Modern Side 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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Asian Modern Side Chairs
Fabric, Wood
2010s South African Modern Side Chairs
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Portuguese Modern Side Chairs
Fabric, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Wood, Velvet
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Side Chairs
Plastic
2010s Swiss Modern Side Chairs
Fabric, Plastic
2010s American Modern Side Chairs
Steel
2010s American Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Spanish Modern Side Chairs
Stainless Steel
Early 2000s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Steel, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Side Chairs
Ceramic, Blown Glass
1990s American Modern Side Chairs
Steel
2010s European Modern Side Chairs
Stainless Steel
Early 2000s American Modern Side Chairs
Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Side Chairs
Steel, Chrome
2010s Australian Modern Side Chairs
Copper, Enamel, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Side Chairs
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Leather, Wood
Late 20th Century American Modern Side Chairs
Goatskin, Wood, Upholstery
2010s American Modern Side Chairs
Steel
2010s Brazilian Modern Side Chairs
Leather, Upholstery, Walnut, Wood
Early 2000s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Steel, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Side Chairs
Steel
2010s Danish Modern Side Chairs
Stainless Steel
2010s Chinese Modern Side Chairs
Other
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Leather, Walnut
2010s Canadian Modern Side Chairs
Ash
1990s Swiss Modern Side Chairs
Metal
2010s American Modern Side Chairs
Steel
Late 19th Century North American Antique Modern Side Chairs
Chrome
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Leather
2010s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Side Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
2010s British Modern Side Chairs
Metal
Mid-20th Century Indian Modern Side Chairs
Teak
Late 20th Century American Modern Side Chairs
Fabric, Oak, Bentwood
2010s Portuguese Modern Side Chairs
Velvet, Wood
Early 2000s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Side Chairs
Steel
1980s American Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Side Chairs
Wood
2010s American Modern Side Chairs
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Leather, Fiberglass
2010s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Velvet, Wood
Early 2000s European Modern Side Chairs
Steel
1950s American Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Side Chairs
Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Side Chairs
Steel, Chrome
1980s American Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Side Chairs
Oak, Plywood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Side Chairs
Leather
1990s Danish Modern Side Chairs
Steel
Early 2000s German Modern Side Chairs
Steel
1970s French Vintage Modern Side Chairs
Leather, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum
Early 2000s American Modern Side Chairs
Aluminum