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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Spanish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1960s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
Late 20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Art Glass
1990s French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
2010s South American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stone, Onyx, Metal
20th Century Unknown Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
Early 2000s European Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver
Late 20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Art Glass
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stone, Silver Plate
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
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
Early 20th Century French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal
2010s Argentine Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery
20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
Early 2000s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Steel
Mid-20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1990s Spanish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
2010s French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stoneware
2010s South American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stoneware
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver, Enamel, Gold, Gold Plate
Mid-20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
2010s Argentine Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery
1980s Finnish Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Art Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass, Cut Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
20th Century British Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Gold, Gold Leaf
20th Century French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
2010s South American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stone, Metal
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass, Cork
1970s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Lucite
2010s Chinese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
2010s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
1980s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
Early 2000s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
2010s Argentine Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Wood
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal, Metal, Gold Plate, Silver Plate
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Acrylic
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
2010s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Porcelain
20th Century North American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Aluminum
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
2010s Turkish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sheet Metal
Late 20th Century Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ebony, Macassar
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Gold, Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass