Modern Benches
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 German Modern Benches
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Velvet, Wood, Lacquer, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Cork
2010s American Modern Benches
Wood
2010s European Modern Benches
Steel
2010s Canadian Modern Benches
Metal, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Brass, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Composition
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Bronze
2010s Mexican Modern Benches
Hardwood
2010s Brazilian Modern Benches
Steel
2010s Finnish Modern Benches
Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Walnut, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Benches
Leather, Lucite
2010s Unknown Modern Benches
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Benches
Leather, Wicker
1970s American Vintage Modern Benches
Upholstery, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Metal, Brass
2010s American Modern Benches
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Benches
Leather, Maple, Oak, Walnut
2010s Modern Benches
Lucite
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Benches
Wood
2010s American Modern Benches
Ash
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Wool, Oak
2010s Swedish Modern Benches
Wood
2010s Spanish Modern Benches
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Faux Leather
1990s American Modern Benches
Oak
2010s American Modern Benches
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
2010s Spanish Modern Benches
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Upholstery, Wood, Lacquer, Fabric
2010s Modern Benches
Fabric, Wood
2010s Egyptian Modern Benches
Oak
2010s British Modern Benches
Nylon
2010s Danish Modern Benches
Concrete
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Sheet Metal
2010s American Modern Benches
Concrete, Stainless Steel
2010s French Modern Benches
Metal
2010s American Modern Benches
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century American Modern Benches
1970s American Vintage Modern Benches
Upholstery, Lucite
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Leather, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Sheet Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cement, Brass
2010s Unknown Modern Benches
Metal
2010s American Modern Benches
Ash
2010s German Modern Benches
Steel
2010s British Modern Benches
Nylon
2010s American Modern Benches
Concrete, Aluminum, Stainless Steel
1990s French Modern Benches
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
1950s Austrian Vintage Modern Benches
Zebra Hide
2010s American Modern Benches
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Sheet Metal