Modern Building and Garden Elements
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s Asian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Teak
2010s Danish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
2010s Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal
2010s Japanese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stone, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Iron
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Bronze
1960s Swiss Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements
Concrete
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Limestone
1970s French Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements
Slate
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Enamel, Brass
20th Century Swiss Modern Building and Garden Elements
Cement
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Hardwood
Late 20th Century Modern Building and Garden Elements
Laminate
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal
2010s Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Cedar
1960s Belgian Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements
Cement
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Building and Garden Elements
Wrought Iron, Iron
2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble, Metal
2010s Mexican Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
2010s Northern Irish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Marble
2010s European Modern Building and Garden Elements
Ceramic
2010s Chinese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Concrete, Steel
Early 2000s European Modern Building and Garden Elements
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Rope
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Cedar
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Resin, Fiberglass
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Bronze
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
2010s Brazilian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
Early 2000s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Resin, Fiberglass, Lacquer
2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Steel
2010s Japanese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stone
2010s Japanese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stone, Iron
2010s Asian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric, Rope
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Cedar
2010s Brazilian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal
20th Century British Modern Building and Garden Elements
Wrought Iron
2010s European Modern Building and Garden Elements
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Iron
1950s Swiss Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements
Concrete
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Limestone
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
1980s Vintage Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stone
2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal, Brass, Bronze
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Building and Garden Elements
Bronze
2010s Asian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
2010s Asian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric, Rattan, Rope, Teak
2010s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Fabric, Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Copper, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Cedar
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal
Early 2000s American Modern Building and Garden Elements
Aluminum
2010s Brazilian Modern Building and Garden Elements
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Building and Garden Elements
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Moroccan Modern Building and Garden Elements
Brass