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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Scandinavian Style Deco Rug in Beige-Brown with Geometric Patterns

Modern Furniture

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Deco Rug in Beige-Brown with Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug with Pink, White and Beige-Brown Patterns

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Blue and Beige Geometric Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Oversized Contemporary Kilim in Brown and Beige Textural Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Black and Beige Textural Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Gray and Beige-Brown Textural Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Black and Beige Textural Stripes

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug with Brown and Beige Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Beige and Light Blue Geometric Pattern

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Beige and Gray Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Blue, Beige and Gray Geometric Patterns

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Black and Beige Textural Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Orange and Beige Textural Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Red and Beige Textural Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Peach and Beige Textural Stripes

2010s Afghan Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Kilim in Blue and Beige Textural Stripes

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Gold, Green and Red Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Beige-Brown and Teal Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in Beige, Gray and White Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

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

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Rug with Teal and Blue Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug with Beige-Brown Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Polonaise Style rug in Beige with Gold and Blue Floral Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in White & Beige-Brown Stripes and Geometry

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug with Pink and Purple Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug in White with Floral Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug with Beige-Brown Geometric Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Oushak Style Rug in Blue with Polychromatic Floral Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Contemporary Textural Rug in Beige-Brown Tones and Striae

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Textural Rug in Greige and Blue Stripes and Striae

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Textural Rug in Grisaille Blue and Black Stripes and Striae

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Textural Rug in Grisaille Blue and Black Stripes and Striae

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Textural Rug in Tones of Plum and Green

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Textural Rug in Red Tones and Striae

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian style Kilim in Sky Blue with Geometric Pattern

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Textural Rug in Purple with Polychrome Striae

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Scandinavian Style Rug with Beige-Brown and Gray Geometric Pattern

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Oushak Style Rug with Polychromatic Patterns

2010s Indian Modern Furniture

Rug & Kilim’s Modern Textural Rug in Grisaille Blue and Black Stripes and Striae

2010s Indian Modern Furniture