1960s Ward Bennett for Salviati Vide-Poche Clear, Concave, Signed

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Rare and early (circa 1964) Ward Bennett Vide-poche for Salviati. Vive-poche means empty pockets - this s a catch all, … Read more Rare and early (circa 1964) Ward Bennett Vide-poche for Salviati. Vive-poche means empty pockets - this s a catch all, a concave glass dish designed by famous industrial designer Ward Bennett. Mainly known for his iconic furniture designs, Bennett also did a handful of passion projects, including this particular glass dish. These were manufactured by different companies beginning in the 1960's. This one by the Italian glass company Salvati, is considered the most desirable and of a higher quality of glass than the other versions. Dish is 7 5/8 inches diameter and 1 3/4 inches tall.

WARD BENNETT (November 17, 1917 – August 13, 2003) was an American designer, artist and sculptor. The New York Times described his work as "defining an era."

"Bennett was born as Howard Bernstein in Washington Heights, NYC. Bennett started working in the Garment District at age 13. Shortly thereafter he started working for Hattie Carnegie, where he reportedly designed the costumes for Gertrude Lawrence in Lady in the Dark. After visiting Europe he decided to become a designer. He studied at Académie de la Grande Chaumière, under Constantin Brâncuși

He moved to California and worked as a window dresser. Returning to New York City, he continued to do window dressing and in the evenings studied design from Hans Hofmann. He shared a studio with Louise Nevelson. He had an apartment in the Dakota, which he redecorated frequently. His apartment was once called "the most exciting modern apartment in New York." His home in East Hampton, is called The Springs.

Bennett sought to create a design style that was uniquely American, versus the popular European design styles of the 1960s and 70's. His style was called "sensual minimalism" for his blending of industrial design and aesthetic look. He is considered one of the first designers to use industrial design in home design."

Clients include Sasaki, Japan, Chase, David Rockefeller, Gianni Agnelli, Tiffany & Co., and Jann Wenner.

Ward Bennett died at his home in Key West in 2003. See less