Modern 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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
20th Century English Modern Sculptures
Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Other
2010s French Modern Sculptures
Sandstone
2010s French Modern Sculptures
Sandstone
1980s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Enamel
Mid-20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Steel
Late 20th Century English Modern Sculptures
Stone, Gold, Vermeil
20th Century Unknown Modern Sculptures
Marble
1990s Italian Modern Sculptures
Metal
20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Metal
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Australian Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Agate, Metal
Mid-20th Century Modern Sculptures
Metal
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Sculptures
Resin
2010s French Modern Sculptures
Wood, Pine
1990s Modern Sculptures
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Terracotta
2010s Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Marble, Gold Leaf
2010s Mexican Modern Sculptures
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Sculptures
Resin, Epoxy Resin
1980s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Glass
15th Century and Earlier Malagasy Antique Modern Sculptures
Rock Crystal
2010s Japanese Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
1990s American Modern Sculptures
Acrylic, Fiberglass
Mid-20th Century Finnish Modern Sculptures
Silver
20th Century European Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
1990s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
20th Century Sahrawi Modern Sculptures
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Cement
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Sculptures
Marble
1990s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass, Blown Glass, Glass
2010s Austrian Modern Sculptures
Bronze
1970s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Maple
1980s North American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Enamel
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Bronze
1960s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Lucite
20th Century European Modern Sculptures
Metal
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Epoxy Resin
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
Mid-20th Century North American Modern Sculptures
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Onyx, Marble, Gold Leaf
20th Century North American Modern Sculptures
Marble
2010s British Modern Sculptures
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Moroccan Modern Sculptures
Rock Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass
1960s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal
Late 20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Acrylic, Porcelain