Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1990s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Pottery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal, Metal, Silver Plate
1960s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cotton
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal, Silver Plate
1950s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Aluminum
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Enamel, Sterling Silver
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
1960s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
20th Century English Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Amethyst, Sterling Silver
20th Century German Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
2010s Mexican Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Resin
2010s Turkish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass, Nickel
Early 2000s Mexican Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
2010s Portuguese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Wood, Oak
1970s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal, Chrome, Brass
1980s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
1980s German Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1990s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
1950s European Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stoneware
Late 20th Century Canadian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
1980s German Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
20th Century British Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Pottery, Stoneware
Early 1900s American Antique Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
2010s South African Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1990s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Gold, Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
2010s English Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1990s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Gold, Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
1990s Danish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Plastic
1990s English Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Pottery, Stoneware
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal, Sterling Silver
1980s Finnish Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Art Glass
20th Century Unknown Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass, Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
20th Century French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1980s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
2010s European Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Clay
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver, Enamel, Gold Plate
2010s Argentine Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Lava, Silver Plate
1960s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
2010s European Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain