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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Concrete, Cement
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
Mid-20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Brass
20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Brass
1960s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Belgian Black Marble, Brass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Other
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
20th Century Unknown Modern Sculptures
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Balinese Modern Sculptures
Steel
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Early 2000s Belgian Modern Sculptures
Carrara Marble
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass, Steel, Nickel
1990s American Modern Sculptures
Acrylic
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
1990s American Modern Sculptures
Steel
Early 20th Century Modern Sculptures
Terracotta
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
Late 20th Century Zimbabwean Modern Sculptures
Stone
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Wood
Early 2000s Unknown Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
1970s Peruvian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Steel
1970s German Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Late 20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Glass, Wood
1990s French Modern Sculptures
Stainless Steel
18th Century Italian Antique Modern Sculptures
Crystal, Lava, Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Sculptures
Shagreen Stingray, Fiberglass
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
1960s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Metal
Late 20th Century Modern Sculptures
Metal
1990s American Modern Sculptures
Stainless Steel
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain