Modern Natural Specimens
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
18th Century Italian Antique Modern Natural Specimens
Abalone, Wood, Giltwood
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Alabaster, Marble
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic, Clay
Mid-20th Century Sicilian Modern Natural Specimens
Plaster
20th Century French Modern Natural Specimens
Rock Crystal, Silver Leaf
Mid-20th Century Chinese Modern Natural Specimens
Coral
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Natural Specimens
Acrylic, Wood
Late 20th Century American Modern Natural Specimens
Marble, Chrome
Mid-20th Century American Modern Natural Specimens
Brass
2010s Japanese Modern Natural Specimens
Wood
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Stone
20th Century Modern Natural Specimens
Silver
Late 20th Century Spanish Modern Natural Specimens
Rubber
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Alabaster, Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Pacific Islands Modern Natural Specimens
Other
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Onyx
20th Century Modern Natural Specimens
Malachite
20th Century Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Metal, Brass
Late 20th Century Modern Natural Specimens
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Natural Specimens
Agate, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Natural Specimens
Agate, Metal
15th Century and Earlier Malagasy Antique Modern Natural Specimens
Stone
20th Century Modern Natural Specimens
Rock Crystal, Marble
20th Century Brazilian Modern Natural Specimens
Rock Crystal
1980s American Vintage Modern Natural Specimens
Horn, Mirror
21st Century and Contemporary Pacific Islands Modern Natural Specimens
Coral
1980s American Vintage Modern Natural Specimens
Marble, Brass
20th Century American Modern Natural Specimens
Wood
2010s American Modern Natural Specimens
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Stone
20th Century Modern Natural Specimens
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Modern Natural Specimens
Rock Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Afghan Modern Natural Specimens
Crystal, Multi-gemstone, Rock Crystal, Other
15th Century and Earlier Malagasy Antique Modern Natural Specimens
Rock Crystal
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Marble
1970s French Vintage Modern Natural Specimens
Malachite
1970s French Vintage Modern Natural Specimens
Malachite
20th Century Modern Natural Specimens
Wood, Teak
20th Century European Modern Natural Specimens
Lapis Lazuli, Quartz, Gold
1990s American Modern Natural Specimens
Crystal
2010s European Modern Natural Specimens
Marble, Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Pakistani Modern Natural Specimens
Crystal, Multi-gemstone, Rock Crystal, Other
Late 20th Century Polish Modern Natural Specimens
Art Glass
20th Century American Modern Natural Specimens
Resin
20th Century Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Natural Specimens
Glass
1980s Malagasy Vintage Modern Natural Specimens
Crystal
20th Century Uruguayan Modern Natural Specimens
Rock Crystal
2010s American Modern Natural Specimens
Bronze
1970s American Vintage Modern Natural Specimens
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Moroccan Modern Natural Specimens
Rock Crystal
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Natural Specimens
Marble, Brass





