Uses of Stone Benches:
Stone benches serve a range of uses and purposes, for example as a place to sit, a place to store things, and a place to display items such as sculpture, potted plants, and more. In addition, they can also work as a buffer between different areas. Most benches are individual, stand-alone structures, however some are longer continuous constructions. As a result, the latter type are often called “sitting walls”.
Materials in Stone Benches:
The stone benches I build are rectangular single slabs of granite, sandstone, or limestone. They can certainly be built with a single boulder, or as a stone slab on top of stone or wood vertical supports. Most of the vertical supports I’ve used are granite, sandstone or limestone. However, I have used different types of wood for vertical supports also, with locust being my preferred as a result of its longevity.
Design Considerations for Stone Benches:
A stone bench built with a single horizontal surface will last longer than benches made of several smaller stones as a result of being stronger structurally. Also, I use a bubble level across the top surface of each bench during construction to ensure that it is level from side to side and front to back. Consequently, this ensures that the bench creates a level surface for whatever sits atop it. Furthermore, it increases the longevity of the bench remaining stable as a result of gravity pulling on it evenly. On the other hand, the top surface of a stone bench often has variations in the surface. Therefore, I take that into account during construction to achieve the most level top surface possible.
Several of the benches shown here are aligned with cardinal directions, as a result of using a compass.
Antoni Gaudi’s Benches
In 1987, I visited the Park Guell in Barcelona, Spain. As a result, I sat on and photographed a serpentine bench designed by Antoni Gaudi. That was certainly the first time I remember being intrigued by a bench. The bench and the park it is in are World Heritage Sites. Most importantly, the bench and park were the beginning of my interest in landscape architecture.