Modern Seating
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Italian Modern Seating
Leather
2010s American Modern Seating
Cotton, Wood
2010s Portuguese Modern Seating
Fabric, Wood
2010s Brazilian Modern Seating
Upholstery, Teak, Wood, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Seating
Textile
2010s Brazilian Modern Seating
Teak, Fabric, Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Velvet
2010s American Modern Seating
Steel, Iron, Wrought Iron
2010s Italian Modern Seating
Textile
2010s Brazilian Modern Seating
Faux Leather, Hardwood, Cane
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Fabric, Velvet
2010s American Modern Seating
Steel, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Seating
Leather, Sheepskin
2010s Spanish Modern Seating
Brass, Steel
2010s Portuguese Modern Seating
Stainless Steel
20th Century American Modern Seating
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Seating
Wood, Leather
1970s Brazilian Vintage Modern Seating
Suede, Rosewood
2010s American Modern Seating
Aluminum
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Seating
Rush, Pine, Paint
2010s Italian Modern Seating
Steel
2010s American Modern Seating
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Seating
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary North American Modern Seating
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Seating
Metal, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Polish Modern Seating
Fabric
2010s American Modern Seating
Steel, Iron
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Seating
Iron
2010s American Modern Seating
Wrought Iron
2010s Portuguese Modern Seating
Velvet, Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Seating
Upholstery, Wood
2010s American Modern Seating
Upholstery, Wood, Walnut
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Seating
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Silk, Velvet, Wood, Trimming
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Seating
Ash, Cherry, Walnut, Oak
2010s Portuguese Modern Seating
Stainless Steel
Early 2000s Italian Modern Seating
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Seating
Textile
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Glass, Wood
2010s American Modern Seating
Steel, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Brass, Metal
2010s American Modern Seating
Steel, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Silk, Trimming, Wood, Velvet
1990s Italian Modern Seating
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Seating
Bronze
2010s American Modern Seating
Leather, Oak
2010s Italian Modern Seating
Cedar
2010s Brazilian Modern Seating
Fabric, Upholstery
20th Century English Modern Seating
Fabric, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Seating
Cedar
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Velvet, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Seating
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Seating
Cedar
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Seating
Brass, Stainless Steel
1970s British Vintage Modern Seating
Leather, Pine
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Seating
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Seating
Steel
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Seating
Lacquer
2010s American Modern Seating
Walnut
Modern seating for sale on 1stDibs.
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