Modern Games
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 French Modern Games
Paper
Late 20th Century American Modern Games
Wood, Resin
20th Century French Modern Games
Paper
20th Century Modern Games
Wood
20th Century Modern Games
Acrylic, Plexiglass
Late 20th Century Japanese Modern Games
Metal, Chrome
1970s German Vintage Modern Games
Wood, Porcelain
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Games
Paper
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Games
Ceramic
1970s American Vintage Modern Games
Lucite
1970s American Vintage Modern Games
Lucite
1950s French Vintage Modern Games
Metal, Aluminum
Mid-20th Century Belgian Modern Games
Other, Tin
Early 20th Century American Modern Games
Wood
Late 20th Century Austrian Modern Games
Plastic
1970s French Vintage Modern Games
Lucite
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Games
Brass, Stainless Steel, Chrome
1970s American Vintage Modern Games
1970s French Vintage Modern Games
Brass, Copper, Chrome
1970s French Vintage Modern Games
Lucite
2010s Italian Modern Games
Chrome
Late 20th Century French Modern Games
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Games
Ceramic, Cork
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Games
Silver, Sterling Silver
Early 20th Century English Modern Games
Mahogany
2010s Italian Modern Games
Leather
2010s Chinese Modern Games
Paper
2010s Italian Modern Games
Chrome
2010s Italian Modern Games
Brass
Mid-20th Century French Modern Games
Metal
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Games
Marble, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Games
Felt
20th Century French Modern Games
Leather, Plastic
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Games
Travertine
1970s Vintage Modern Games
Marble
1990s Danish Modern Games
Stainless Steel
20th Century American Modern Games
Marble
1970s American Vintage Modern Games
Marble, Chrome
1970s American Vintage Modern Games
Suede, Acrylic, Bakelite
1980s American Vintage Modern Games
Aluminum
1970s Unknown Vintage Modern Games
Marble
Late 20th Century American Modern Games
Resin, Wood
Late 20th Century American Modern Games
Resin, Wood
20th Century Italian Modern Games
Onyx, Brass