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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Fabric, Wood
20th Century English Modern Sofas
Upholstery
2010s Portuguese Modern Sofas
Upholstery
2010s Swiss Modern Sofas
Aluminum
2010s Turkish Modern Sofas
Metal
2010s Spanish Modern Sofas
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Sofas
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Sofas
Leather
2010s Unknown Modern Sofas
Bronze
2010s American Modern Sofas
Upholstery
1990s Italian Modern Sofas
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Brass
2010s Dutch Modern Sofas
Leather, Foam, Wood
2010s Danish Modern Sofas
Sheepskin
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Sofas
Fabric, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Sofas
Upholstery
2010s Turkish Modern Sofas
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Sofas
Leather
2010s Swiss Modern Sofas
Leather, Oak
2010s Swiss Modern Sofas
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Sofas
Steel
2010s French Modern Sofas
Fabric, Foam, Plywood
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Sofas
Upholstery
2010s American Modern Sofas
Steel
2010s American Modern Sofas
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Foam, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Sofas
Sheepskin, Oak
2010s Swiss Modern Sofas
Aluminum
20th Century Italian Modern Sofas
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Foam, Beech, Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Sofas
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Leather, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Sofas
Fabric, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sofas
Brass, Metal, Sheet Metal
2010s Philippine Modern Sofas
Steel, Stainless Steel
2010s Philippine Modern Sofas
Rattan, Maple
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Rubber
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Sofas
Leather
20th Century Italian Modern Sofas
Synthetic
2010s Swiss Modern Sofas
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Fabric, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Sofas
Fabric, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Wood, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Sofas
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Leather, Fabric, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Sofas
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Upholstery
2010s Italian Modern Sofas
Bouclé, Fabric, Upholstery
2010s Philippine Modern Sofas
Rattan, Maple
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Leather, Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Sofas
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Sofas
Upholstery
2010s German Modern Sofas
Upholstery, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Modern Sofas
Brass