Comparison Guide: Modern Classic's Exhibition Benches
Inspired by: Mies van der Rohe Barcelona Bench
Exhibition Narrow Bench
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| Exhibition Narrow Bench | |
| Our Item No. | MC-1009 |
| Base Price | $ 1,090 |
| Overall Dimensions: | 41.5"w x 15.5"d |
| Seat Height: | 15 or 18 inches (depending on leg choice) |
| Weight: | 34 pounds |
Exhibition 2-Seat Bench
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| Exhibition 2-Seat Bench | |
| Our Item No. | MC-1007 |
| Base Price | $ 1,530 |
| Overall Dimensions: | 51.5"w x 21.5"d |
| Seat Height: | 15 or 18 inches (depending on leg choice) |
| Weight: | 48 pounds |
Exhibition 3-Seat Bench
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| Exhibition 3-Seat Bench | |
| Our Item No. | MC-1008 |
| Base Price | $ 1,900 |
| Overall Dimensions: | 71.5"w x 21.5"d |
| Seat Height: | 15 or 18 inches (depending on leg choice) |
| Weight: | 64 pounds |
We wrote this review and comparison guide to help you figure out who makes the best Barcelona Bench that was inspired by the Mies van der Rohe Barcelona Chair. We have not found anyone esle selling these two peices, so we have only highlighted 4 sellers of the iconic Barcelona chairs, and while it seem slightly bias toward our versions, the points are valid and we hope support the notion that our version of these chairs are the best value proposition on the market.
- Offered in Top grain Italian leather
- Solid Wood Frame, offered in five finishes
- Matching buttons and leather piping throughout
- Legs are #304 Stainless Steel, polished to mirror-like finish, offered in two lengths
- Exclusive: Powdercoating the legs, offered in 8 colors (for an extra charge)
Summary: Modern Classics vs. the Competition
| Feature | Modern Classics | Rove Concepts | Barcelona Designs | Low-Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Narrow Bench Base Price | $ 1,150 | $ n/a | $ n/a | $ n/a |
| 2-Seat Bench Base Price | $ 1,620 | $ 1,195 | $ 849 | $ 660 |
| 3-Seat Bench Price | $ 2,010 | $ 1,495 | $ 995 | $ 950 |
| Overall Dimensions | ||||
| Upholstery Materials | ||||
| Frame Details | ||||
| Cushion Details | ||||
| Custom Options |
Detailed Comparison: Modern Classics vs. the Competition
OVERALL DIMENSIONS
Modern Classics
The overall dimensions of our 2-Seat Bench are the same as the original design. We also offer two other sizes: the larger 3-Seat bench at 72" and the smaller 42" narrow bench.
Rove Concepts
The Rove 2-Seat Bench dimensions pretty much match the original, however, they only offer one size of bench.
Barcelona Design
The Barcelona Design 2-Seat Bench dimensions pretty much match the original, however, they only offer one size of bench.
Low-Market Chairs
Their Bench frame dimensions are 6 inches shorter in length and width. Not to specifications.
UPHOLSTERY MATERIALS
Modern Classics
We offer 20 imported Italian leather colors as standard, with the option of providing your own leather or selecting from our wide range of color and texture selection of stock European leather colors for a minor surcharge. We also offer our exclusive Boucle Fabric in 20 colors for our Benches.
Rove Concepts
The Rove bench is only offered in one color, black. Not offered in Fabric or in your own materials.
Barcelona Design
Offer 4 Italian leather colors as standard, not offered in Fabric, custom leather or in your own materials.
Low-Market Chairs
Their Bench is typically offered in only 1 or 2 leather colors: black and white. Upholstery might be leather, bonded leather, or vinyl; in any case, not quality A level Italian or USA leather.
FRAME DETAILS
Modern Classics
Our Wood Frames are 2 x 4 inches hardwood (usually Ash) are available in 5 finish colors, all with a commercial grade lacquer finish. The legs are polished stainless steel with a plastic foot. The legs are offered in two lengths ( 9 and 12 inches) so that the Bench can be either 15" seat height or 18" seat height. They can also be finished in one of our 8 powder coated finishes. No other manufacturer offers these options. By using higher grade #304 stainless steel we achieve a more natural appearance metal feature than plated chrome as well as a more environmentally safe steel compared to "plated chrome". Stainless steel is easy to maintain, inherently corrosive resistant and repairable by hand polishing offering a near life-time of trouble fee use.
Rove Concepts
The species of wood for the bench frame is unknown. The frame finish has only one color option, and one leg options. The leg diameter looks a little small.
Barcelona Design
Their Bench wood frame is thinner and wood species is weak. Legs are thinner too, and are chrome plated.
Low-Market Chairs
These low market benches use thinner wood on the frame and wood species is weak. Legs are thinner too, and are chrome plated.
CUSHION DETAILS
Modern Classics
Our Cushions are upholstered with individual panels, measuring 5.5 inches square, which are hand-cut, hand-welted, and hand-tufted with leather buttons about the size of a U.S. dime coin. We use luxury grade HR (High Resilient) Multi-Density Foam in our cushion construction giving our customers a very comfortable sitting experience - the most comfortable on the market! This foam is an environmentally and people safe material produced by a major world-recognized foam manufacturer. Our foam is rated by independent certified testing laboratories and tested for commercial safety grade fire and smoke standards for Europe and USA. Additionally, the foam is wrapped with Dacron polyester fiberfill for additional softness and seat comfort.
Rove Concepts
Their Bench is upholstered with individual panels, which are cut, hand-welted, and hand-tufted with leather buttons about the size of a dime. The individual panels measurea about 8 inches square, which are much larger than the original or Modern Classics version, so they don't look right. The say they use highly resilient urethane foam with down-like Dacron polyester fiberfill on the outside. However, their Bench cushions have extremely high foam density, which make their cushions extra hard and not very comfortable.
Barcelona Design
Their Bench is upholstered with individual panels, but use corded piping between the panels. Corded piping is a fake way to create the hand-welting, and are uncomfortable to sit on. Their Bench uses inexpensive foam with no Dacron polyester fiberfill wrapped on the on the outside of the foam. Foam density is high, making the cushions extra hard and not very comfortable.
Low-Market Chairs
Their Bench is upholstered with individual panels, but use corded piping between the panels. Corded piping is a fake way to create the hand-welting, and are uncomfortable to sit on. Their Bench uses inexpensive foam with no Dacron polyester fiberfill wrapped on the on the outside of the foam. Foam density is high, making the cushions extra hard and not very comfortable.
CUSTOM OPTIONS
Modern Classics
We offer the extreme flexibility on this model for customizing, with modest upcharges. First, there is the upholstery material. You can provide your own fabric or leather. You can ask us to check with our leather supplier for a specific leather color. We can powder coat the legs using one of our standard colors, or your own selection. There is also the wood finish choices and leg lengths.
Rove Concepts
Rove offers no customizing options.
Barcelona Design
This seller offers no customizing options.
Low-Market Chairs
These models offer no customizing options.
Product Description
Our Exhibition Benches were inspired by the design of popular Mies van der Rohe Bench, also known as the "Barcelona Bench". Besides the wood finish choices and leg lengths, there are also other ways to customize our benches. We can powder coat the legs in one of six colors (see below), or you can provide your own material. So while there are many so called replicas or reproductions on the market, we believe our version of the Barecelona Bench is the finest in the market.
Our 2 Seat Exhibition Bench is close to the size and geometry original design. We also offer two other sizes: the larger 3 Seat bench at 72" and the smaller 42" narrow bench. Our frames are constructed from premium grade hardwood (walnut or ash) - 4" wide x 1.5" thick - with 3 finish choices: medium walnut, dark walnut, or ebonized black. The stainless steel legs are hand-polished to a high luster finish, are 1.5 inches in diameter and have a smooth plastic foot. There is a choice of seat height: either the standard 15" height (using 9 inch legs) or 18" seat height (using 12 inch legs). The cushion surfaces consist of individual square panels made of top-grain, Italian leather; each piece is cut and hand-sewn using a hand-rolling welting technique not found in other versions on the market. Inside the cushion is high resilient - high density polyurethane foam. The cushion is supported by heavy saddle leather straps screwed to the frame and whose top match the leather color.
LEATHER CHOICES
Modern Classics Furniture offers two levels of Top-Grain Italian Leathers. Each of the these groupings feature:
- Top-grain Italian leather from Grade A hides
- Semi aniline-dyed (standard) and 100% aniline-dyed (premium)
- Made in Italy and imported to our factory
- Have a UV and Moisture Guard built into the dye
- Are not split hides or bonded leather
We are happy to mail you a physical piece of leather so you can hold it in your hands.
Below are the leather colors we offer for our Barcelona Collection. Our Standard Leathers (denoted with the prefix L1) are top-grain, aniline-dyed, and then color corrected with a slight embossing to create a more uniform grain pattern. Our Premium leathers (denoted with the prefix L2) are also top-grain, aniline-dyed but have a soft feel to them and much of the hides natural grain patterns are retained. All our leathers are considered equally durable and are ideal for home or commercial use. To read more about leather, read our A Guide to Understanding Upholstery Leather: A Primer.
Click on any of these images for an enlarged view.
Standard Leathers (Top Grain - Textured)
Other Metal Frame Color Choices
Besides the standard #304 Polished Stainless Steel legs shown above, we do our own in-house powder coating over the stainless steel frame. We offer 4 standard colors and there is a $75 extra charge for the custom leg finishing.
Click on any of these swatches to see an enlarged view.
VIEW OUR OTHER PRODUCTS INSPIRED BY THIS DESIGNER
About Modern Classics Furniture
Here at Modern Classics Furniture, we focus tightly on manufacturing and selling furniture in the niche market known as Iconic Modern Classics Furniture. Here's why we are your top choice for Modern Classic Furniture:
- We make and sell only our own products -- we do not sell other manufacturer's product, nor will you find our products elsewhere on the Internet.
- We offer a 3 year warranty
- We only make quality furniture using the best materials
- We offer wholesale and design trade prices - let us be your #1 source - sign up today!
Corporate Headquarters
3999 Hammer Drive
Bellingham, WA 98226
Curt Roth, President
360-733-6400
curt@modernclassics.com
Please call us if you have any questions at our company headquarters in Bellingham Washington. Call or Email, or you can use this contact us form, we will receive a text message.