Modern Chairs
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s Brazilian Modern Chairs
Leather, Textile, Cane, Wood, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Chairs
Brass
2010s Mexican Modern Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Mexican Modern Chairs
Maple, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Chairs
Ash
1940s Swedish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Chairs
Steel
1990s Italian Modern Chairs
Acrylic
1940s Swedish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
1950s Finnish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
1940s Swedish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Chairs
Walnut, Mohair
2010s Portuguese Modern Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Chairs
Metal
2010s Brazilian Modern Chairs
Textile, Cane, Hardwood, Leather
2010s Brazilian Modern Chairs
Leather, Textile, Cane, Hardwood
1940s Swedish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
2010s Portuguese Modern Chairs
Fabric, Oak
2010s Italian Modern Chairs
Velvet
2010s Canadian Modern Chairs
Walnut
Early 2000s European Modern Chairs
Birch
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Chairs
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Chairs
Chrome
2010s Italian Modern Chairs
Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Chairs
Wood, Leather
2010s Canadian Modern Chairs
Steel
1950s Finnish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
2010s Brazilian Modern Chairs
Cane, Wood, Hardwood, Textile
2010s American Modern Chairs
Leather, Oak
1990s Swedish Modern Chairs
Polyester
1960s German Vintage Modern Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Chairs
Polyester, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Chairs
Polyester, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Chairs
Velvet
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Chairs
Metal
1950s Finnish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
1950s Finnish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Chairs
Metal
1960s Finnish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Chairs
Wood, Leather, Canvas, Velvet, Polyester
2010s Belgian Modern Chairs
Stainless Steel
1930s Finnish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
2010s Italian Modern Chairs
Bouclé
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Chairs
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Chairs
Upholstery, Foam, Beech
2010s South African Modern Chairs
Steel
2010s American Modern Chairs
Oak, Leather
2010s Spanish Modern Chairs
Velvet
2010s American Modern Chairs
Linen
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Chairs
Leather, Wood
1950s Finnish Vintage Modern Chairs
Birch
Early 2000s Dutch Modern Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Chairs
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Chairs
Walnut, Velvet
2010s American Modern Chairs
Leather, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Chairs
Foam, Fabric, Wood
1950s French Vintage Modern Chairs
Steel
Early 2000s Italian Modern Chairs
Chrome