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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1940s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Pakistani Modern Sculptures
Crystal, Multi-gemstone, Rock Crystal, Other
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal
2010s Danish Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Rock Crystal, Marble
20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass
Early 2000s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Pottery, Ceramic
2010s Balkan Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Sandstone
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Sculptures
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century European Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s British Modern Sculptures
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Brass
20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Terracotta
1980s Malagasy Vintage Modern Sculptures
Crystal
1960s English Vintage Modern Sculptures
Leather
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble
20th Century Danish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Bronze
1970s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Granite, Brass
1990s Unknown Modern Sculptures
Metal
Early 20th Century English Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Plaster
Late 20th Century Modern Sculptures
Wood
1990s American Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass
2010s Lebanese Modern Sculptures
Cement, Brass, Steel
20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Metal
1990s American Modern Sculptures
Acrylic, Fiberglass
Early 20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
1960s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass, Wood
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Metal, Brass, Bronze, Stainless Steel, Wire
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
2010s Lebanese Modern Sculptures
Marble, Stainless Steel
Early 20th Century Icelandic Modern Sculptures
Plaster
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s Unknown Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s German Modern Sculptures
Natural Fiber
2010s European Modern Sculptures
Bronze
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Sculptures
Bronze
Late 20th Century Brazilian Modern Sculptures
Steel
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Nickel, Bronze, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
2010s Romanian Modern Sculptures
Wood, Ash, Glass
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Enamel