Modern Furniture
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Chinese Modern Furniture
Marble
Mid-20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Angora
21st Century and Contemporary Asian Modern Furniture
Metal
1970s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Canvas
2010s Moroccan Modern Furniture
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Leather, Mirror
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Bronze, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Fabric, Velvet, Faux Leather, Wood
1980s Vintage Modern Furniture
Pottery
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Resin
Late 20th Century English Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Marble, Carrara Marble
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Marble, Carrara Marble
20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Wool, Nylon
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Furniture
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Acrylic
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Lithuanian Modern Furniture
Leather, Birch, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Steel
20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Cotton, Linen
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Furniture
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Linen
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Furniture
Velvet, Polyester, Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Modern Furniture
Leather
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Metal