Modern 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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1980s Vintage Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s Dutch Modern Furniture
Leather, Foam, Wood
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Marble, Carrara Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Bronze
2010s Lebanese Modern Furniture
Marble, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s Modern Furniture
Lacquer
1960s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s French Modern Furniture
Glass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Cut Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Nickel
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Oak, Plywood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Furniture
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Metal
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Leather, Lucite
Early 2000s British Modern Furniture
Macassar, Leather
2010s South African Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Metal, Chrome
1970s Mexican Vintage Modern Furniture
Terracotta
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Thai Modern Furniture
Linen
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Cotton
2010s Greek Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s French Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Thai Modern Furniture
Linen
1920s Dutch Vintage Modern Furniture
Belgian Black Marble
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Chrome
20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Cut Glass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century Belgian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Foam, Latex, Rubber
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Furniture
Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Metal
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Leather, Teak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Plexiglass
1990s German Modern Furniture
Crystal, Gold Leaf, Brass
1970s Vintage Modern Furniture
Plastic
2010s French Modern Furniture
Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Metal
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Chrome
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Crystal, Brass
2010s English Modern Furniture
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture
Pine, Giltwood
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Marble, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Balkan Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Acrylic, Fiberglass
20th Century German Modern Furniture
Brass