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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1990s Japanese Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Mahogany
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Wood, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
Late 20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
2010s Spanish Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Velvet
2010s European Modern Lounge Chairs
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Velvet, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
Late 20th Century French Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Lounge Chairs
Velvet, Wood
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Walnut
20th Century Belgian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
2010s European Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood, Velvet
1970s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Palisander
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Bouclé, Oak
2010s Japanese Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Lounge Chairs
Textile
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Oak
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Fir, Upholstery, Wood
1980s Norwegian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Bronze
20th Century Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
1970s French Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Iron
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
2010s Ukrainian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fur, Sheepskin, Fabric, Wool, Bouclé, Velvet, Faux Fur, Cotton, Linen, A...
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Fabric
1980s Swiss Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Wood, Teak
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Foam, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Lounge Chairs
Nickel
2010s Swedish Modern Lounge Chairs
Bronze
2010s Brazilian Modern Lounge Chairs
Lacquer, Leather, Fabric, Cane
2010s Ukrainian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Bouclé
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Oak, Wood
20th Century French Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Hardwood, Ash
Early 2000s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Lounge Chairs
Nickel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass, Stainless Steel
Early 2000s Indonesian Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
20th Century Dutch Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric
2010s Asian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Rattan, Rope, Teak
20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Wicker, Cane, Mahogany, Walnut
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Hardwood
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Wool, Beech, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Leather, Down
2010s Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Oak