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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1980s Hong Kong Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plastic
1970s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
1980s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
1970s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
1980s Unknown Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal, Gold
Late 20th Century Finnish Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood, Birch
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plastic
1980s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass
Late 20th Century Turkish Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wool, Cotton, Foam
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plastic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plastic
1980s North American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Gold, Silver
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal, Brass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plastic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
1980s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal, Brass
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
1980s French Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Leather
1970s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
1980s French Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Malachite, Gold
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Aluminum, Brass, Iron
1990s French Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Canvas
Late 20th Century Italian Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Aluminum
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
Late 20th Century Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Steel
1970s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Fabric
1970s French Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Chrome
1970s German Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
Late 20th Century Spanish Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Cherry
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Cotton
Late 20th Century Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass, Chrome
1980s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
Late 20th Century Danish Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Hardwood
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Gold
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Leather
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
1990s Dutch Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Felt
1970s Swedish Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plastic
1980s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
1970s Asian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
1990s Swiss Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Plastic
Late 20th Century Italian Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass
1970s Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Lucite
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
1970s Italian Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
1970s American Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood, Resin
Late 20th Century American Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Fabric, Mahogany
Late 20th Century Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Fiberglass
1970s Spanish Vintage Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern More Furniture and Collectibles
Steel