Modern Rocking 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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather
2010s Israeli Modern Rocking Chairs
Polyester, Teak, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Pakistani Modern Rocking Chairs
Wicker, Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Rocking Chairs
Wood
2010s Asian Modern Rocking Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather, Fabric, Faux Leather, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather, Fabric, Faux Leather, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Rocking Chairs
Oak
2010s Israeli Modern Rocking Chairs
Acrylic, Polyester, Teak
2010s Israeli Modern Rocking Chairs
Acrylic, Polyester, Teak
1980s American Vintage Modern Rocking Chairs
Wood
2010s Israeli Modern Rocking Chairs
Polyester, Teak, Acrylic
2010s Canadian Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather, Ash, Wood, Upholstery, Sheepskin
2010s Finnish Modern Rocking Chairs
Fiberglass
2010s American Modern Rocking Chairs
Cut Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Upholstery
2010s Israeli Modern Rocking Chairs
Polyester, Teak, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Rubber
2010s Mexican Modern Rocking Chairs
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Plastic
1980s American Vintage Modern Rocking Chairs
Wood, Oak, Cane
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Rocking Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather
Late 20th Century North American Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Rocking Chairs
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Rocking Chairs
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Oak
2010s South African Modern Rocking Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Upholstery
Early 2000s Swiss Modern Rocking Chairs
Wood
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric, Birch
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Rocking Chairs
Wood
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather, Wood
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Rocking Chairs
Wood
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
2010s American Modern Rocking Chairs
Cut Steel
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
2010s South African Modern Rocking Chairs
Plastic
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
Early 2000s Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather, Velvet, Fabric
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
2010s Philippine Modern Rocking Chairs
Stainless Steel
20th Century Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Leather
2010s Philippine Modern Rocking Chairs
Stainless Steel
2010s French Modern Rocking Chairs
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Rocking Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Rocking Chairs
Wood
2010s Spanish Modern Rocking Chairs
Formica, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Rocking Chairs
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Rocking Chairs
Plastic