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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1990s European Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Steel
1980s American Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Acrylic, Lucite, Plexiglass
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver, Enamel, Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Amethyst, Carnelian
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Terracotta
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
1970s English Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Slate, Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Clay
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Terracotta, Clay
Mid-20th Century Finnish Modern Decorative Objects
Silver
1970s Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Metal, Chrome, Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
1990s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
1990s American Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Danish Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Aluminum
Early 20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Clay, Pottery
2010s South African Modern Decorative Objects
Quartz
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
20th Century English Modern Decorative Objects
Pottery, Glass
2010s Argentine Modern Decorative Objects
Metal
20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Marble, Aluminum
1990s European Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
1950s French Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
Early 2000s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
2010s French Modern Decorative Objects
Sandstone
20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass, Murano Glass
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
2010s French Modern Decorative Objects
Sandstone
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary South African Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
Early 2000s French Modern Decorative Objects
Silver, Bronze, Sterling Silver
1970s Philippine Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Stone, Marble, Brass
1960s Indian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze
2010s Argentine Modern Decorative Objects
Stone, Onyx
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
2010s Argentine Modern Decorative Objects
Stone, Onyx
20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver
1980s American Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Clay, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
2010s Argentine Modern Decorative Objects
Resin, Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
Modern decorative objects for sale on 1stDibs.
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