Modern Figurative Sculptures
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Figurative Sculptures
Carrara Marble
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Murano Glass
1990s English Modern Figurative Sculptures
Silver
2010s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Mexican Modern Figurative Sculptures
Clay
2010s French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Plastic, Plaster
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Figurative Sculptures
Clay
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Lacquer
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Lucite
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Figurative Sculptures
1990s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
20th Century Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble, Sterling Silver
20th Century French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1990s Modern Figurative Sculptures
Iron
1960s European Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
1930s French Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Silver Plate, Spelter
20th Century Canadian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Metal, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Blown Glass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Silver
1970s American Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Pewter, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Glass, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Plexiglass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Plexiglass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
Mid-20th Century Russian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
Early 2000s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Wood
1960s American Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Coral
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Figurative Sculptures
Jute, Scagliola, Resin, Fiberglass
Late 20th Century American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Greek Modern Figurative Sculptures
Composition
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain
1960s American Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Figurative Sculptures
Multi-gemstone, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood, Hardwood, Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Greek Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble