Over the past few decades, open-plan kitchens have become more popular than their taller counterparts, counter stools and barstool. While the seating style is a key element of casual dining-in kitchens, the choice between a high-back or a discreetly hidden sans-back design is only the beginning of the designer’s sourcing considerations. Comfort is paramount, but footrests, contoured and cushioned seating should also be considered.
AD PRO reached out to the AD100 architects and designers to share their favourite counter stools and barstools. Below are the designer-approved suggestions.
Commune Design
You can choose from a range of wood finishes, including black walnut, oxidised maple, and raw oak for BDDW’s Square Guest bar stool.
Deborah Berke Partners
Mark Albrecht Studio’s Low Woven Back stool is a descendant of a stool design that was commissioned by MoMA. It features an English Bridle leather seating that sits below the bar’s sight line. markalbrechtstudio.com
Ike Kligerman Barkley
Dmitriy & Co.’s Auster counter stool is handmade in New York. It features a bronze footrest and joins the oak legs that are ebony-finished.
Monique Gibson Interior Design
The High stool was designed by Space Copenhagen for Mater and is made from oak or beech responsibly sourced wood.
Amy Lau Design
The Alto stool from Powell & Bonnell is elegant in its form. It comes in satin nickel, polished nickel, and satin black finishes.
Ken Fulk
David Cruz, a designer from California, was inspired to create the Molar stool. The Molar stool can be adjusted in height by rotating the patinated brass support.
ASH NYC
Alvar Aalto’s 1935 design of the Bar Stool 64 was inspired by his experiments in wood bending.
Clements Design
Ingrid Donat, an artist, studied ancient tribal tattoos in order to create the ornamental markings in her bronze Bar Stool Engrenage. Carpenters Workshop Gallery has a limited edition of this item.
Aero Studios
The Galia barstool’s arched silhouette is created by Thomas O’Brien of Century Furniture with its cabriole legs.
Kelly Behun Studio
The Park Place counter stool, designed by Yabu Pushelberg, is available in matte black soft touch and polished nickel.
Johnston Marklee
The Emeco stool from Phillip Starck is a recycled aluminium stool made of aluminium. It was originally designed for the MoMA’s 2001 retrospective on Mies van der Rohe.
Charles Zana Architecture
Bassam Fellows’ Tractor stool combines utilitarian elements, such as the Swiss tractor seat, and a worker’s footstool with sculptural craftsmanship.
Julie Hillman Design
India Mahdavi’s immensely popular Bishop stool has been available in many special iterations since its 2004 debut. It is an enamelled ceramic version of the chess piece.
Suzanne Kasler Interiors
The brass foot rail, available in antiqued and oxidised black finishes, adds subtle detail to Gregorius Pineo’s Courtens counter stool.
Leroy Street Studio
The black walnut planks are structurally sound and can be paired with a brass frame in KGB’s Gavilan stool. This stool is available with or without a back support.
Toshiko Mori Architect
The BCTD barstool is a combination of Japanese woodworking techniques and designer Michael Poulsen’s Danish-influenced aesthetic. It can be ordered with a leather-, or fabric-upholstered seat.
Jamie Bush + Co.
The Plank stool from Thomas Hayes Studio features a wood frame, a leather seat and exposed metal fasteners.
Carrier and Company
The transitional design of the Bevin barstool from Carrier and Company, Century Furniture features midcentury and French Empire-inspired details. It feels familiar but contemporary.
Ashe Leandro
Maison Drucker Paris’s rattan stool 31 1/2 is made from Rilsan fibre. It can be woven neatly in a variety of bright colours.
Fox-Nahem
The Shadow barstool, named for its sleek, cantilevered frame and slim appearance, is made of solid aluminium.
Studio Sofield Inc.
The tea-stained Danish cord is wrapped around a walnut frame in Bill Sofield’s Cocoon barstool. It is finished with a snap-in seat cushion.
S.R. Gambrel
York Street Studio’s Thonet barstool is vertically manufactured and stored at its Woodbury facility in Connecticut. This allows for quick deliveries.
Tom Scheerer Inc.
Thos. Moser’s Coal Shovel stool uses exposed stout-tenon joinery as accent.
The Archers
Fratelli Levaggi’s Campanino 900 High stool is made by generations of handcrafters. It can be ordered in a choice between cherrywood or beech wood sourced from the Ligurian Apennines.
Marmol Radziner
The bronze patinated barstool, originally designed for Ron Radziner, Marmol Radziner’s design partner at Marmol Radziner, is now exclusively available at Jean de Merry.
Studio Shamshiri
The Tall stool is classic in form and structurally clean. It was handcrafted at Sawkille Co.’s zero waste facility in Kingston, New York.
