AE-D42-43 - Library House Bench

Thomas O'Brien Outdoor

Tiimeless, special, and useful. A wonderful garden bench with an architectural presence. Benches can provide a singular moment, at the end of a view, or as a pair that frames an entrance. They become a piece of the garden architecture themselves. I wanted to create a new traditional wood bench with a level of striking architecture, detail, form and craftmanship. This design incorporates a series of ideas, collected over many years of looking at garden benches. In particular, I've always loved the indispensable Edward Lutyens garden bench and so many antique, refined benches in all forms with a central motif. I also had in mind the beautiful benches in one of my favorite American gardens at Dumbarton Oaks. To me this bench has a soft, modern feel to it with the circular motif in the center back. The circular form is something that I return to often, to find a modern element in a design. This circle also reminds me of the moon window opening that I created in the brickwork of the walled garden at the Library house."