’Christian O’Reilly created three bespoke benches for the Graves Gallery. They were produced on time and within budget, meeting the original brief for this project and are a beautiful addition to the gallery spaces.

Christian O’Reilly’s elegant designs and choice of materials are sympathetic to the original 1930’s furniture and architectural features already within the gallery space. They are durable, withstand regular use and also meet the health and safety requirements of a public space.’

Graves Gallery, Sheffield

Project details

Client : Graves Gallery, Sheffield

Brief : to design and make three benches in oak for the gallery

Key project points :

+ won a Wood Award for the best single piece for a public space in 2009;

+ flexible – in the centre area, visitors can choose to sit facing in either direction;

+ the seating complies with accessibility guidelines;

+ portable so they can be easily moved to suit changing displays and visitors’ needs;

+ comfortable and inviting, encouraging visitors to spend more time in the gallery;

+ incorporate storage for information about the art works;

+ complement the purpose built Art Deco gallery – the elegant, serpentine curves of both the backrest and the overall form draw the eye through the gallery and tie in with the original gallery chairs; the seat backs are block laminated and hand shaped, creating a link with the gallery’s parquet floors as well as visual and surface texture

+ designed and made to a fixed budget and timescale;

+ made in the UK from sustainably managed European oak.