International Style Armchairs
The International Style, a modernist movement within architecture and furniture design that was given its name by American architect Philip Johnson and historian Henry-Russell Hitchcock, was born during the 1920s and ’30s. It gained steam initially in Europe and then in the United States as a response to the first World War. Building projects associated with the movement, as well as vintage International Style chairs, tables and other furnishings, are minimal and pared back.
Pioneers of the International Style — architect Walter Gropius and his Bauhaus colleagues Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Marcel Breuer, De Stijl advocate and Dutch architect J.J.P. Oud and visionary designer Le Corbusier — stripped away decorative elements and placed considerable value on functionality and clean lines, integrating the use of industrial materials like steel, concrete and large sheets of glass in their work. Quite aptly, this mode of design and architectural style coincided with an era now known as the Machine Age and became a global symbol of modernism. The primary motive of its practitioners was to address the changing needs of a rapidly industrializing society, especially the demand for office complexes and apartments in large cities, through economical, technologically advanced, yet aesthetically pleasing designs for furniture and buildings.
“Space and light and order. Those are the things that men need just as much as they need bread or a place to sleep,” said Le Corbusier of the philosophy behind his practical modernist architecture.
The International Style’s designers and architects were inspired by the advantages afforded them by the era’s new technology and industrial machinery as well as state-of-the-art materials. Le Corbusier was fond of framing his buildings in steel but reinforced concrete made far more economic sense. He is probably most admired for the iconic private homes and commercial buildings that he designed or codesigned with his cousin Pierre Jeanneret, which are spread across the world, from New York City to Paris to Chandigarh, India. Today, Breuer’s Wassily Lounge chair; the elegant LC series created by Le Corbusier, Jeanneret and Charlotte Perriand; and Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona chair, crafted with his romantic partner, designer Lilly Reich, are emblems of progressive modernist design and all make prominent use of tubular steel. Vintage originals are the prized cornerstone of collections.
“The International Style is probably the first fundamentally original and widely distributed style since the Gothic,” posited Johnson in the book that accompanied “Modern Architecture: International Exhibition,” an architectural show he cocurated with Hitchcock that featured the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier, Richard Neutra and others. While the term “International Style” had previously been circulating in Europe, when the show opened at the Museum of Modern Art in 1932, it yielded a much broader application of this important style of design.
Find International Style furniture on 1stDibs.
2010s French International Style Armchairs
Wood
Early 2000s Italian International Style Armchairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian International Style Armchairs
Oak
1960s Brazilian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Fabric, Wood
Mid-20th Century Nigerian International Style Armchairs
Glass
2010s Philippine International Style Armchairs
Rattan, Coconut
2010s Philippine International Style Armchairs
Wicker
2010s Philippine International Style Armchairs
Leather
2010s Philippine International Style Armchairs
Rattan, Coconut
2010s Philippine International Style Armchairs
Cotton, Wood
2010s Philippine International Style Armchairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian International Style Armchairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian International Style Armchairs
Metal
1980s American Vintage International Style Armchairs
Steel, Chrome
2010s Belgian International Style Armchairs
Metal
2010s French International Style Armchairs
Wood
1980s American Vintage International Style Armchairs
Steel, Chrome
1950s Czech Vintage International Style Armchairs
Metal
1950s Czech Vintage International Style Armchairs
Metal
2010s Brazilian International Style Armchairs
Upholstery
1950s French Vintage International Style Armchairs
Oak, Leather
1980s American Vintage International Style Armchairs
Steel, Chrome
Late 20th Century Italian International Style Armchairs
Chrome
1950s Brazilian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Cane, Rosewood
20th Century European International Style Armchairs
Zebra Wood, Alligator
Early 20th Century Chinese International Style Armchairs
Wood
20th Century English International Style Armchairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary English International Style Armchairs
Leather
1950s Brazilian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Iron
Late 20th Century Spanish International Style Armchairs
Aluminum
1960s Italian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Textile
1980s Italian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Leather
Early 20th Century Chinese International Style Armchairs
Wood
Mid-20th Century Italian International Style Armchairs
Alpaca, Wood
1930s Italian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Leather, Beech
Late 20th Century Italian International Style Armchairs
Chrome
Mid-20th Century American International Style Armchairs
Stainless Steel
Mid-20th Century Italian International Style Armchairs
Chrome
1970s French Vintage International Style Armchairs
Metal
1970s Northern Irish Vintage International Style Armchairs
Metal
Mid-20th Century Italian International Style Armchairs
Chrome
Late 19th Century European Antique International Style Armchairs
Antler, Leather
1970s Italian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Chrome
1970s Italian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Chrome
1970s Italian Vintage International Style Armchairs
Fabric, Bouclé, Wool, Cotton, Polyester
Late 20th Century Danish International Style Armchairs
Steel
Early 2000s Italian International Style Armchairs
Steel, Aluminum