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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Sculptures
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Onyx, Travertine, Marble, Carrara Marble
2010s North American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Early 20th Century Unknown Modern Sculptures
Bronze
Late 20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Wood
1970s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal
2010s Modern Sculptures
Copper
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Marble, Alabaster
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass
2010s Japanese Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s African Modern Sculptures
Steel, Brass
20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Marble
1980s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Turkish Modern Sculptures
Glass
Early 20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Metal
1970s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal, Bronze
2010s German Modern Sculptures
Rubber
1990s European Modern Sculptures
Glass, Wood
1970s Japanese Vintage Modern Sculptures
Granite, Carrara Marble
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Terracotta
Mid-20th Century Modern Sculptures
Metal
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Maple
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Belgian Modern Sculptures
Fiberglass
Early 2000s French Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Moroccan Modern Sculptures
Rock Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Sculptures
Bronze
Mid-20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Afghan Modern Sculptures
Crystal, Multi-gemstone, Rock Crystal, Other
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Steel
20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Metal
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass, Blown Glass
1990s Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary South African Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Early 2000s Hong Kong Modern Sculptures
Plastic, Rubber
21st Century and Contemporary South African Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Late 20th Century Modern Sculptures
Teak
1960s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal
1990s Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass, Cut Glass, Murano Glass
2010s Argentine Modern Sculptures
Resin, Fiberglass
1990s French Modern Sculptures
Granite, Brass
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Malachite
1960s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Resin, Epoxy Resin
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Resin
Early 2000s Belgian Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Sculptures
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Sculptures
Walnut, Wood
1970s Vintage Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Crystal, Brass
Mid-20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Marble, Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass