Modern Secretaires
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
Late 20th Century Philippine Modern Secretaires
Enamel
1980s Vintage Modern Secretaires
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Secretaires
Chrome
2010s American Modern Secretaires
Brass, Steel
2010s Italian Modern Secretaires
Bronze
1930s Hungarian Vintage Modern Secretaires
Rosewood, Walnut
Mid-19th Century Italian Antique Modern Secretaires
Amboyna
20th Century Modern Secretaires
Wood
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Secretaires
Walnut, Maple
Early 19th Century English Antique Modern Secretaires
Brass
1960s American Vintage Modern Secretaires
Wood
20th Century American Modern Secretaires
Wood
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Secretaires
Mahogany, Maple
1880s Italian Antique Modern Secretaires
Walnut, Fir
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Secretaires
Shagreen Stingray, Palmwood
1960s Dutch Vintage Modern Secretaires
Metal
Mid-20th Century French Modern Secretaires
Bronze
20th Century German Modern Secretaires
Wood
20th Century Philippine Modern Secretaires
Iron
1980s American Vintage Modern Secretaires
Brass
1970s Colombian Vintage Modern Secretaires
Resin, Wood
1970s American Vintage Modern Secretaires
Brass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Secretaires
Wood
20th Century American Modern Secretaires
Lucite, Wood
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Secretaires
Brass
1940s Swedish Vintage Modern Secretaires
Mahogany