Modern Sofas
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Sofas
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Fabric, Poplar
20th Century Modern Sofas
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Brass
2010s Modern Sofas
Leather, Wood
2010s Chinese Modern Sofas
Fabric
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Upholstery, Mahogany
20th Century English Modern Sofas
Upholstery, Velvet
Late 20th Century American Modern Sofas
Fabric, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sofas
Brass
1970s Swiss Vintage Modern Sofas
Leather, Upholstery
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Leather, Wood
2010s European Modern Sofas
Metal
2010s Portuguese Modern Sofas
Fabric, Walnut
2010s Modern Sofas
Polyester
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Sofas
Aluminum
2010s Modern Sofas
Bouclé
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sofas
Leather, Wood, Bouclé, Fabric
1940s Italian Vintage Modern Sofas
Sheepskin, Wood
2010s American Modern Sofas
Fabric
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Sofas
Leather, Walnut
1980s American Vintage Modern Sofas
Fabric, Chenille, Upholstery, Down
2010s American Modern Sofas
Mahogany
2010s American Modern Sofas
Hardwood
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Sofas
Bouclé
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Velvet
1990s American Modern Sofas
Cotton, Rattan, Down
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Upholstery, Wood
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Fabric, Mahogany
2010s American Modern Sofas
Sheet Metal
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Cotton, Rattan, Down
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Steel
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Leather
2010s Modern Sofas
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Sofas
Steel
2010s American Modern Sofas
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Fabric, Down, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Walnut, Wool
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Fabric
2010s Asian Modern Sofas
Leather, Oak
2010s Modern Sofas
Fabric
2010s Modern Sofas
Bronze
2010s Modern Sofas
Brass
2010s Dutch Modern Sofas
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Asian Modern Sofas
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Leather, Fabric
20th Century Modern Sofas
Bouclé, Upholstery, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Sofas
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary North American Modern Sofas
Leather
Early 2000s American Modern Sofas
Leather
2010s Modern Sofas
Velvet, Oak, Walnut
1970s American Vintage Modern Sofas
Fabric, Plastic, Foam