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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Plaster
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Terracotta
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Gold Leaf
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic, Clay
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Gold, Brass
1980s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Fiberglass, Plaster, Paint
20th Century Modern Abstract Sculptures
Blown Glass
2010s Danish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel, Iron
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s South African Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood
Early 2000s Belgian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Carrara Marble
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel, Iron
1960s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
1990s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Plywood, Paint
Mid-20th Century Modern Abstract Sculptures
Terracotta
Mid-20th Century American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Early 2000s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass, Steel
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Alabaster
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Acrylic
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Sculptures
Cement
2010s Guatemalan Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood, Mahogany
Mid-20th Century French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic, Clay
Early 2000s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
1980s Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Epoxy Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Sandstone
20th Century Modern Abstract Sculptures
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Blown Glass
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain
1970s Swiss Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Pewter
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Resin
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Indian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Resin
1970s Finnish Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze, Enamel, Steel
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Iron, Steel, Cut Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s Colombian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Other
2010s Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood, Teak, Reclaimed Wood
Early 2000s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass