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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
$1,100Sale Price|42% Off
Los Castillo Mayan Sculptural Art Piece with Malachite and Turquoise Detail
By Los Castillo
Located in McKinney, TX
- Depicts a member of Mayan nobility with quetzal feather headdress and three dimensional design elements - Created using copper, brass, malachite, o...
Malachite, Onyx, Brass
Vintage Inuit 'Two Faced' Stone Carving, Signed, Canada, Mid-20th Century
Located in Chatham, ON
Vintage Inuit 'two faced' stone carving - fine Modernist carving with spare decoration - signed PAUL (in Roman) on the base - Canada - mid 20th century. ...
Stone
$7,065Sale Price|50% Off
Shell gasoline pump, America, 1950s
Located in Manzano, IT
An authentic piece of American history, this iconic Shell gasoline pump from the 1950s is more than just an object-it is a symbol of the golden age of gas stations and vintage design...
Sheet Metal
Pair of Vintage Indigenous American Inuit Mukluks or Boots
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
This pair of vintage Inuit mukluks are presumed to have been made in Canada in circa 1950 in the Indigenous American Folk Art style. The upper portions a...
Fur, Leather, Wool
Large Hand Carved Inuit Stylized Figurative Sculpture
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
This handcrafted sculpture was made in Northern Canada by an Inuit artisan in circa 1970. This sculpture is a series of two stylized human figures intermixed with two representations of presumably Spirits, which has several carved faces in them. The entire sculpture is composed of hand carved and handcrafted antler, likely Caribou. This sculpture may symbolize a blessing of good fortune for an upcoming hunt. The series of four figures are each pegged on the bottom and fit into holes drilled into the base. The base is numbered on the bottom which identifies that it was registered, and also has a paper label. Due to the composition of this sculpture it may only be shipped within Canada...
Antler
$2,650
H 0.125 in W 7.25 in D 11 in
19th-Century Kiowa-Apache Beaded Hide Bag with Geometric Motifs, Plains Art
Located in Denver, CO
This rare and beautifully preserved 19th-century Kiowa-Apache hide bag is an exceptional example of Plains Native American artistry and craftsmanship. Expertly hand-stitched from nat...
Hide, Beads
Los Castillo Mexican Multi Metal Leaf Pitcher
By Los Castillo
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Multiple metal philodendron leaf handle pitcher by Mexican Designer Los Castillo - the pitcher is made of four metals that appear to be, Copper, Silver, Brass and Nickel. The Pitcher...
Silver, Brass, Copper
$478Sale Price|20% Off
H 3 in W 4 in D 3 in
Fine Vintage silver Turquoise Cuff bracelet ethnographic tribal jewellery
Located in London, GB
Fine Indian Vintage silver Turquoise Cuff bracelet ethnographic tribal jewellery A vintage silver Cuff bracelet with multiple Turquoise cabochons High grade silver
Silver
$1,195
H 22.75 in W 10 in D 6 in
Mid-Century Era Signed West Coast Cedar Haida Indigenous Canadian Totem Pole
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
This hand-carved cedar totem is signed by an unknown artist and presumed to have originated from Canada and dating to approximately 1960 and done in the West Coast Indigenous Haida s...
Cedar
Sold|$950
H 42.5 in W 1.25 in D 0.5 in
Vintage Signed Native American Navajo SS & Turquoise Concho Belt by Jimmy Herald
By Navajo
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine vintage Navajo belt. By Jimmy Herald. Consisting of a leather belt with sterling silver 'conchos' (shells) and turquoise accents. The slides are copper backed and there are ...
Sterling Silver
Fine Vintage Native American Navajo Cuff bracelet Silver Turquoise
Located in London, GB
A Fine Vintage Native American Navajo bracelet Silver Turquoise jewellery A fine quality elegant slender bracelet with turquoise and coral with floral silver embellishments at the ...
Silver
Native American Cochiti Painted Drum
Located in Coeur d'Alene, ID
Native American Cochiti drum with sides painted in red, white and blue with black stripes. Made of wood and hide. Period: Early 20th century Origin: So...
Wood
$1,695
H 2 in Dm 36 in
Vintage Native American Navajo Sterling Silver & Blue Turquoise Concho Belt 1950
By Navajo
Located in Portland, OR
A very good Vintage sterling silver & blue turquoise Native American Navajo Concho belt, circa 1950. This very attractive Navajo belt is made up of oval silver discs with tooled & pr...
Sterling Silver
$2,250
H 59 in W 33.5 in D 0.125 in
1920s Navajo Double Saddle Blanket with Maltese Cross & Checkerboard Design
Located in Denver, CO
This early 20th-century Navajo double saddle blanket, woven circa 1920s, is a remarkable example of traditional Southwestern textile artistry. Ha...
Wool
$610Sale Price|35% Off
H 3.55 in W 2.37 in D 0.4 in
Vintage MATL Matilde Poulat Gemstone Inlaid Silver Cross – Taxco Mexico, 1950s
Located in London, GB
Vintage MATL Matilde Poulat Gemstone Inlaid Silver Cross – Taxco Mexico, 1950s A stunning and collectible vintage silver cross pendant by renowned Mexican silversmith Matilde Poulat...
Silver
Cheyenne Harris Navajo Silver and Gold Necklace, 20th Century
Located in Hamburg, PA
An impressive Cheyenne Harris Navajo silver and gold necklace, fourteen and 18-karat gold. The necklace is 32" long and is stamped inside the largest bead. The necklace can be professionally polished if desired. Cheyenne Harris initially learned jewelry techniques from her mother, Roberta Multine Tso, who had studied traditional Navajo silversmithing with Kenneth Begay...
Gold, Sterling Silver
Stylized Native American Figure with Headdress by Navajo Sculptor R.D. Tsosie
By Robert Dale Tsosie
Located in New York, NY
This sophisticated modernist sculpture was realized by acclaimed Southwestern sculptor R.D. Tsosie, whose work is represented in many esteemed public and private collections througho...
Agate