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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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
Bronze
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Ceramic, Upholstery, Walnut
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Wood
2010s European Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
1970s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Fabric, Wood
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s European Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak
1990s Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
1970s Austrian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Wicker, Walnut
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Ceramic, Bouclé, Walnut
1960s Dutch Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal, Aluminum
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Sheepskin, Hickory, Leather
Mid-20th Century Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary North American Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Bouclé, Wood, Walnut
1980s North American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fiberglass
1970s French Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
Late 20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood, Upholstery
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Walnut, Machiche, Hardwood
1990s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Saudi Arabian Modern Lounge Chairs
Linen, Velvet, Polyester
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Ash
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Oak
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric
2010s Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
1960s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Wicker, Hardwood
2010s Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Wood
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Hardwood, Walnut, Cotton
2010s Spanish Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
2010s German Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Hardwood
2010s Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Bentwood
2010s French Modern Lounge Chairs
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric
1970s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
Late 20th Century French Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass, Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
Late 20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
Linen, Upholstery, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Lounge Chairs
Velvet, Synthetic, Polyester, Oak, Walnut
1990s Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Wood, Teak
20th Century Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Cut Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
Early 20th Century North American Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Katalox, Hardwood
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum, Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Marble, Steel
2010s Lebanese Modern Lounge Chairs
Satin, Walnut
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Teak
2010s Canadian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Walnut
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum, Steel
1980s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery
1970s Dutch Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
1970s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
1960s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel, Nickel
2010s Canadian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Walnut
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
Early 2000s Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel