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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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

Rug & Kilim's Handknotted Modern Abstract Rug in Pink, Gold and Brown

Modern Furniture

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim's Handknotted Modern Abstract Rug in Pink, Gold and Brown

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Tiger Pictorial Rug Design in Burnt Orange and Blue

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim's Distressed Custom Rug Sample in Red and Blue Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Abaca Custom Rug Sample, Black with Beige-Brown & Yellow Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Rug in Solid Beige

2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Large Cowhide Rug in Beige-Brown and Cream Tones

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Cream with Colorful Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Dhurrie Rug in Blue Stripes

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Vintage Dhurrie Rug with Blue Stripes and Cream White Accents - Rug & Kilim

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern abstract rug in Pink, Gold and Gray Painterly Pattern

2010s Icelandic Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Sheepskin Multi-Pelt Fur Rug in Brown and White Tones

2010s Nepalese Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Custom Rug Sample in Blue and Brown with Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Green-Blue with Geometric Pattern

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Kilim with Geometric Patterns in Tones of Green

2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Cowhide Rug in Off-White

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Dhurrie Rug in Blue Stripes

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Moroccan Style Rug in Black and White Geometric Pattern

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Unshaped Abstract Rug in Gold, Gray and Blue

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Persian Style Runner Rug in Sky Blue with Multicolor Florals

2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Cowhide Rug in White and Beige-Brown

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Gradient Rug in Yellow and Black Ombre Grid and High-Low Texture

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Runner Rug with Light Blue Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Custom Flatweave Rug Sample with Yellow and Pink Geometric Pattern

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim's Scandinavian Style Kilim Rug in Gray, Red & Pink

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Blue, with Colorful Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Rug in Pink and Red Striae

2010s Moroccan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Custom Moroccan Rug Design in Green with White Lozenge Patterns

2010s Turkish Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Patchwork Kilim Runner in Polychromatic Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Classic Style Custom Tiger Rug in Orange and Beige-Brown

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Rug In Blue And Cream, With Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Hand-Knotted Contemporary Solid Green Rug by Rug & Kilim by Rug & Kilim

2010s Nepalese Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Custom Rug Sample in Red and Pink with Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Persian Style Rug in Light Green and Taupe with Floral Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Abstract rug in Polychromatic Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Unshaped Abstract Rug in Gold, Gray and Blue

2010s Turkish Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Tiger Skin Rug in Beige with Blue and Black Pictorial

2010s Turkish Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Patchwork Kilim Rug in Polychromatic Stripes

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Caucasian-Style Rug in Black with Horseback Rider Pictorials

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Seafoam Blue with Green and White Accents

2010s Indian Modern Furniture