Modern Decorative Objects
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
Late 20th Century Mexican Modern Decorative Objects
Silver Plate, Metal
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble, Travertine
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Concrete, Cement
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Concrete, Cement
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Decorative Objects
Leather
2010s Argentine Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery, Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Rose Quartz
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
20th Century French Modern Decorative Objects
Rock Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Rock Crystal
Early 2000s French Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Quartz, Rock Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Central American Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Decorative Objects
Leather
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Metal
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Porcelain
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Objects
Travertine
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Objects
Stone
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Steel, Iron
Late 20th Century Danish Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic, Clay
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
1980s Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Silver
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
1970s Australian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Silver
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Polyester, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Decorative Objects
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
1970s Unknown Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
2010s Argentine Modern Decorative Objects
Stone, Onyx, Metal
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
2010s Scandinavian Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Decorative Objects
Leather
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
Late 20th Century French Modern Decorative Objects
Silver Plate
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
20th Century Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
1980s Swedish Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
2010s Central American Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Steel, Cut Steel
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Decorative Objects
Sandstone
20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Steel, Wire
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Rock Crystal
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Steel, Iron
Modern decorative objects for sale on 1stDibs.
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