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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Alabaster
2010s French Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Mexican Modern Sculptures
Resin
1960s Spanish Vintage Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Spanish Modern Sculptures
Sheepskin, Upholstery, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Bronze, Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Stone
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Acrylic
20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Walnut, Maple
Mid-20th Century Canadian Modern Sculptures
Stone
Early 2000s French Modern Sculptures
Crystal
Early 2000s French Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Sandstone
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Enamel
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Teak, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Gold
Late 20th Century Modern Sculptures
Composition
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
Early 2000s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Plywood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Statuary Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Crystal
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Spanish Modern Sculptures
Sheepskin, Upholstery, Lacquer
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Crystal
Late 20th Century Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
Early 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Metal
1930s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
1980s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Sculptures
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass
Late 20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Crystal
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Metal
1980s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Chrome
1960s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Hardwood, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Glass
20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Carrara Marble
1990s English Modern Sculptures
Wicker
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
Mid-20th Century European Modern Sculptures
Bronze
20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Plastic, Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass
1960s Spanish Vintage Modern Sculptures
Brass, Nickel
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Plexiglass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Fiberglass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Fiberglass
2010s Spanish Modern Sculptures
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Sculptures
Fiberglass, Lacquer
1940s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Fiberglass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass