Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
Early 1900s Israeli Antique Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Silver, Brass, Copper
Early 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Sterling Silver, Enamel
Early 20th Century Italian Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Stone, Iron
Early 20th Century Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wool, Cotton, Foam
1920s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
Early 20th Century Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wool, Cotton, Foam
Early 20th Century Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Fiberglass
Early 20th Century Spanish Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
Early 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
Early 20th Century English Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Silver
Early 20th Century English Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Iron
Early 20th Century English Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Iron
Early 1900s Spanish Antique Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plaster, Wood
Early 20th Century Israeli Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Mother-of-Pearl, Olive, Abalone
Early 1900s Spanish Antique Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plaster, Wood
Early 20th Century English Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Burl
Early 20th Century Israeli Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass
Early 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Onyx, Brass
Early 20th Century Austrian Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Gold, Silver, Enamel
Early 20th Century Italian Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Stone
Early 20th Century Italian Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Stone
Early 20th Century Israeli Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Silver, Brass
Early 20th Century English Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Sterling Silver
Early 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Resin
Early 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
Early 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
1920s French Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
1920s Austrian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
Early 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Resin
Early 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
Early 20th Century German Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
Early 20th Century Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood, Rosewood, Reclaimed Wood
1910s Austrian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass, Iron
Early 20th Century European Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Birch, Bentwood