"The single common element in all man-made things is that they are designed."
-George Nelson

Introduced in 1946 the Nelson platform bench was part of George Nelson's first collection for Herman Miller and still stands as a benchmark of modern design. Like much of Nelson's work, the platform bench has clean, rectilinear lines, reflecting his architectural background and his insistence on what he calls "honest" design, making an honest visual statement about an object's purpose.

Herman Miller founder D.J. DePree saw an article in a 1945 Life magazine featuring George Nelson's Storagewall unit, which was causing a sensation in the furniture industry. He was so impressed that he paid a visit to Nelson in New York and convinced him to be his director of design, which spurred Nelson to found his design firm, George Nelson & Associates. The warm personal and professional relationship between Nelson and DePree yielded a stunning range of products, from the playful Marshmallow Sofa to the first L-shaped desk, a precursor of today's workstation. The 1955 Herman Miller catalog states that the bench "has proved to be one of the most flexible and useful units in the collection." The bench was reintroduced in 1994.

George Nelson infamously designed the first version of his Platform Bench to discourage visitors to his New York office from staying too long. He figured that having to sit on a slatted bench would be uncomfortable enough to drive people he didn't want to see away. It didn't work. People liked the bench, and they stayed.

The Nelson wood base platform bench is available in three sizes with either solid maple, oak, or walnut slats over ebonized, finger-jointed wood legs. Nelson Bench is also offered with polished chrome legs.