Modern Benches
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s South Korean Modern Benches
Stone, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Asian Modern Benches
Wood
2010s American Modern Benches
Bamboo
2010s Canadian Modern Benches
Walnut, Paper, Oak
2010s American Modern Benches
Leather, Maple, Oak, Walnut
2010s Mexican Modern Benches
Jute
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Benches
Steel
2010s American Modern Benches
Concrete, Stainless Steel
1980s American Vintage Modern Benches
Steel
2010s Japanese Modern Benches
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Asian Modern Benches
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Wood
1960s Swiss Vintage Modern Benches
Concrete, Steel
2010s American Modern Benches
Iron, Wrought Iron, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Textile, Wood
2010s Canadian Modern Benches
Steel
2010s Portuguese Modern Benches
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Benches
Wood
2010s American Modern Benches
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
2010s Mexican Modern Benches
Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Iron, Brass
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Textile
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Benches
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Upholstery, Velvet, Hardwood, Maple
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Plastic
2010s Canadian Modern Benches
Wenge
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Benches
Concrete
1980s American Vintage Modern Benches
Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Benches
Leather, Maple, Oak, Walnut
2010s South Korean Modern Benches
Stone, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Benches
Wood
2010s American Modern Benches
Velvet, Faux Fur, Poplar
2010s Argentine Modern Benches
Leather, Wood
Late 20th Century Modern Benches
Fabric, Lucite
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Plywood
20th Century American Modern Benches
Fabric, Faux Bamboo
2010s Argentine Modern Benches
Wood
2010s American Modern Benches
Wood, Oak, Walnut
1970s American Vintage Modern Benches
Leather, Upholstery, Velvet
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Velvet
2010s Canadian Modern Benches
Maple, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Acrylic, Hardwood, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Indonesian Modern Benches
Leather, Teak
2010s Argentine Modern Benches
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Fabric, Velvet, Wood, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cement, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
2010s Portuguese Modern Benches
Metal
2010s American Modern Benches
Steel
2010s Thai Modern Benches
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Benches
Wood
2010s Spanish Modern Benches
Upholstery, Velvet, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Velvet
2010s American Modern Benches
Leather, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Walnut, Ebony
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
2010s Spanish Modern Benches
Steel
1980s American Vintage Modern Benches
Faux Fur, Wood, Lacquer
2010s Balkan Modern Benches
Concrete
2010s Italian Modern Benches
Brass
2010s American Modern Benches
Oak
2010s American Modern Benches
Concrete, Cement
2010s Argentine Modern Benches
Cord, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary North American Modern Benches
Lucite
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Benches
Velvet, Walnut
2010s American Modern Benches
Leather, Sheepskin, Faux Leather, Foam, Maple, Walnut
2010s American Modern Benches
Upholstery
2010s Mexican Modern Benches
Oak, Wood, Hardwood
2010s American Modern Benches
Metal
2010s Indian Modern Benches
Bouclé