Modern Desk Accessories
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Portuguese Modern Desk Accessories
Marble, Gold Leaf
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Desk Accessories
Clay
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Desk Accessories
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Desk Accessories
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Desk Accessories
Fabric
2010s Mexican Modern Desk Accessories
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Desk Accessories
Brass, Steel
20th Century American Modern Desk Accessories
Aluminum
Mid-20th Century Brazilian Modern Desk Accessories
Bronze
20th Century French Modern Desk Accessories
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Desk Accessories
Crystal
1970s Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Lucite, Acrylic
2010s North Korean Modern Desk Accessories
Shell, Eggshell
Early 2000s Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Stone, Brass
Early 2000s Canadian Modern Desk Accessories
Wood, Willow, Reclaimed Wood
Late 20th Century Canadian Modern Desk Accessories
Art Glass
2010s Mexican Modern Desk Accessories
Resin
1970s Spanish Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Quartz, Marble, Silver, Bronze, Enamel
1980s English Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Sterling Silver
2010s American Modern Desk Accessories
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
2010s Argentine Modern Desk Accessories
Stone, Onyx, Metal
Late 20th Century Japanese Modern Desk Accessories
Brass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Desk Accessories
Crystal
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Rubber, Rosewood
1990s French Modern Desk Accessories
Leather
Late 20th Century Canadian Modern Desk Accessories
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Desk Accessories
Leather
2010s Argentine Modern Desk Accessories
Stone, Onyx, Metal
2010s Argentine Modern Desk Accessories
Brass, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Desk Accessories
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Desk Accessories
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Desk Accessories
Crystal
1980s British Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Glass
20th Century American Modern Desk Accessories
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Crystal, Gold, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Desk Accessories
Laminate, Wood
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Desk Accessories
Leather
2010s Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Crystal, Sterling Silver
2010s North Korean Modern Desk Accessories
Shell, Eggshell
21st Century and Contemporary Greek Modern Desk Accessories
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Concrete
Late 20th Century Canadian Modern Desk Accessories
Art Glass
Mid-20th Century English Modern Desk Accessories
Burl
2010s Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Concrete
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Desk Accessories
Crystal
20th Century Modern Desk Accessories
Cut Glass
Late 20th Century Modern Desk Accessories
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Desk Accessories
Leather
1970s Vintage Modern Desk Accessories
Onyx
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Desk Accessories
Marble
Early 2000s American Modern Desk Accessories
Metal, Steel