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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
20th Century Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Gold Leaf
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal, Silver Plate
Late 20th Century Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
2010s French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stoneware
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
1960s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
1970s British Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver
20th Century Japanese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Pottery
2010s Mexican Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
2010s Argentine Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
2010s Argentine Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery
2010s Turkish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1990s Swiss Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
Early 2000s English Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver, Sterling Silver
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal, Brass
1980s German Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Leather
1990s Swedish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
20th Century British Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
2010s Brazilian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Bronze
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
2010s English Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cast Stone
1970s Swedish Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stoneware
2010s Spanish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1980s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Art Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Clay
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
Mid-20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Quartz
2010s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Moroccan Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver, Brass
1970s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Wicker, Cane, Rattan, Resin, Acrylic, Lucite
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal, Gold Plate
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Pewter
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
1970s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
Late 20th Century European Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Art Glass, Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal, Sterling Silver
Early 2000s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver, Enamel, Gold, Gold Plate
2010s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver, Enamel, Gold, Gold Plate
1990s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1980s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Gold Plate, Silver Plate