Leather Gym Bench, 1930s

This 1930s Italian bench is so over-scaled, and monumental in appearance, that it seems to have been made for the large room it was destined, rather than the comfort of a typical sitter. As such, it would function equally well as a low side table or a high cocktail table. We’ll allow the buyer to determine its use. The designer was Pierluigi Colli, and the fabricator Martinotti, the Turin furniture and interior decorating firm that was established in 1831, and exhibited at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition and the 1904 St Louis World’s Fair. Colli’s family owned a textile company that supplied Martinotti with upholstery fabrics, suggesting nepotism had something to do with his being hired as the firm's director in 1926. Nevertheless, he proved himself worthy as a designer and a businessman. Having studied in Paris at the Ecole des Arts Decoratifs, he befriended leading French designers, and arranged for Martinotti to retail Lalique glass and Jean Perzel lighting. In addition, the quality of their work, and Colli’s dedication to the modern design movement, prompted Carlo Mollino, Gio Ponti, and Gino Levi-Montalcini, among others, to have Martinotti fabricate some of their furniture. Colli’s claim to fame, however, is his own work as a designer, and his ability to master the vocabularies of every trend from Art Deco to midcentury modern. During the Great Depression, when nearly every nation floundered economically, fascist Italy...

- the wood has been treated by oil - wood with signs of age.

Bench from Bauhaus factory. Original condition with beautiful patina. Sturdy and stabile. Shipping to Continental US circa $1000.

Bench from Bauhaus factory. Original condition with beautiful patina. Sturdy and stabile. Shipping to Continental US circa $780.

Bench from Bauhaus factory. Original condition with beautiful patina. Sturdy and stabile. Shipping to Continental US circa $680.

A robust and utilitarian Belgian bench from the 1930s, crafted from solid wood. The design is simple and unembellished, with a flat plank seat supported ...

A striking 1930s Central European pommel horse, acquired in France but consistent in style with examples produced in the former Czech Republic. Originally crafted as training equipme...

Beautiful antique European gym bench Full size with excellent patina on both the leather and the wood. The legs are adjustable with easy pins that pull out to slide the legs up and d...

FRITS SCHLEGEL & FRITZ HANSEN - SCANDINAVIAN MODERN A beautiful and rare sofa bench by Frits Schlegel and manufactured by Fritz Hansen, 1940, with maker's brass plaque and paper lab...

Bench from factory built in 1920s in original condition with beautiful age patina. Sturdy and stabile. Very comfortable.