Modern 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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Sculptures
Plastic
1990s French Modern Sculptures
Enamel
20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Terracotta
1970s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
2010s Modern Sculptures
Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Balkan Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Acrylic, Fiberglass
2010s Chinese Modern Sculptures
Rock Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Stone
2010s Chinese Modern Sculptures
Malachite, Bronze
1960s Spanish Vintage Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s British Modern Sculptures
Brass
Early 2000s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Resin
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Stone, Limestone, Stainless Steel
Early 2000s American Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
Early 2000s North American Modern Sculptures
Aluminum, Steel
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
1980s Vintage Modern Sculptures
Masonite, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s English Modern Sculptures
Fiberglass
1980s Spanish Vintage Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Concrete, Cement
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s French Modern Sculptures
Oak
2010s African Modern Sculptures
Steel, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Sculptures
Cement
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s Chinese Modern Sculptures
Aluminum, Metal
2010s Chinese Modern Sculptures
Aluminum, Metal
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Oak, Walnut, Maple, Hardwood
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Onyx, Carrara Marble, Marble, Travertine
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Onyx, Travertine, Marble, Carrara Marble, Gold Leaf
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Glass, Art Glass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s North American Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s North American Modern Sculptures
Cement, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Marble, Statuary Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Gold Leaf
2010s Japanese Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Ceramic