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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
20th Century North American Modern Sculptures
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Concrete, Cement
2010s Modern Sculptures
Copper
Early 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble
1930s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
Early 2000s American Modern Sculptures
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Bronze
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Metal, Iron
Late 20th Century Brazilian Modern Sculptures
Steel
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Alabaster, Marble
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble, Copper
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Sculptures
Metal
20th Century Asian Modern Sculptures
Malachite, Rock Crystal
1990s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Late 20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Marble, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Metal
2010s Mexican Modern Sculptures
Resin
Late 20th Century Mexican Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Early 2000s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Murano Glass
2010s Mexican Modern Sculptures
Hardwood
1980s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Marble, Brass
20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Plaster
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Terracotta
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Concrete
1990s Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
1970s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal, Brass
1980s North American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Lucite
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Pewter
Late 20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Amethyst, Gold
Early 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Carrara Marble
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Porcelain
20th Century Chinese Modern Sculptures
Marble
2010s Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Australian Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass
1980s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Glass
Early 20th Century German Modern Sculptures
Stone, Bronze
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Steel, Bronze, Enamel
Late 20th Century European Modern Sculptures
Resin
Late 20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Marble
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
20th Century English Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
1980s Spanish Vintage Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
1980s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Leather, Wood
1940s Vintage Modern Sculptures
Marble
1940s Vintage Modern Sculptures
Marble
1970s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Resin, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Sculptures
Cement
2010s Chinese Modern Sculptures
Metal, Aluminum
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain





