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Modern Ceramics

MODERN STYLE

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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 chaircrafted 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.

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Style: Modern
Period: Mid-20th Century
Roger Capron, Black Enamelled Sculptural Cendrier c.1960
Located in Holmfirth, GB
Black enamelled sculptural ceramic ‘cendrier’ by Roger Capron. Artist: Roger Capron Year: c.1960 Size: 10 cm x 17 cm Note: There is a small loss to the back of the head...
Category

1960s French Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Lucie Rie Stoneware Jug in Manganese and White Glaze
Located in Leicester, GB
Lucie Rie Stoneware cream jug in manganese and pitted white glaze. With impressed LR mark. c1950s. Provenance: European Ceramics, Knaresborough, 2002. Alan and Pat Firth Collection. Lucie Rie DBE (1902-95) was one of the most important figures in Twentieth Century ceramics. Born in Vienna, she originally studied at the School of Applied Arts in Vienna under Michael Powolony. Before the war she exhibited at the Paris World Fair in 1925 and 1937, at which she won a silver medal. Of Jewish descent, she fled Austria for Britain in 1938 and spent the rest of her life in London. It is difficult to underestimate the importance of her work in Britain and indeed worldwide. She brought the style of European modernism to this country and inspired a generation of potters to develop that approach. A good friend of leading British studio ceramicist Bernard Leach, she became and internationally acclaimed ceramicist with innovations in both shape and glaze. In 1948 she hired a young Hans Coper and they worked and exhibited together for many years. She also spent some time teaching at Camberwell School of Art. Her ceramic work is now regarded as some of the finest and most important of the last century, its lasting influence assured. After her death her studio was reconstructed and exhibited by the Victorian and Albert Museum. Her work is held in the most important ceramics...
Category

1950s English Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Stoneware

Guido Gambone Rhomboid Ceramic Dish with Abstract Pattern, Italy, c1950s
Located in Leicester, GB
Guido Gambone rhomboid shaped dish with abstract pattern. Signed with Donkey mark, Italy c1950s. A fascinating item. It is decorated in such a way as to give the optical effect of...
Category

1950s Italian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic, Earthenware

Ceramic Vase by Ambrogio Pozzi, Italy, 1968
Located in Barcelona, ES
Ceramic vase designed in 1968 by Ambrogio Pozzi for Ceramiche Franco Pozzi, Italy.
Category

1960s Italian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Bruno Gambone Ceramic/Pottery Bottle/ Vase Signed
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Great sweet vase/bottle by the well known artist Bruno Gambone . signed and Italy in bottom.
Category

1960s Italian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Pottery, Ceramic

Bertoncello Ceramiche Italia Vintage Vase in Colored and Glazed Clay
Located in Prato, Tuscany
We kindly suggest you read the whole description, because with it we try to give you detailed technical and historical information to guarantee the authenticity of our objects. Parti...
Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Ceramics

Materials

Clay

Arne Bang Stoneware Pitcher with Wicker Handel, No 151
Located in Kastrup, DK
Arne Bang stoneware pitcher with wicker handle. Model number 151. Marked AB 151. Beautiful speckled glaze in brown / sand shades. Made in his own studio. In good original and unt...
Category

Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic, Rattan

Laura Andreson Ceramic/Pottery Red Glossy Glaze Bowl, Signed
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Beautiful bowl by the very well known potter Laura Andreson. Signed in bottom.
Category

1950s American Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Large Ceramic Pot Cover
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
An Elchinger large black and red pot cover Elchinger is a ceramic manufacture from Soufflenheim in Alsace France from 1834 to 2016.
Category

1960s French Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Italian Ceramic Vessel by Guido Gambone
Located in Atlanta, GA
A sculptural ceramic vessel by Italian designer Guido Gambone (1909-1969) circa 1950s. The stoneware of dove shape is an open vessel in form. The surface is decorated with geometrica...
Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Belgian Studio Ceramicist, Retro Jug in Glazed Ceramics Shaped like a Fish
Located in Copenhagen, DK
Belgian studio ceramicist. Retro jug in glazed ceramic shaped like a fish. Beautiful glaze in brown and orange shades. 1960s / 70s. Measures: 24.5 x 18 cm...
Category

1960s Belgian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Five Retro Jugs in Glazed Ceramics. Belgium, 1960s-1970s
Located in Copenhagen, DK
Five retro jugs in glazed ceramics. Beautiful glazes and shapes, Belgium, 1960s-1970s. Largest measures: 23.5 x 13 cm. In excellent condition. Stamped.
Category

1960s Belgian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Four Retro Jugs in Glazed Ceramics, Belgium, 1960s-1970s
Located in Copenhagen, DK
Four retro jugs in glazed ceramics. Beautiful glazes and shapes, Belgium, 1960s-1970s. Largest measures: 18.5 x 17 cm. In excellent condition. Stamped.
Category

1960s Belgian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Rockabilly Style French Centrepiece Red and Black Ceramic
Located in Prato, Tuscany
We kindly suggest you read the whole description, because with it we try to give you detailed technical and historical information to guarantee the authenticity of our objects. Red and black ceramic table centerpiece made in Rockabilly style, the colors are strong and decisive, the black has the distinction of having beautiful reflections nacreè (mother of pearl), reflections that unfortunately the photos can not capture, from life are really seductive, the form is nicely undulating, pleasant and very capacious; the centerpiece was produced between 1950 and 1953, by skilled artisans in the area of Vallauris, the "French city of ceramics" in Provence north-east of Cannes, renowned since ancient times for the production of this fascinating material; there were more than 250 production centers, but today very few remain and since the mid-20th century, they are dedicated to the manufacture of contemporary ceramics. The word "Rockabilly" is a combination of "rock and roll" and "hillbilly" (a derogatory term used to define the Appalachian mountain people and, in a generic sense, meant country boor); Rockabilly was a musical genre developed in the early 1950s, it was one of the first forms of rock & roll. It was a fusion of bluegrass, country, boogie-woogie, and jazz, originally from the southern United States, and was played and sung by artists such as Buddy Holly...
Category

Mid-20th Century French Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

1950s Blue Stoneware Figure by Helge Christoffersen for Royal Copenhagen
Located in Odense, DK
Amazing stoneware figure by Danish artist Helge Christoffersen of a young girl reading a book. The figure is a unique work of art made at Royal Copenhagen in the early 1950s by the a...
Category

1950s Danish Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Stoneware

Stylish Tenmoku Glazed Pattern Studio Pottery Bowl Signed, 20th Century
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
A very stylish and well made vintage studio pottery bowl with a tenmoku glazed swirl design around the body on a light mottled brown ground...
Category

1960s English Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Pottery

Guido Gambone 33 Piece Ceramic Coffee and Espresso Set, 1950s
Located in New York, NY
33 Piece hand-thrown ceramic coffee and espresso service set with iconic yellow and blue colors and salt glaze by Guido Gambone, Italy, 1950s (signed on the bottom on all pieces with...
Category

1950s Italian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Pablo Picasso Large Ceramic Plate, Tormented Face 1956 C117
Located in London, GB
Pablo Picasso Tormented face. Ceramic plate 1956. Large unglazed light earthenware charger with raised design from the “Tormented Face” series . Produced by Madoura in 1956. Numbered...
Category

1950s French Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Pair of Stylized Ceramic Swans by Waylande Gregory, circa 1940s
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
A pair of large scale ( 18"L) ceramic swan sculptures by Waylande Gregory. Brown/gray with gold paint and sgraffito stylized and typical of Gregory's work, circa 1940s, signed Waland...
Category

1940s American Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Eugenio Pattarino Ceramic Charger
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
A fantastic and rare ceramic charger by Eugenio Pattarino. Vibrant red color and Classic Italian Mid-Century style is represented very well in this piece. Eugenio Pattarino was born in 1885 and passed away in 1971. He was a master sculptor and model maker and taught in art schools in both Venice and Frankfort, Germany. In the late 1940s he opened his own studio in Florence. His factory used both “EPF” and “CAPEF” (Artistic Ceramics Professor Eugene Pattarino) to mark his pieces. His studio is best known for its large religious statutes, many of which reside in a number of churches in Italy and the U.S. In the 1950s Pattarino had more than fifty artists working for him and some among them were considered the best ceramists in Italy. At this time Eugenio was joined by his son, Ranier, and the company began concentrating on more eclectic themes. These pieces, when new, were quite expensive when they were purchased but almost never garner anywhere near their original cost at today's auctions. The factory claimed that the Vatican used Pattarino’s ceramics as gifts to famous visitors, including President John Kennedy, Andre Gide and Paul Sartre. Unfortunately there is no proof to back these claims. As a matter of fact I have discovered that the Pattarino name is almost generally unknown in Italy and even lesser known in Florence. His name is, however, recognized here in the United States and most of the factory’s output can be found in the U.S. where it was imported. In November 1966 the Arno River flooded its bank and inundated most of Florence. Work to restore damaged art...
Category

1950s Italian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Modern Stoneware Ceramic Vase by Astoul in La Borne 1982 Shinny Grey Color
Located in Neuilly-en- sancerre, FR
Astoul E. Elegant and large ceramic stoneware vase. Masterpiece of the artist realised and dated 1982, signed at the base. Original excellent conditions. Dimensions: 28 x...
Category

Mid-20th Century French Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Waylande Gregory Ceramic Jar with Sgraffito Decoration
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
An interesting ceramic lidded jar by Waylande Gregory with sgraffito decoration.
Category

1950s American Vintage Modern Ceramics

Monumental Pair of Marcello Fantoni Etruscan Sgraffiti Vases with Covers
Located in Skanninge, SE
An outstanding pair of vases with covers in the sgraffiti technique by the Italian master Marcello Fantoni. These ceramic masterpieces are in perfect condition and they are both sign...
Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Collection of French Art Pottery Vases, Lidded Boxes, Denbac
Located in Copenhagen, DK
Collection of French art pottery vases, lidded boxes, Denbac,  circa 1940s. Stamped. Largest measures: 12.5 cm. X 11 cm. In perfect condition.
Category

1940s French Vintage Modern Ceramics

Jules Agard Large Terracotta "Owl", Sculpture, Signed
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This is a great work by the well-known French artist Jules Agard. He was one of the most important artist working with Pablo Picasso in Vallauris , Madoura...
Category

1950s French Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Terracotta

Waylande Gregory Ceramic Bowl
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
An elegant, hand-painted bowl by Waylande Gregory. Stylized leaf pattern in green and silver leaf.
Category

1950s American Vintage Modern Ceramics

Ceramic Sculpture by Ka Kwong Hui
By Hiu Ka Kwong
Located in Pawtucket, RI
Rare and large ceramic sculpture by Pop ceramicist Ka Kwong Hui. Signed. Hui immigrated to U.S. in 1948. Received a BFA in 1951 and a MFA in 1952 from Al...
Category

1960s American Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Large Iridescent Italian Urn
Located in New York, NY
Large Mid Century Ceramic Iridescent Urn with wooden top and base, CA 1960 Italy. Significant Italian mid century urn with brilliant iridescen...
Category

1960s Italian Vintage Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Stan Bitters, Collection of 7 Sun People Ceramic/Pottery Sculptures
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Beautiful collection of Sun People , attb to Stan Bitters , this are very well known pieces by the artist , beautiful glazes , no signed .Different sizes from 7 to 17 inches high .
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Modern ceramics for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a broad range of unique Modern ceramics for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage ceramics created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include serveware, ceramics, silver and glass, decorative objects, folk art and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with ceramic, stoneware and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Modern ceramics made in a specific country, there are Europe, North America, and Italy pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original ceramics, popular names associated with this style include Monika Patuszynska, Mosche Bianche, Richard A. Hirsch, and LAAB Milano. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for ceramics differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $20 and tops out at $50,348 while the average work can sell for $614.

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