantial high-gloss red opaque acrylic/Lucite bench or cocktail table, in the Modern style or Postmodern period, circa late-20th to early 21st-century. Great as a ...
Acrylic, Resin, Lucite
1960s Organic Bench
Located in New York, NY
1960s organic bench. Solid walnut bench with dovetails. Can also be used as a coffee table.
Walnut
Polished Brass 33 Step Chair by Zhipeng Tan
By Zhipeng Tan
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Tan’s practice, since graduating from the China Academy of Art, has been focused on the ancient technique of lost-wax casting. This ancient foundry process has created an intersection between Tan’s interest in heritage casting techniques and organic forms. The forms designed by Tan vary from being environmental (water drops, tree roots) to being figurative (spinal cords, pelvic structures). The Lily collection brings together the botanical and human motifs most explicitly. The tension between the two references cause the works to become abstracted and take on a slightly surreal quality, whilst maintaining functionality. The 33 step chair...
Brass
Brass and Steel Footman Coffee Table or Bench
Located in Atlanta, GA
Brass and steel footman coffee table or bench, England, circa late 19th century. Originally used as a footman (a table used next to a cooking fire, where...
Brass, Steel
Crescent Bench Series 60 in Polished Brass by Stamford Modern
By Stamford Modern
Located in Westport, CT
The Crescent Bench by Carlos Solano for Stamford Modern a remarkable blend of elegance, stability, and artistic craftsmanship. This exquisite bench is designed to enhance any space w...
Brass
Rustic Chinese Provincial Elm Wood Bench
Located in Sheffield, MA
The elegantly simple 19th century elmwood bench has the clean restraint of Classic Chinese Minimalist forms, Elegantly simple in design from China's Zhejiang province celebrates the...
Elm
$2,720Sale Price|20% Off
H 13.5 in W 60 in D 17.25 in
Mid-Century Modern Slatted Wood Bench or Table w Brass Sabots, Refinished, 1960s
By Maruni, Herman Miller, George Nelson
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A beautifully refinished Mid-Century Modern slatted wood bench, circa 1960s. Expertly crafted with clean architectural lines, the design features rows of evenly spaced wooden slats r...
Brass
Folk Art Heavy Carved Log Bench Rhinoceros Sculpture
Located in Rockaway, NJ
Folk Art heavy carved log wood bench in form of sculpture.
Teak
Chinese Double Moon Step Bench, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
A low daybed step from the mid-19th century, featuring an elongated plank top with rounded ends and short splayed legs linked with straight stretchers. Crafted with mortise-and-tenon...
Elm
$750 / item
H 17.25 in W 47.5 in D 15 in
T-Top Bench – Modern Dining Bench in Baltic Birch Plywood and Colorful Laminate
By Nice Condo
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A simple and elegant bench series pairing geometric shapes with traditional Japanese-inspired joinery. Available in a wide variety of colors, finishes, and dimensions. T-top benches ...
Laminate, Plywood
Zhipeng Tan, Brass 'Surf (Large)' Bench, TanTan Collection
By Zhipeng Tan
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Zhipeng Tan’s ‘Surf’ bench embodies and further extends the concept of his most iconic collection, TanTan collection. “This year, we have been forced to iso...
Brass