Modern Barware
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 French Modern Barware
Crystal, Bronze
2010s Czech Modern Barware
Glass
20th Century Modern Barware
Stainless Steel
2010s Italian Modern Barware
Crystal
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Barware
Silver Plate, Metal
1970s Swedish Vintage Modern Barware
Pewter
2010s Chinese Modern Barware
Metal, Aluminum
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Barware
Aluminum
Mid-20th Century Modern Barware
Silver Plate
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Barware
Metal, Silver Plate
2010s Italian Modern Barware
Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Barware
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Barware
Glass
2010s South American Modern Barware
Stone, Metal
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Stone, Onyx, Metal
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Marble, Metal
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Barware
Silver Plate
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Stone, Onyx, Metal
Early 2000s English Modern Barware
Silver, Sterling Silver
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Marble, Metal
2010s South American Modern Barware
Stone, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Barware
Glass
2010s American Modern Barware
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Barware
Sterling Silver
2010s Czech Modern Barware
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Barware
Glass
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Marble, Metal
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Onyx, Stone, Metal
2010s Mexican Modern Barware
Marble
Late 20th Century French Modern Barware
Silver Plate
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Onyx, Stone, Metal
2010s Czech Modern Barware
Glass
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Stone, Onyx, Metal
2010s South American Modern Barware
Stone, Metal
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Wood
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Barware
Gold Leaf
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Marble, Metal
2010s Argentine Modern Barware
Marble, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Barware
Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Barware
Glass
1990s Italian Modern Barware
Crystal, Gold Leaf
Late 20th Century French Modern Barware
Mercury Glass
2010s Italian Modern Barware
Blown Glass
Late 20th Century North American Modern Barware
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century Japanese Modern Barware
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Barware
Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Barware
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Barware
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Barware
Glass
2010s Italian Modern Barware
Silver
2010s Italian Modern Barware
Silver
2010s Italian Modern Barware
Silver
Late 20th Century English Modern Barware
Stainless Steel, Copper
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Barware
Glass
2010s Italian Modern Barware
Silver
1980s Czech Vintage Modern Barware
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Barware
Glass
20th Century German Modern Barware
Silver Plate