Contemporary Bar Stools

The style options in bar stools continue to expand every year. This trend is perhaps most evident in contemporary bar stools, where some truly exotic and futuristic designs are coming out of the factories of top manufacturers. While the designs vary tremendously, two overarching themes in contemporary stools are consistent: an emphasis on artistic beauty and interesting seat designs.

A hallmark of all contemporary furniture, including bar stools, is a certain boldness of design. Because bar stools are such singular pieces of furniture, modern designers like to push the limits between form and function. The results are often quite stunning, with stools that look more like beautiful pieces of avant garde art than places for humans to sit.

The focus of this contemporary approach to bar stool design is often on the legs. Emphasis is on very thin legs with unique base shapes. Examples include very simple leg designs made from a single tube of stainless steel, aluminum, or chrome. The metal is bent in such a way as to spread out at the bottom to form a sturdy base for the rest of the stool.

Other contemporary bar stool designs feature seatbacks with sidebars that extend below the seat and curve to become the anchors for a cross bar that serves as a footrest. It's a beautiful, elegant example of the marriage of form and function. Modern metal alloys make these designs possible, along with the artistic imaginations of the designers.

The second theme that runs throughout all contemporary bar stools being manufactured today focuses on the seats. You can find some truly amazing, quirky, seemingly impossible designs! Ergonomics play a central role in many designs, with an emphasis on comfort and starkly basic seating. The oversimplified seats play well against the stylized legs in these contemporary stools. The effect is visually stunning.

On bar stools with seatbacks, designers are playing with a blend of retro and modern looks. Very low-cut seatbacks - they almost look like an afterthought - are emerging and seem to be very popular. These tend to be solid half ellipses or circles set on round seats with fabric or vinyl covers.

Ultimately, the hardest part of picking out a set of contemporary bar stools may be narrowing your choices. There are so many beautiful designs - with more coming out every year - that you may find yourself overwhelmed with possibilities. But what a pleasant problem to have!

 

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