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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s North American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum, Cut Steel
1960s Mexican Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Alabaster
2010s Danish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Concrete
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel, Iron
Late 20th Century Brazilian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Turkish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Glass
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Resin
1970s English Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Slate, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
20th Century American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Concrete
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Hardwood
1970s Spanish Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass
1960s German Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stainless Steel
1970s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal, Brass
1990s Polish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stoneware
1960s French Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal
Late 20th Century Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Cotton, Wood, Nylon
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s South African Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood
1970s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Lucite
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Hardwood
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal
Late 20th Century Portuguese Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood
2010s Danish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass
Mid-20th Century American Modern Abstract Sculptures
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood
2010s Japanese Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Abstract Sculptures
Jute, Plaster, Fiberglass
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Terracotta
Early 2000s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Blown Glass, Art Glass, Murano Glass
2010s South African Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood
2010s Danish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel, Iron
1990s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stainless Steel
Mid-20th Century French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal
1990s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal, Enamel
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Resin
20th Century Unknown Modern Abstract Sculptures
Lucite
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Crystal
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
1970s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Marble, Brass
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Composition, Steel
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel, Bronze, Enamel
20th Century Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s Austrian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Gold Leaf