Modern Furniture

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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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

Creator: Karl Springer

Rare Gunmetal and Black Lacquer Etagere or Bookcase by Karl Springer

Modern Furniture

1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Rare Gunmetal and Black Lacquer Etagere or Bookcase by Karl Springer

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Rare and Impressive Coffee Table with Woven Rattan 1980s

1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Six Panel Coromandel Screen

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Exceptional "Art Moderne Coffee Table" in Satin Bronze 1980s

Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture

Modern Parchment Tables Karl Springer

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Stunning "Round Leg Lucite Bench" 1980s (Signed)

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Rare Pair of "Lighthouse Lamps" in Blue Shagreen and Nickel 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Rare "Sculpture Reading Lamp" 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer "Bauhaus Dining Table" in Lacquered Gray Goatskin 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Rare and Exceptional Coromandel Mirror 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer "Souffle Ottoman" with Brass Base and Silk Upholstery 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Exquisite Pair of Floor Lamps in Black Lacquer and Brass 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Gunmetal and Gold Mirror, USA c 1980s

1990s American Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Stunning "Curved-End Console Table" in Emu Skin 1993 (Signed)

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer "Triangular Leg Metal End Table" with Shagreen Top 1980s (Signed)

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Kartl Springer Double Sided Gunmetal and Chrome Vanity Mirror 1980s

20th Century Italian Modern Furniture

Karl Springer for Seguso Murano Glass Torchère Floor Lamp

Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Style Modern Cantilevered Glass Cocktail Table

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Large "Saturn Mirror" with Peach Glass Ring 1980s

1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer "Art Moderne Game Table" in Gunmetal with Shagreen Top 1970s

1990s American Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Rare "Royal Palm 4 Door Cabinet" in Lacquered Goatskin ca. 1990

Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Postmodern Lucite Torchiere Lamp

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Glazed Porcelain Planter by Karl Springer

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer JMF Arm Chair in Lacquered Goat Skin

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

1980s Sculptural Karl Springer Coffee Table in Glass and Stainless Steel

1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Pair of Rare JMF Benches in Ox Blood Goatskin with Cushions 1970s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Free Form Coffee Tables in Polished Stainless Steel with Black Glass Tops 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Monumental Karl Springer Chrome & Brass 'Sculpture' Cocktail Table, Signed

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Saturn Mirror, 48", USA c1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Pair of Gunmetal & Brass Candleholders by Karl Springer

1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer parchment dining table, USA/Germany, 1970s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Rare & Exceptional Pair of Lacquered Goatskin Bedside Tables 1985

Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture

Pair of Lacquered Goatskin Wrapped "Onasis" Chairs by Karl Springer

1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Lidded Box with Artisan Lacquered Exterior 1970s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Sculpture End Table in Tessellated Coral Brass and Glass Top 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer "J.M.F. Floor Lamp" in Lizard with Matching Leather Shade 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Rare Pair of "Lighthouse Lamps" in Shagreen and Brass 1980s

1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer "Molding Box" in Multicolor Lacquers 1970s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture

Karl Springer Large "Coffee Table with Sculpture Leg" in Tessellated Coral 1980s

1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture