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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Maple
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Cut Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Sculptures
Cement
1960s Mexican Vintage Modern Sculptures
Wood
1950s Spanish Vintage Modern Sculptures
Plaster
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Sculptures
Marble
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Steel, Bronze, Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
1960s Vintage Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Sculptures
Plaster, Jute, Fiberglass
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Steel, Iron
1980s Spanish Vintage Modern Sculptures
Marble, Bronze
20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Pacific Islands Modern Sculptures
Other
21st Century and Contemporary Pacific Islands Modern Sculptures
Coral
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Concrete
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
Late 20th Century Spanish Modern Sculptures
Brass, Steel
1980s Austrian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Leather, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass
Late 20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Wood
1960s Vintage Modern Sculptures
Lucite
Early 2000s Italian Modern Sculptures
Blown Glass, Art Glass, Murano Glass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
Early 20th Century German Modern Sculptures
Stone, Bronze
1990s American Modern Sculptures
Stainless Steel
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Art Glass
Mid-20th Century Modern Sculptures
Metal
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Paper
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Rock Crystal, Marble
2010s German Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
Mid-19th Century Danish Antique Modern Sculptures
Bronze
1970s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Sculptures
Fur, Leather, Wool, Glass, Teak
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Metal
1990s American Modern Sculptures
Acrylic, Fiberglass
1960s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
Late 20th Century English Modern Sculptures
Stone, Gold, Vermeil
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Sculptures
Cement
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Alabaster
21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Sculptures
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Sculptures
Brass
Early 2000s Chinese Modern Sculptures
Metal
2010s Mexican Modern Sculptures
Resin
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s American Modern Sculptures
Porcelain
20th Century French Modern Sculptures
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Marble
2010s Austrian Modern Sculptures
Gold Leaf
20th Century Modern Sculptures
Marble, Chrome