Modern Animal 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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1980s American Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Marble, Brass
Late 20th Century American Modern Animal Sculptures
Marble, Brass
1930s Italian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Porcelain
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Art Glass
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Marble, Carrara Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Animal Sculptures
Marble
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Animal Sculptures
Bronze, Gold Leaf
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
Late 20th Century Modern Animal Sculptures
Wood
1970s German Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Leather, Glass, Wood
Late 20th Century Modern Animal Sculptures
Brass
20th Century American Modern Animal Sculptures
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Glass
Early 2000s Dutch Modern Animal Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Animal Sculptures
Plastic
2010s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
Late 20th Century American Modern Animal Sculptures
Marble
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
Early 2000s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Glass, Murano Glass, Cut Glass, Blown Glass, Art Glass
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Animal Sculptures
Stone
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Animal Sculptures
Bronze
Late 20th Century Canadian Modern Animal Sculptures
Lucite, Wood
Late 20th Century Modern Animal Sculptures
Composition
20th Century American Modern Animal Sculptures
Bronze
20th Century English Modern Animal Sculptures
Vermeil, Silver
1990s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic
Late 19th Century Spanish Antique Modern Animal Sculptures
Porcelain
1970s German Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Leather, Wool, Glass, Wood
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Murano Glass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic
1970s German Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Wood, Leather, Wool, Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Animal Sculptures
Resin
2010s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Glass
2010s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
Late 20th Century Modern Animal Sculptures
Metal, Enamel
Mid-20th Century French Modern Animal Sculptures
Porcelain
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Animal Sculptures
Resin
1990s European Modern Animal Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Animal Sculptures
Fiberglass
1960s Philippine Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Italian Modern Animal Sculptures
Gold Leaf
1930s Brazilian Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Animal Sculptures
Porcelain
2010s Danish Modern Animal Sculptures
Granite, Other
2010s Danish Modern Animal Sculptures
Other
Late 20th Century Modern Animal Sculptures
Art Glass
20th Century North American Modern Animal Sculptures
Glass
Late 20th Century North American Modern Animal Sculptures
Marble, Brass
Mid-20th Century French Modern Animal Sculptures
Porcelain
2010s Danish Modern Animal Sculptures
Granite, Other
2010s Danish Modern Animal Sculptures
Granite, Other
2010s Danish Modern Animal Sculptures
Other