Modern Lounge Chairs
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 African Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Velvet, Walnut
2010s North American Modern Lounge Chairs
Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Bouclé, Oak
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Oak
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Lounge Chairs
Rope, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak, Leather
2010s Belgian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Foam, Wood
Early 2000s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Maple, Plywood
Early 2000s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Wood, Feathers
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Teak, Leather
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Oak
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric
20th Century Austrian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Beech
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Hardwood
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Walnut
2010s North American Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Mohair, Walnut
2010s Balkan Modern Lounge Chairs
Textile, Wool, Upholstery, Wood, Ash, Oak, Walnut
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Lounge Chairs
Foam, Wood, Leather, Resin
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Bouclé, Wood, Walnut
2010s Balkan Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Velvet, Foam, Wood
2010s Canadian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Walnut
1960s Slovak Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Asian Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal, Stainless Steel
1990s Dutch Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
1930s Czech Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Lounge Chairs
Rope, Wood, Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Cane, Rattan, Cotton, Velvet, Wood
1990s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Bouclé, Upholstery
2010s Turkish Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Cast Stone, Steel
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Hardwood, Walnut, Cotton
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Hardwood, Wicker
2010s Asian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Fabric, Rope, Teak
Mid-20th Century North American Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood, Fabric
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass