Modern Abstract Sculptures
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Iron
1970s Peruvian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Sterling Silver
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stoneware
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone, Alabaster
2010s Belgian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
1960s French Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Porcelain
1970s French Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
1990s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Granite, Marble
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Balinese Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel
2010s Danish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Cast Stone
20th Century Modern Abstract Sculptures
Cut Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
2010s French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Other
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone, Limestone
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic, Porcelain
2010s Chinese Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal, Aluminum
2010s Polish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Copper
2010s French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Other
Late 20th Century American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Plaster, Paint
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
21st Century and Contemporary Balinese Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel
2010s Danish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
2010s French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
20th Century Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Balinese Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Alabaster
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Paper
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Other
1970s Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
Late 20th Century Brazilian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Granite, Bronze
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Resin
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
1960s French Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood
2010s French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Other
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
2010s German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay