Modern Building and Garden Elements
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Modern Building and Garden Elements
Travertine
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
Mid-20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Pottery
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Resin
2010s South African Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
1970s Mexican Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements
Terracotta
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Concrete
1970s Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements
Plastic
Late 20th Century Modern Building and Garden Elements
Cement
2010s Chinese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Rock Crystal
2010s Chinese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Malachite, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stone
2010s Australian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
2010s South African Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
2010s South African Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
2010s Mexican Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Building and Garden Elements
Cement
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
2010s South African Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
2010s Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Brass, Nickel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Nickel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Nickel
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Bronze
2010s Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Wrought Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Leather, Wood, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Leather, Fabric
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Limestone
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Concrete
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Brass
20th Century French Modern Building and Garden Elements
Iron
Mid-20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Wrought Iron, Nickel
Mid-20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Wrought Iron, Nickel
20th Century French Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble
20th Century French Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble
20th Century French Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric
20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stoneware
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Limestone
Mid-20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Bronze
Mid-20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Bronze
Mid-20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Bronze
Mid-20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary North American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal