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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Mexican Modern Sculptures
Hardwood
1970s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
Late 20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Marble, Chrome
20th Century Modern Sculptures
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Steel
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Sculptures
Iron
Late 20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Olive
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Alabaster, Steel
2010s French Modern Sculptures
Ash
1960s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Belgian Black Marble, Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Brass, Enamel
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Stone
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Marble
1980s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Marble, Bronze, Chrome
Mid-20th Century Spanish Modern Sculptures
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Copper
Mid-20th Century European Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Israeli Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
1950s Austrian Vintage Modern Sculptures
1980s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Fiberglass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass, Glass
Early 20th Century Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Sculptures
Glass, Acrylic
20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Afghan Modern Sculptures
Quartz, Rock Crystal, Tourmaline, Other
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Copper
1970s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Other
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Brass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Pakistani Modern Sculptures
Crystal, Quartz, Rock Crystal, Other
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Wire, Cut Steel
2010s Dutch Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s North American Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Concrete, Bronze, Steel
2010s Mexican Modern Sculptures
Stone
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Stone
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Earthenware
1990s Spanish Modern Sculptures
Metal
1980s Unknown Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Sculptures
Bronze
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Glass
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass