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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s Malaysian Modern Decorative Objects
Copper
20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Carrara Marble
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Steel, Iron
Late 20th Century British Modern Decorative Objects
Blown Glass
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Silver, Sterling Silver
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Fiberglass, Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Decorative Objects
Cement
Late 20th Century Swedish Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf
20th Century French Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Plastic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Enamel, Sterling Silver
2010s Malaysian Modern Decorative Objects
Copper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble, Onyx
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Malaysian Modern Decorative Objects
Copper
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Objects
Travertine
20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
2010s French Modern Decorative Objects
Stoneware
2010s Malaysian Modern Decorative Objects
Copper
20th Century French Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
1980s American Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze
1990s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Decorative Objects
Terracotta
20th Century British Modern Decorative Objects
Blown Glass
Mid-19th Century French Antique Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
1990s English Modern Decorative Objects
Porcelain, Pottery
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Decorative Objects
Cement
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
2010s Colombian Modern Decorative Objects
Other
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
1960s Swiss Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Wood
2010s Scandinavian Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
20th Century Modern Decorative Objects
Bone, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Leather
1990s French Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Decorative Objects
Other
20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
Late 20th Century Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Marble, Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic, Paint
2010s Scandinavian Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
Late 20th Century French Modern Decorative Objects
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Enamel, Steel
1930s Japanese Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Pottery
1980s Danish Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Porcelain
Early 2000s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass
1970s Unknown Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Wood, Plywood
Modern decorative objects for sale on 1stDibs.
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