Modern Figurative 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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Modern Figurative Sculptures
Blown Glass
Early 2000s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Fiberglass
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Sandstone
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Art Glass
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
1980s English Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wicker
Early 2000s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Composition
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood, Hardwood, Walnut
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Art Glass
Early 20th Century Hungarian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1980s American Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Pottery
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
Late 20th Century Brazilian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Fiberglass, Lacquer
Mid-20th Century English Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble, Steel
Mid-20th Century Mexican Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble, Bronze
Early 2000s Hong Kong Modern Figurative Sculptures
Plastic, Rubber
1960s French Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1990s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1970s American Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Figurative Sculptures
Crystal
20th Century German Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain
Late 20th Century Colombian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Enamel
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
Mid-20th Century Sicilian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Terracotta
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Figurative Sculptures
Plywood
20th Century French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble, Bronze
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1970s Canadian Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Copper
1970s French Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
20th Century Scandinavian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Brass
1990s Israeli Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Brass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass
Mid-20th Century French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
20th Century American Modern Figurative Sculptures
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Blown Glass
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
1980s Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1980s European Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Glass
Early 20th Century Rwandan Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood
20th Century European Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain