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Modern Building and Garden Elements

MODERN STYLE

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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 chaircrafted 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.

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Style: Modern
Split Square Cloud Swan 'Not Sampled'
Located in Brooklyn, NY
There are two ways to split a rectangle diagonally, from corner to corner, into two colors — upper left / lower right, or lower left / upper right. By combining and arranging these t...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Solid Square Powder
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Available in our full palette in both cement and ceramic tile, these solid-shade square tiles can be coordinated with our patterned tiles for a perfectly calming mix. Cement Tiles Ty...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Split Rectangle Left Regatta Snow 'NOT SAMPLED'
Located in Brooklyn, NY
There are two ways to split a rectangle diagonally, from corner to corner, into two colors, upper left / lower right, or lower left / upper right. By combining and arranging these tw...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Moon Phase Waning Celestial
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This modular design has endless layout possibilities to bring the magic of the moon’s phases into your space. Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic p...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Wavey Inkwell Deep
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Undulating ocean waves transport you to the beach within your space. Price listed is for an in stock tile sample. For an order quote including freight, please message with the quant...
Category

2010s Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Stone, Cement

Timewave Terracotta Coral
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A wavy modular retro pattern that can be mixed and matched to create a dual-color or ombré pattern. Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic pressing ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Italian Design Pair of Green Lightened Clear Crystal Pedestal with Vases Inside
Located in Brescia, IT
Italian design pair of green lightened clear crystal pedestal with vases inside in a Comtemporary style The columns have a vase on the top, usefu...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Crystal

Baby Powder Swan
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This arching geometric form creates a soft maze with infinite possibilities. Price listed is for an in stock tile sample. For an order quote including freight, please message with t...
Category

2010s Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Pair of Art Moderne Sycamore Pedestals
Located in Queens, NY
Pair of American Art Moderne sycamore pedestals with 3 ram heads and round glass tops above a Greek key apron with a stretcher and round base. (T. H. ROBSJOHN GIBBINGS)
Category

1940s American Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Glass, Sycamore

Baby Ebony Frost
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This arching geometric form creates a soft maze with infinite possibilities. Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic pressing process Materials: White ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Split Rectangle Right Powder Swan 'NOT SAMPLED'
Located in Brooklyn, NY
There are two ways to split a rectangle diagonally, from corner to corner, into two colors, upper left / lower right, or lower left / upper right. By combining and arranging these tw...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Timewave Spruce Rainstorm
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A wavy modular retro pattern that can be mixed and matched to create a dual-color or ombré pattern.  Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic pressing ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Timewave Spruce Regatta
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A wavy modular retro pattern that can be mixed and matched to create a dual-color or ombré pattern. Price listed is for an in stock tile sample. For an order quote including freigh...
Category

2010s Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Moon Phase Sliver Enchanted
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This modular design has endless layout possibilities to bring the magic of the moon’s phases into your space. Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Produ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Moon Phase Waning Rev Capricorn
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This modular design has endless layout possibilities to bring the magic of the moon’s phases into your space. Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic p...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Solid Square Inkwell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Available in our full palette in both cement and ceramic tile, these solid-shade square tiles can be coordinated with our patterned tiles for a perfectly calming mix. Cement tiles Ty...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Timewave Terracotta Grenadine
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A wavy modular retro pattern that can be mixed and matched to create a dual-color or ombré pattern. Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic pressing ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Solid Rectangle Spruce
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Available in our full palette in both cement and ceramic tile, these oversized solid-shade rectangular tiles can be coordinated with our timewave and split rectangle tiles for a perf...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Timewave Snow Oleander
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A wavy modular retro pattern that can be mixed and matched to create a dual-color or ombré pattern. Cement Tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic pressing ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Baby Snow Swan
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This arching geometric form creates a soft maze with infinite possibilities. Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic pressing process Materials: White ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Moon Phases Full Rev Enchanted
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This modular design has endless layout possibilities to bring the magic of the moon’s phases into your space. Cement Tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic p...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Moon Phase Waning Rev Enchanted
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This modular design has endless layout possibilities to bring the magic of the moon’s phases into your space. Cement tiles Type: Encaustic cement tile Production process: Hydraulic p...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Cement

Abstract Leaded Glass Window
Located in Denton, TX
Studio crafted stained glass abstraction. A combination of wavy clear, smoked and milky glass. This piece has been custom framed for display.  
Category

20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Lead

Sun Bubble Hanging Swing Chair Modern Steel in/Outdoor Green, 21st Century
Located in Johannesburg, ZA
The Bubble hanging swing chairs’ round shape creates a cozy feel. The is available in modern patterns that are striking in its visual appeal. The ch...
Category

2010s Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Steel

Galvanized Steel Manelco Bench, Cannes, France 1958
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Substantial and very heavy galvanized steel "Manelco" bench, from Cannes, France in 1958. Only produced for two years. Beautiful modern design with a large circular back rest and fra...
Category

1950s French Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Steel

Danny Alessandro Fireplace Tool Set in Lucite and Chrome 1980s
Located in New York, NY
Fireplace tool set in chrome with upright post in Lucite by Danny Alessandro LTD, American 1980's. A very elegant design. Danny Alessandro, Ltd. was sold through Holly Hunt in the 19...
Category

1980s American Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Chrome

Rock Crystal Small Urne
Located in Dallas, TX
Small Brazilian rock crystal urn in excellent conditions, hollow in the inside.
Category

20th Century Brazilian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Rock Crystal

Danny Alessandro Pair of Andirons in Polished Steel and Brass 1984
Located in New York, NY
"S Andirons" in polished steel and brass with wrought-iron posts by Danny Alessandro and sold through Holly Hunt, American 1984. These are meticulously crafted and very luxurious. D...
Category

1980s American Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Brass, Steel, Wrought Iron

Tejo Small Ceramic Tile Hand Painted Colors
Located in Lisbon, PT
Tejo is rooted in the ancient Portuguese nautical tradition. An iconic collection inspired by the ocean, composed of two tiles with different sizes, which together create a vibrating...
Category

2010s European Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Ceramic

De Sede Semi-Outdoor Circular Coffee Table
Located in Brooklyn, NY
DS-611/793 semi-outdoor large coffee table by De Sede. DS-611 coffee table series is a stylish counterpart to the sofa for use in home as well as public interiors. The round tabletop...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Stainless Steel

Desco Oval Bathtub Made of Marble Customizable
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Desco Collection is the results of renewed collaboration between Pibamarmi and the designer Vittorio Longheu. This work is defined by a peculiar set of elements, strongly character...
Category

2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Limestone, Marble

“Maison #1, ” by Lucien Petit
Located in New York, NY
Glazed stoneware. Wood fired.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Stoneware

Bronzed Branch Door Created by Atelier Boucquet
Located in Roeselare, BE
Pair of doors made of wood branches which have been bronzed.
Category

2010s Belgian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Bronze

Very Rare Paleta 'Firetool' by Osvaldo Borsani from 1930's
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
A very rare and unusual, vintage 1930's modernist paleta (little shovel/fire tool) in copper, aluminum, by Osvaldo Borsani.
Category

1930s Italian Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Aluminum, Copper

Wired Outdoor Chair by Michael Young
Located in Geneve, CH
Wired outdoor chair by Michael Young Sled Base Dimensions: W 41 x D 51 x H 76 cm Materials: powder coated metal structure The wired chair by Michael...
Category

2010s French Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Metal, Other

Indoor / Outdoor Potocco Suno Recliner Iroko Sun Lounger
By Potocco Spa, Johan Lindstén
Located in Boston, MA
A formal hyperbole that makes of a functional element the aesthetic trait that characterizes the entire project by re-reading it with a playful approach and giving it great elegance....
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Wood

Signed Stainless Steel Fireplace Set by Jean-Paul Créations, France 1970s
Located in Chicago, IL
This unique, modern stainless steel fireplace set includes a pair of flame-shaped signed andirons and a signed log rack. Very good vintage condition. This set will ship from France a...
Category

1970s French Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Stainless Steel, Iron

Sunlounger by Salvador Dali model "Portlligat" surrealist design iroko wood
Located in Barcelona, ES
Dalí’s creativity and fascination with the human body takes the form of a sunbed, intimately created and exquisitely designed. Dalí’s original Portlligat was made in 1962 from olive tree wood for him and his wife Gala’s home in Costa Brava, Spain. This reproduction is available in Iroko wood which is resistant to changes in heat and moisture content, and optional upholstery for outdoor use. It resembles a body: it has a head, torso, ribs, arms, hands, legs and feet. The visible grain and unified structure present a strong and meaningfully arranged, figurative piece. Salvador Dalí was born in Figueres, Catalonia, in 1904. He began drawing when he was 12 and was formally educated in fine arts at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, Madrid. He experimented with Cubism, was attracted to Dada and Futurism, and was influenced by the great masters of the Renaissance. In 1929, he joined the Surrealist movement and became its most successful proponent. His work shocked and excited society. Diverse things were merged into an explicit rawness, one with unusual meanings that, when combined, made irreality concrete. In the Paris of the 1930s, Dalí surrounded himself with a circle of friends working in varied disciplines beyond the study of purely pictorial art. He collaborated with designers like JeanMichel Frank to...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Wood

"Erbale" PVC Plant Holder Designed by Becchelli, Bortolani, Maffei for Driade
By Becchelli, Bortolani, Maffei, Driade
Located in Brooklyn, NY
"Erbale" is a transparent PVC plant holder, designed by Becchelli, Bortolani, Maffei and manufactured by Driade, equipped with four plants and four water bags. Packing unit is ten pi...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Plastic

Contemporary Large-Scale Outdoor Kinetic Concrete Sculpture and Installation
Located in kingston, NY
Johnny Poux sculptures Johnny Poux’s large-scale kinetic concrete sculptures and installations explore the relationship between motion and mass, industry and nature. Each piece is made individually to order. Artist statement My work as an artist has been focused primarily on large-scale kinetic pieces that explore my unyielding fascination with simple machine principles, movement, and the beauty and physics of a large mass in motion. Working with industrial materials like concrete and steel, and occasionally combining these with natural forms or living things like trees, my work is often about the tension between man and nature and our technological footprint. I am drawn to creating large-scale work that moves, evokes feelings of wonder, is interactive, and alters our relationship to the world for a moment. I have built and installed 30 foot tall steel kinetic pieces that span a full 40’ circle as if in flight and have created 1000 lb. concrete pieces that ripple like water in the historic cement mines of Rosendale, NY. I have balanced and counter weighted a 55’ tall black walnut tree...
Category

2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Concrete, Bronze, Steel

Zig Zag Planter by Pieces, White Fiberglass Planter
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Fiberglass planters suitable for indoor or outdoor use. Made by hand in Vietnam. Lead time 8 weeks unless in stock. Available in: White Mustard Ash Dimensions: H 22 in. x D ...
Category

2010s Vietnamese Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Fiberglass

Lucite Tissue Box
Located in New York, NY
A substantial and well-made black Lucite acrylic tissue box holder, in the Modern style, circa late-20th century, 1980s, 1990s. Lucite/acrylic is .5" thick. Perfect for a powder room...
Category

Late 20th Century Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Lucite

Reclaimed Goddard & Gibbs Modern Style Stained Glass Panel
Located in Wormelow, Herefordshire
A stunning geometric, modernist style stained glass panel by renowned stained glass makers Goddard and Gibbs. This is an abstract stained glass window in an unusual modern style, bl...
Category

Late 20th Century English Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Glass, Stained Glass, Wood, Pine

Column, Limestone Sheath, Contemporary Work.
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Column, limestone sheath, contemporary work. This column is made of limestone, in the style of a contemporary sculpture. The podium can be placed horizontally or vertically. Availa...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Limestone

Fontana Arte Style Brass and Glass Fireplace Tools
Located in New York, NY
Modernist set of polished brass fireplace tools on a thick glass platform which supports the brass Stand, in the style of Fontana Arte.
Category

20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Brass

Sling Outdoor Hanging Swing Seat Vegan Eco Friendly, Green
Located in Johannesburg, ZA
Our Sling hanging chair which is crafted with Spradling Silvertex material – a highly- sustainable environmentally-friendly vegan material. The Slings can be ordered as a Single bu...
Category

2010s South African Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Stainless Steel

Gandia Blasco Lighting Llar Fireplace 1 by Borja García
Located in New York, NY
“We wanted to work with a product that could transpose concepts that belong inside the home, such as a meeting around the hearth, to an outdoor space. LLAR responds to this premise with a purely architectural aesthetic, where the proportion and composition of the product convey a certain clarity and presence that are typical of the modern movement, where the fire place was already considered a key architectural element in the home.” – Borja García...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Stainless Steel

6pc Musical Note Fireplace Set
Located in New York, NY
Modernist polished nickel fireplace set including a pair of andirons and fireplace tools. Andirons measure 17"T x 14"D x 8"W Tools measure 28.5"T x 14"W x 12"D.
Category

20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Iron, Nickel

Roda Network 149 Outdoor Teak Side Chair
Located in Boston, MA
Roda network 149 side chair. Designed by Rodolfo Dordoni. For outdoor use.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Polyester, Teak

4 Piece Contemporary Set of Metal Fire Tools
Located in Queens, NY
Contemporary 4-piece Set of pewter-tone metal fire tools comprised of a shovel, tong and brush, all with molded turned handles topped by ball finials, resting on a square based stand...
Category

20th Century Unknown Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Metal

Modernist Polished Nickel Fire Tools in the Style of Donald Deskey
Located in New York, NY
Midcentury sleek and modern set of fire tools in polished nickel. Set includes poker and shovel which fit into stand.
Category

20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Nickel

Flooring Top Quality Amarelo Marlena Marble Mosaic Polished or Honed Finish
Located in London, GB
Description Uses Indoor and outdoor floors, indoor and outdoor walls, wet areas. Other format are available on demand  
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Marble

Tandem Sunlounger by Ego Paris
By Ego
Located in Boston, MA
The convivial and asymmetrical sunlounger allows a wide range of configurations. His reclining backrest offers 4 different positions. Mesh available in other colors Wheels hidden ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Aluminum

Modernist Andirons in Polished Brass and Nickel, Manner of Karl Springer
Located in New York, NY
Handmade by artisans in New York state, this pair of modernist andirons embody the old world craftsmanship and design aesthetic of a bygone era. With their skyscraper style construct...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Brass, Iron, Nickel

Minimalist Outdoor Chair in Hardwood, Metal and Fabric
Located in Vila Cordeiro, São Paulo
This minimalist chair is made for use outdoors with solid wood, metal and fabrics. The chair's multi-finish structure is combined with outdoor fabrics such as the Batyline to create an interesting outdoor solution. Bellow the full Skyfolding collection concept: Skyfolding In-Outdoor Collection, the collection concept is inspired by the Asian building scaffoldings, where a structure is composed by bamboo sticks crossed to create this inspiring and fascinating structures. We combined elements of this structures and also references from the ballet stretching bars that often combine metal and wood, this combo is the concept very soul. All the figurative elements are abstracted in the design process to extract the precise best of each world, and by then resulting in a collection of delicate objects, cult and curated to the minimum details, in design and engineering. The collection is composed by outdoor net, batyline or plastic, in a portion leaving room to a more soft design approach that is harmonious, this elements are combined to a structure made of wood and metal that transcends to tech and soft, a paradigm of past, present and future that invite all the viewers to contemplate and reflect in this philosophical matters in a tactile and visual way. Resulting is a essential and timeless set of objects...
Category

2010s Brazilian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Metal

Modernist Polished Nickel Andirons
Located in New York, NY
Pair of midcentury graphic andirons in polished nickel finish with cast iron backs.
Category

20th Century American Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Iron, Nickel

Goddard & Gibbs Modernist Style Stained Glass Panel
Located in Wormelow, Herefordshire
A striking large geometric, modernist style stained glass panel by renowned stained glass makers Goddard and Gibbs. This is an abstract stained glass window in an unusual modern sty...
Category

Late 20th Century English Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Glass, Stained Glass, Wood, Pine

Italian Fireplace Travertino end 20th Century
Located in Madrid, ES
Italian Fireplace Travertino end 20th Century hight: 126cm width: 144cm depth: 31cm very good condition
Category

Late 20th Century Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements

Materials

Marble

Modern building and garden elements for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a broad range of unique Modern building and garden elements for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage building and garden elements created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include building and garden elements, seating, tables and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with metal, stone and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Modern building and garden elements made in a specific country, there are Europe, Italy, and North America pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original building and garden elements, popular names associated with this style include Myface, Aimee Wilder, sicis, and Bari Ziperstein. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for building and garden elements differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $10 and tops out at $375,000 while the average work can sell for $2,919.

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