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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass, Metal
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel, Chrome
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
Early 2000s Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Walnut, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
Early 2000s Finnish Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Birch
1970s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Teak
1980s Dutch Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Wool
2010s French Modern Lounge Chairs
Stone, Steel
1990s Dutch Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Philippine Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
Late 20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Upholstery
1960s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Velvet, Oak, Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
1950s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Calico
1960s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Hardwood, Pine
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Indian Modern Lounge Chairs
Bouclé
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Beech
1940s Belgian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Rope, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Lounge Chairs
Cut Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
1980s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
2010s Finnish Modern Lounge Chairs
Fiberglass
1980s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Lacquer, Wood
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Cord, Rope
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Teak, Leather, Canvas
Early 2000s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
2010s Polish Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
Early 2000s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
20th Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Wrought Iron
1950s Danish Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Alpaca, Beech
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
2010s Turkish Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Foam, Hardwood
2010s Asian Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Argentine Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Wood
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Hardwood, Bouclé, Resin