Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
1970s Japanese Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Clay
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Aluminum
1970s Greek Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Clay
1980s British Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Luster, Majolica
Late 20th Century North American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Clay
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
1990s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
Late 20th Century Swedish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
Late 20th Century Swedish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
Late 20th Century Swedish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
1990s French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Pewter
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
2010s Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
2010s Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
1990s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cotton
2010s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Stoneware
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
Late 20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
2010s Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
2010s Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
1990s Finnish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
2010s Mexican Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stone
2010s South American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Pottery, Clay
1960s Central Asian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Stoneware
2010s Chinese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1970s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
1970s Finnish Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Bronze
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cotton
Early 20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
1960s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Milk Glass
Mid-20th Century English Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass