A Modern Parametic Bench

PROJECT #1924

Skill Level: Intermediate

Time: 4 Days

Cost: $200

Thanks to advanced design tools, an entirely new category of modern architectural details, furniture design and art has emerged. Named after the specialty software tools used to create it, it’s called parametric design.

Parametric furniture consists of evenly spaced rows or stacks of shapes that create the illusion of large three-dimensional forms. Usually, these exacting shapes are cut on a CNC and assembled in several ways. Stacks of parts are glued together to form large laminations, evenly spaced shapes are held together with complex internal structures or drawn together with threaded rod and spacers.

As a furniture maker and artist, I’ve been exploring parametric sculpture and have developed some new techniques that woodworkers can use to quickly build and create their own parametric furniture with or without a CNC. I call this technique spine and rib construction.

As the name implies, the main components are a spine and a lot of ribs. The ribs slide into position so that they form around whatever shape the spine happens to be. Spines can be straight, bowed or curved in many ways. This feature allows the builder to experiment with the overall look by tweaking the spine shape. And, because the plywood parts have large, glued, connecting surfaces there is no traditional joinery. The bench in this article is based on the shape of classic Cabriolet furniture legs.

Rib Design

The bench consists of 48 ribs plus a spine for an overall length of about 36" was made from two sheets of ¾" Baltic Birch plywood. A shorter version, with say 24 ribs makes a terrific side table. Certainly, make a longer version or change the rib shape as you prefer, but keep in mind