Modern Bookcases
MODERN STYLE
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
Style: Modern
Color: Gray
White Turtle Bookcase, by Marcantonio, Made in Italy
By MARCANTONIO
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Scroll down and click "view all from Seller" to see more than 500 other unique products. (2.2)
A multipurpose turtle: its carapace acts as a support for a series of accessories. Onc...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
Kartell Sound Rack Modular Bookcase in Smoke by Ludovica and Roberto Palomba
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Multi-shaped and multi-purpose shelving system, stackable and modular, offering the possibility of creating a variety of geometric and chromatic compositions. This accessory can play the dual role as both container and room divider. It is a go...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Resin
Enzo Mari Dima Modular Wall Shelving System
Located in Chicago, IL
Enzo Mari Dima modular wall shelving system for Simon International Dima Italy, circa 1970
Enameled steel, shelves adjustable with solid plastic holders...
Category
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
Suvretta Plastic Bookcase, by Ettore Sottsass for Memphis Milano Collection
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Suvretta bookcase in plastic laminate was originally designed in 1981, by Ettore Sottsass for Memphis Milano.
Ettore Sottsass was born in Innsbruck in 1917. In 1939 he graduated...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
Column Shelving, High by WL Ceramics
Located in Geneve, CH
Column shelving, High by WL CERAMICS
Design: David Derksen
Materials: Porcelain with blue dripping glaze, corten steel
Dimensions: 110 x 25 (ceramic ), 150 x 40 x 110 cm
Also A...
Category
2010s Chinese Modern Bookcases
Materials
Steel
Kartell Sound Rack Modular Bookcase in Crystal by Ludovica and Roberto Palomba
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Multi-shaped and multi-purpose shelving system, stackable and modular, offering the possibility of creating a variety of geometric and chromatic compositions. This accessory can play the dual role as both container and room divider. It is a go...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Resin
Polished Stainless Steel Library/ Room Divider by Willy Rizzo, Signed
By Willy Rizzo
Located in Berlin, Berlin
Library/ Room Divider, designed by Willy Rizzo. France, Willy Rizzo, 2012.
A large contemporary bookcase/ room divider made of polished stainless steel construction with smoked glas...
Category
2010s French Modern Bookcases
Materials
Stainless Steel
Calico Totem Shelves by Oeuffice
Located in Geneve, CH
Calico totem shelves by Oeuffice
Edition: 8 + 2AP
2011
Materials: Hand poured hi-grade methacrylate resin
Finishe: Mist Opal/ White
Dimensions: 205...
Category
2010s English Modern Bookcases
Materials
Resin
Majj Studio Rave Bookcase
By MAJJ STUDIO
Located in Seyrantepe, 34
It is a metal bookcase with a sculptural appearance for storing magazines, books and accessories. It is handmade by stacking 5 triangular metal shelves on top of each other. Its cylindrical feet have variable diameters.
When positioned with our two pairs of seat...
Category
2010s Turkish Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
Leyva High Bookcase in Glossy White Finish by Giuseppe Viganò
Located in Brooklyn, NY
The Leyva table is made of painted iron rod welded into a grille of uniform squares. Sophisticated and unintrusive, Leyva decorates the living room with a light, contemporary touch. The Leyva collection also includes a latticework bookcase with the same design, a cleancut and essential silhouette. Its willowy minimal contours conjure up an airy lightness. Whether it is wall-mounted or free-standing, it will easily blend into any setting. Perfect for modern settings and a seamless solution for industrial surrounds, it could also bestow an unexpected twist on more classical décor. Moveable shelves and the base, for floor version, are in coated sheet metal.
The designer Giuseppe Viganò...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Iron
Jacques Lucite and Brass Étagère
Located in New York, NY
Clearly cool. Our Jacques collection is the perfect blend of simplicity and glamour, modern and traditional. Shown in crystal clear Lucite with brushed brass. Also available in moody...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Bookcases
Materials
Brass
Rubeda concrete chair design Roberto Giacomucci 2018
Located in ancona, IT
The “Doodling” collection is made of white Carrara marble, the most precious marble in the world, always sought after for its purity.
They are entirely ma...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Cement
Nostradamus concrete coffee table design Roberto Giacomucci 2018
Located in ancona, IT
The “Doodling” collection is made of white Carrara marble, the most precious marble in the world, always sought after for its purity.
They are entirely mad...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Cement
Kartell Bookworm in Aluminum
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Bookworm, the flexible bookcase, is the result of the encounter between the creativity of an artist such as Ron Arad, combined with Kartell's technology, giving life to a revolutiona...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
GLASS SHELVES #1 '1976', by Shiro Kuramata for Glas Italia
Located in Macherio, IT
Glass Shelves #1 (1976) Shelves is shown here in the transparent glass. Bookcase characterised by the extraordinary formal cleanness and the golden proportions, entirely realized in ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Glass
Pair of Modern Gray Bookcase Cabinets
Located in North York, ON
Pair of modern grey bookcase cabinets. New, made in the USA and custom finished by the Carrocel artisans. Minimalist design featuring 3 glass shelves and...
Category
2010s American Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
Fragmented Minimalist Bookshelf in Stainless Steel
By Objects With Narratives
Located in London, GB
A window is historically understood as a condition to observe the world. Today computers and smartphones are our new windows to perceive society. These screens try to idealize everyt...
Category
2010s Belgian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Stainless Steel
Kartell Medium Bookworm Bookcase in Aluminum by Ron Arad
Located in Brooklyn, NY
An artist's creativity combined with a great company’s technology results in to a bookcase design of Industrial scale that can rightfully be considered the world’s most daring and re...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
Kartell Sundial Modular Bookcase in Crystal and White by Nendo
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Sundial is the bookcase whose dividing elements, placed in different directions, create a game of unexpected and original proportions.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Resin
Kartell Bookworm in White
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Bookworm, the flexible bookcase, is the result of the encounter between the creativity of an artist such as Ron Arad, combined with Kartell's technology, giving life to a revolutionary project produced on an industrial scale...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec Cloud Two-Sided Bookcase for Cappellini
Located in New York, NY
The cloud bookshelf by Ronan & Bouroullec, with hollow compartments, is an extravagant furnishing element with a pop flair and an absolutely unforgetta...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
Kartell Bookworm in Black and Gold
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Bookworm, the flexible bookcase, is the result of the encounter between the creativity of an artist such as Ron Arad, combined with Kartell's technology, giving life to a revolutionary project produced on an industrial scale...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
FF Grid Shelving 1
By Simon Johns
Located in East-Bolton, Quebec
A slender tower-like sculptural bookcase, made from a rigid hand polished aluminum structure. Through the grid-like structure, a cast form of the collection's signature texture flows continuously through the layers. The polishing of the aluminum creates illusions of transparency on the outside, and interiors that glow, reflecting the light from the room.
*Note: The model pictured has been sold, but commissions are available.
About the Future Fossils Collection...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Aluminum
Kartell Bookworm in Aluminum
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Bookworm, the flexible bookcase, is the result of the encounter between the creativity of an artist such as Ron Arad, combined with Kartell's technology, giving life to a revolutiona...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
FF Void Shelving 1
By Simon Johns
Located in East-Bolton, Quebec
A slender tower-like sculptural bookcase, with a continuous cavernous void that rises through a rigid structure. The hand polished aluminum reflects light from the room onto the interior of the piece, highlighting the collections signature texture, while also creating illusions of transparency through reflection.
About the Future Fossils Collection...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Aluminum
Pair of Modern Stainless Steel and Brass Bookshelf Stands Italy, 1970's
By Romeo Rega
Located in North York, ON
Pair of Modern stainless steel and brass bookshelf stands Italy 1970's. In the style of Romeo Rega. All original in good condition, wear consistent wit...
Category
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Bookcases
Materials
Brass, Stainless Steel
Danese Milano Livorno 60 White Bookcase in Metal by Marco Ferreri
Located in Hicksville, NY
White Livorno 60 is a small bookcase with three shelves made in powder-coated metal. The design of the piece is minimal and is characterized by the simplicity of the form and materia...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
White Primitive Bookshelf by Studio Nucleo, Made in Italy
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
The Primitive bookshelf was one of the strongest and most iconic products designed by Studio Nucleo. Initially made as a limited-edition product, t...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
Contemporary Shelve Unit by Johan Viladrich, Collectible Design, 2020, Rotterdam
Located in Antwerp, BE
Collectible design; Contemporary; Johan Viladrich; Functional Art; Polyethylene; Sabine Marcelis; Everyday Gallery; French design; Art; Bookcase; Office furniture; Store furniture...
Category
2010s French Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
Musa Ivory Bookcase
Located in Milan, IT
Intersecting elements arranged in impeccable harmony define the airy and dynamic silhouette of this bookcase, a superb design whose prized materials make it a plush accent in professional contexts or living rooms. The rectangular-cut, cylindrical metallic structure is upholstered in ivory leather and equipped with four crystal clear shelves...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Leather
Kartell Bookworm in White
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Bookworm, the flexible bookcase, is the result of the encounter between the creativity of an artist such as Ron Arad, combined with Kartell's technology, giving life to a revolutiona...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Plastic
Aria Bookcase / Space Divider
By Chendù
Located in Milan, IT
Iron and i-Mesh® bookcase and space divider, Aria separates without closing, moves and organizes the rooms leaving them in communication with each other....
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Iron
NMSK, Alu Dry Joint Bookcase
Located in Milan, IT
NMSK is an object part of a series of furniture items made from a standard manufacturing process in metal carpentry, which is 2d laser cutting.
From a uniform metal sheets the obje...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Aluminum
21st Century Modern Steel White Bookshelves Wave Made in Italy
Located in Sant'Elena, IT
The Wave series is the result of a gesture, a natural movement that gives birth to sinuous and minimal forms without neglecting the functionality of the object. It consists of wall s...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Steel
Invisible Contemporary Bookshelf
Located in London, GB
Invisible began with a concept of ‘what if a furniture is invisible?’. To make the furniture be considered as if it
doesn’t exist though it actually exists, a space has been made wi...
Category
2010s Korean Modern Bookcases
Materials
Stainless Steel
Ego Hexagonal Modular Shelf
By Chendù
Located in Milan, IT
Pink Moon is a multifunctional, linear, refined and attractive furnishing accessory. It contains in a single two versions of itself for two complementary uses. In lacquered iron and ...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Iron
Lucite / Bamboo / Glass Etagere in the Style of Karl Springer
Located in Cincinnati, OH
A very well crafted Etagere with clear Lucite posts straddled by hardened bamboo pieces woven to each corner making for nice detailed construction . Five glass shelves that include t...
Category
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Bookcases
Materials
Bamboo, Glass, Lucite
Liber Glass Bookcase, Designed by Luca Papini, Made in Italy
By Papini
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Scroll down and click "view all from Seller" to see more than 400 other unique products.
Bookcase, showcase or bed side table, available in different sizes. Wooden drawers mat white or RAL lacquered. Available in transparent, extra clear and smoked glass.
Designed by Luca Papini...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Glass
Musa Brown Bookcase
Located in Milan, IT
An elegant piece that can serve as a room divider and bookcase, this superb design allows to store books and display collectibles on four crystal shelves (clear, bronzed, or smoked) ...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Leather
Baleri Italia Mac Gee Bookshelf in White Steel by Philippe Starck
Located in Milan, IT
Mac Gee is the essence of a bookshelf. Philippe Starck cleaned and cleaned the structure to only keep the square root, the skeleton of a bookshelf. Therefore avoiding styles, the tim...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Steel
Danese Milano Archivio Vivo Large Book Stand in White Aluminum by James Irvine
Located in Hicksville, NY
Archivio vivo is a bookstand that is available in two versions. The first version is freestanding and can be placed on a table or desk whereas the second can be fixed to the wall. Th...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Aluminum
Danese Milano Bincan Leggio Book Stand A3 in White by Naoto Fukasawa
Located in Hicksville, NY
Bincan leggio is part of the Bincan collection, which was designed for the work place and can be adapted to any environment whether internal or external, public or private. The lecte...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
21st Century Modern Steel White Bookshelves Wave Made in Italy
Located in Sant'Elena, IT
The Wave series is the result of a gesture, a natural movement that gives birth to sinuous and minimal forms without neglecting the functionality of the object. It consists of wall s...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Steel
White Brera Bookcase, Designed by Lievore Altherr Molina
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Scroll down and click "view all from Seller" to see more than 400 other unique products. (1.8)
This bookcase main peculiarity are some vertical elements which break the linear con...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Lacquer
DeCastelli Cahier Cabinet in Copper by Zanellato/Bortotto
Located in Brooklyn, NY
The fire enamelling on copper is a technique that has a strong link with metal and with the territory, in particular with the figure of Paolo De Poli and his works, which firstly int...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Copper
DeCastelli Nami Modular Bookcase in Striped DeLabré Brass by Andrea Parisio
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Modular bookcase characterized by a sinuous course that also makes it a separate self-standing, if positioned in the center of the room to configure the spaces. In the “C“ compositio...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Brass
Muller Van Severen, Bookshelf model "Wire C #1", Belgium, 2017
Located in Barcelona, ES
Muller Van Severen
Bookshelf model “Wire C #1”
Manufactured by Muller Van Severen
Produced for Side Gallery
Stainless steel
Measurements
120 cm x 35 cm x 180 H cm
47.24 in...
Category
2010s Belgian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Stainless Steel
DeCastelli Cahier Cabinet in Stainless Steel by Zanellato/Bortotto
Located in Brooklyn, NY
The fire enamelling on copper is a technique that has a strong link with metal and with the territory, in particular with the figure of Paolo De Poli and his works, which firstly int...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Stainless Steel
DeCastelli Large Babele Tower Bookcase in Brass by Martinelli Venezia
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Aspirations of higher knowledge find three-dimensional representation in the striking verticality of this tower bookcase, stripped of all non-essential ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Brass
Danese Milano Sarmiento Large Bookcase in White Metal by Francisco Gomez Paz
Located in Hicksville, NY
Sarmiento brings together both technological and conceptual innovation into one wall-mounted bookcase with tilted shelves. Although the structure is minimal it provides a myriad of p...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
DeCastelli Small Babele Tower Bookcase in Copper by Martinelli Venezia
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Aspirations of higher knowledge find three-dimensional representation in the striking verticality of this tower bookcase, stripped of all non-essential ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Copper
Danese Milano Sarmiento Small Bookcase in White Metal by Francisco Gomez Paz
Located in Hicksville, NY
Sarmiento brings together both technological and conceptual innovation into one wall-mounted bookcase with tilted shelves. Although the structure is minimal it provides a myriad of p...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
DeCastelli Yoroi Cabinet in Stainless Steel by Alesandro Masturzo
By DeCastelli
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Like the hard metal sheets that identify the armour of a samurai, the scales on the skin of this piece define its appearance. A dynamic shape, taking on the evocative strength of Art Deco furnishings...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Stainless Steel
Danese Milano Gran Livorno White Wall Bookcase in Metal by Marco Ferreri
Located in Hicksville, NY
White Gran Livorno is a small, freestanding bookcase. It is the evolution of the Livorno bookcase, and maintains the same structural principals and minimal form. The piece is made of...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
Nendo Medium Drop Bookcase Matte Mud Lacquered Metal Structure for Cappellini
By Nendo, Cappellini
Located in New York, NY
An ingenious challenge against the force of gravity, the drop, by Nendo, is a two-sided column bookshelf offered in 3 different heights. The drop bookshelves are made of matte lacque...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Metal
Cosette Contemporary Book Shelf in Metal and Marble
Located in London, GB
The geometric pattern becomes substance in space through the metal wire; an off-scale plot that is revealed in the relationship between Cosette and the observer according to his posi...
Category
2010s Italian Modern Bookcases
Materials
Marble, Metal
Knots and Tubes Shelve in Marble
Located in London, GB
'Knots and Tubes' celebrates construction and functions like a scaffolding system for the living room or the office. It makes all its connections visible to create a visual depth. Each piece can be extended in all direction to fit any need. It is easily mountable and survives every move to be reassembled in the next place.
Sideboard P...
Category
2010s Portuguese Modern Bookcases
Materials
Marble, Steel
Into The Woods Bookcase, White and Brass, InsidherLand by Joana Santos Barbosa
Located in Maia, Porto
A long walk through a Swedish forest beneath intertwined branches of huge trees, was the inspiration of the dazzling Into the Woods bookcase.
T...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Bookcases
Materials
Brass
Modern bookcases for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a broad range of unique Modern bookcases for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage bookcases created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include case pieces and storage cabinets, more furniture and collectibles, wall decorations and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with metal, wood and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Modern bookcases made in a specific country, there are Europe, Italy, and Denmark pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original bookcases, popular names associated with this style include DeCastelli, Kartell, Souda, and Danese Milano. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for bookcases differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $120 and tops out at $96,530 while the average work can sell for $3,910.
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