The Urban Legend

By Kashish Gupta

My interest in public benches is owed to my own as well as my closest friends’ histories of disability. City landscapes are often not just unwelcoming but downright hostile to the need for rest. However, this interest in public seating developed over time from a self-serving need to what is now seeming to be a life-long venture of finding the perfect bench. One that offers comfort, community, and activity, even if merely in the form of people watching. The included photos form a small part of this search and diverge in not just their geographical context but also structure, intent, and use.

Morning walk in Barcelona, Spain.

A Sciences Po field visit to Palais de Tau in Reims, France.

A lone public bench under a tree canopy in Luxembourg, Luxembourg.

Mid-afternoon break at Northeastern University’s Boston campus, USA.

Commemorative plaque for a bench outside the Isabelle Gardner Museum in Boston, USA.

Individuals seated outside the Isabelle Gardner Museum in Boston, USA.

A bench that exemplifies hostile architecture in Boston, USA.

Public seating outside Northeastern University’s student gym in Boston, USA.