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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1970s European Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Terracotta
2010s Dutch Modern Figurative Sculptures
Velvet, Polyester
20th Century Belgian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1990s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble
20th Century Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
Mid-20th Century Mexican Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble
20th Century French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood
1980s Swiss Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Blown Glass, Glass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1940s French Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Terracotta, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble, Alabaster
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble, Alabaster
Early 20th Century Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
1970s European Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Glass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Metal
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Silver Plate
2010s German Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Clay
19th Century Ivorian Antique Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood
20th Century Unknown Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Walnut
1990s German Modern Figurative Sculptures
Porcelain
Early 2000s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Rubber
2010s Modern Figurative Sculptures
Late 20th Century Hungarian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
1920s Italian Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Art Glass
2010s Belgian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
1610s Italian Antique Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze, Copper
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Other
2010s Spanish Modern Figurative Sculptures
Stone
Early 2000s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s British Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
2010s English Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
1930s French Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Silver Plate, Spelter
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Belgian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Fiberglass
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
1980s North American Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood
2010s Thai Modern Figurative Sculptures
Plastic, Acrylic
2010s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Maple, Walnut
2010s German Modern Figurative Sculptures
Bronze
Early 2000s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
Early 2000s Modern Figurative Sculptures
Glass, Blown Glass
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Aluminum
1940s American Vintage Modern Figurative Sculptures
Wood
Early 2000s Italian Modern Figurative Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Marble