Modern Asian Art and Furniture
The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw sweeping social change and major scientific advances — both of which contributed to a new aesthetic: modernism. Rejecting the rigidity of Victorian artistic conventions, modernists sought a new means of expression. References to the natural world and ornate classical embellishments gave way to the sleek simplicity of the Machine Age. Architect Philip Johnson characterized the hallmarks of modernism as “machine-like simplicity, smoothness or surface [and] avoidance of ornament.”
Early practitioners of modernist design include the De Stijl (“The Style”) group, founded in the Netherlands in 1917, and the Bauhaus School, founded two years later in Germany.
Followers of both groups produced sleek, spare designs — many of which became icons of daily life in the 20th century. The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics. While Bauhaus principals Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe created furniture from mass-produced, chrome-plated steel, American visionaries like Charles and Ray Eames worked in materials as novel as molded plywood and fiberglass. Today, Breuer’s Wassily chair, Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona chair — crafted with his romantic partner, designer Lilly Reich — and the Eames lounge chair are emblems of progressive design and vintage originals are prized cornerstones of collections.
It’s difficult to overstate the influence that modernism continues to wield over designers and architects — and equally difficult to overstate how revolutionary it was when it first appeared a century ago. But because modernist furniture designs are so simple, they can blend in seamlessly with just about any type of décor. Don’t overlook them.
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
Early 2000s Japanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Velvet
2010s Japanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Linen
2010s Japanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Linen
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Sheepskin, Walnut
2010s Japanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Linen
20th Century Japanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Bamboo
2010s Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
Mid-20th Century Japanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Bamboo, Rattan
2010s French Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Tortoise Shell, Wood, Paint
2010s Ukrainian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Steel
2010s Thai Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Asian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Lebanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Wood
1970s Israeli Vintage Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Canvas, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Wood, Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
Early 2000s American Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Art Glass
2010s Chinese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Bronze
2010s Chinese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
Late 20th Century Japanese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Bamboo, Rattan
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Brass
2010s Thai Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Wood
2010s Thai Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
2010s French Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Wood
2010s Thai Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Porcelain
2010s Thai Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Asian Art and Furniture
Paper