Modern Armchairs
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Armchairs
Wood, Cedar
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Armchairs
Brass
2010s Modern Armchairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Brass, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Leather, Fabric, Bouclé, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Brass, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Brass, Stainless Steel
2010s Italian Modern Armchairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Leather, Fabric, Bouclé, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Brass, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Leather, Beech, Wood
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Armchairs
Metal
2010s Thai Modern Armchairs
Nylon, Rattan
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Leather, Fabric, Bouclé, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Armchairs
Leather
Early 2000s German Modern Armchairs
Bouclé
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
Leather, Fabric, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Armchairs
Wool, Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Armchairs
Leather, Suede
1970s American Vintage Modern Armchairs
Oak, Walnut
2010s European Modern Armchairs
Metal
2010s Canadian Modern Armchairs
Velvet, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Armchairs
Fabric
2010s French Modern Armchairs
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Velvet, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Armchairs
Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Metal, Sheet Metal, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
Leather, Fabric, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
Aluminum
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Armchairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Armchairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
Metal
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Armchairs
Cotton, Wood, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
Leather, Beech
2010s Colombian Modern Armchairs
Wood
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Armchairs
Cotton, Wood, Beech
2010s Danish Modern Armchairs
Fabric, Wood
2010s Spanish Modern Armchairs
Steel
2010s Spanish Modern Armchairs
Aluminum
20th Century American Modern Armchairs
Leather, Upholstery
1940s Danish Vintage Modern Armchairs
Beech
2010s European Modern Armchairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Leather, Fabric, Bouclé, Wood
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Armchairs
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Armchairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Armchairs
Aluminum
Early 2000s Italian Modern Armchairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
Plastic
2010s Unknown Modern Armchairs
Bronze
Mid-20th Century North American Modern Armchairs
Wrought Iron
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Armchairs
Leather, Fabric, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Armchairs
Wood