Modern Sculptures
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Wood
Early 2000s Israeli Modern Sculptures
Metal
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Sculptures
Terracotta
1960s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Clay
1950s French Vintage Modern Sculptures
Plaster
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Onyx
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Plexiglass, Wood, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Sculptures
Plexiglass, Wood, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Murano Glass
2010s Finnish Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Finnish Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Finnish Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Finnish Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Finnish Modern Sculptures
Oak, Walnut
2010s Finnish Modern Sculptures
Oak, Walnut
2010s Finnish Modern Sculptures
Oak, Walnut
2010s Finnish Modern Sculptures
Ash, Maple
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
1980s Swedish Vintage Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Mexican Modern Sculptures
Resin
2010s Mexican Modern Sculptures
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Statuary Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Rose Quartz
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Concrete, Cement
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sculptures
Onyx, Travertine, Marble, Carrara Marble, Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Concrete, Cement
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Concrete, Cement
Late 20th Century American Modern Sculptures
Clay, Wood
2010s Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Ceramic, Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Stoneware, Ceramic, Blown Glass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sculptures
Aluminum
2010s Argentine Modern Sculptures
Wood
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Sculptures
Brass
2010s Turkish Modern Sculptures
Glass
2010s French Modern Sculptures
Oak
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Plastic
1970s American Vintage Modern Sculptures
Pottery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sculptures
Plastic
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Plastic
2010s Italian Modern Sculptures
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Sculptures
Steel