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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 German Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass, Steel
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
2010s Indian Modern Lounge Chairs
Chenille
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Velvet, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
1940s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Velvet, Wood
Early 2000s European Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
1990s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Enamel, Steel
Early 2000s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Oak
2010s Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Teak
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Ceramic, Walnut
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Velvet, Walnut
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
Early 2000s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Textile
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass, Steel
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Faux Leather, Rubber, Plywood, Ash
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
1980s Slovak Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak, Leather
1960s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Brazilian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Cane, Wood
2010s Chinese Modern Lounge Chairs
Fiberglass
2010s British Modern Lounge Chairs
Composition
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Teak
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
Late 20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
1990s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
1970s Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Rosewood
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel, Chrome
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Teak
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
1980s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Upholstery, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Bronze
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Upholstery, Faux Leather, Foam, Maple, Oak, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Hide
1950s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
1990s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Wicker, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
1960s Dutch Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal, Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Lounge Chairs
Patent Leather
1950s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Bouclé
1960s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
2010s Austrian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Ceramic, Bouclé, Walnut
20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Wicker, Walnut
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
1950s German Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Foam
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood, Ash
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
2010s Spanish Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel