Modern Cabinets
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1940s Swedish Vintage Modern Cabinets
Ebony, Rosewood
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cabinets
Stone
2010s German Modern Cabinets
Brass
2010s Canadian Modern Cabinets
Walnut
Early 2000s Swiss Modern Cabinets
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cabinets
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cabinets
Resin
1990s Danish Modern Cabinets
Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cabinets
Stainless Steel
2010s Canadian Modern Cabinets
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cabinets
Brass
2010s Chinese Modern Cabinets
Brass, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Cabinets
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Cabinets
Iron
2010s Egyptian Modern Cabinets
Brass
2010s American Modern Cabinets
Brass
2010s American Modern Cabinets
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cabinets
Acrylic, Hardwood, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Cabinets
Steel
2010s American Modern Cabinets
Metal
2010s Italian Modern Cabinets
Opal, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Cabinets
Rock Crystal, Brass, Steel
2010s Italian Modern Cabinets
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Cabinets
Walnut, Ebony
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Cabinets
Steel
1950s American Vintage Modern Cabinets
Steel, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cabinets
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cabinets
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Cabinets
Brass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Cabinets
Steel
1970s American Vintage Modern Cabinets
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Cabinets
Yew
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Cabinets
Brass
2010s Canadian Modern Cabinets
Oak
2010s American Modern Cabinets
Ash
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Cabinets
Onyx, Marble, Brass, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Mauritian Modern Cabinets
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cabinets
Glass, Walnut, Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cabinets
Stone
2010s European Modern Cabinets
Oak, Lacquer
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Cabinets
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Cabinets
Wood, Lacquer
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Cabinets
Glass, Lacquer
2010s American Modern Cabinets
Walnut, Plywood
2010s Egyptian Modern Cabinets
Brass
1990s Italian Modern Cabinets
Walnut
2010s Spanish Modern Cabinets
Walnut
2010s American Modern Cabinets
Steel, Cut Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cabinets
Copper
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cabinets
Wood
2010s American Modern Cabinets
Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Cabinets
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Slovak Modern Cabinets
Iron
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Cabinets
Teak
2010s Italian Modern Cabinets
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Cabinets
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Cabinets
Bronze, Stainless Steel
2010s European Modern Cabinets
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Cabinets
Wood, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Cabinets
Glass, Maple