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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood, Oak
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Enamel
Late 20th Century American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze, Gold Leaf
2010s English Modern Abstract Sculptures
Acrylic
20th Century American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Copper
2010s French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wire
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Plaster
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wood, Oak
1970s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Blown Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Other
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Abstract Sculptures
Steel
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
2010s French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Wire
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Enamel
1960s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
1970s Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
1960s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Clay
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Brass
2010s American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal, Wire, Stainless Steel, Bronze, Brass
1970s Spanish Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Modern Abstract Sculptures
Crystal
2010s Mexican Modern Abstract Sculptures
Resin
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
18th Century Italian Antique Modern Abstract Sculptures
Crystal, Lava, Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Pine
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Enamel
1980s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Maple, Lacquer
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Marble
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone, Metal
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Stone
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
1970s American Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Lacquer
Late 20th Century American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
1970s Israeli Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Marble, Brass
2010s Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s British Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Composition
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Glass
Late 20th Century American Modern Abstract Sculptures
Metal
2010s Hungarian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Limestone, Wire
1980s Mexican Vintage Modern Abstract Sculptures
Bronze
Late 20th Century Modern Abstract Sculptures
Acrylic, Ceramic
2010s Spanish Modern Abstract Sculptures
Slate, Stone
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Abstract Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass