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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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

Schuamcher Le Moderne Cut Velvet 16" Pillow in Magenta

Modern Furniture

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schuamcher Le Moderne Cut Velvet 16" Pillow in Magenta

21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture

Schumacher Magic Mountain Dragon Blue Cotton Linen Pillow

2010s American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Buena Vista 22" Pillow in Wheat

21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture

Schumacher Isla Hand Embroidery Sky Two-Sided Cotton Linen Silk Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture

Schumacher Paul Poiret Drapery Wallpaper in Blue

21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture

Schumacher Colada Stripe Blue Indoor/Outdoor Two-Sided Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Featherbloom 24" Pillow in Two Blues

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Iconic Leopard 9' x 12' Rug In Brown

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Samsun 8' x 10' Morrocan Wool Rug In Carbon

21st Century and Contemporary South Korean Modern Furniture

Schumacher Shaded Silk Wallpaper in Peacock

2010s American Modern Furniture

Shumacher Marguerite Embroidery 20" Pillow in Sky

2010s American Modern Furniture

Shumacher Marguerite Embroidery 20" Pillow in Blossom

21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Furniture

Schumacher X Timothy Corrigan Florentine Velvet Emerald Two-Sided Pillow

2010s American Modern Furniture

Shumacher Ashoka 16" Pillow in Ivory & Blue

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Giraffe Velvet 20x12" Pillow in Safari

2010s American Modern Furniture

Amagansett Rug in Indigo, 9x12'

2010s American Modern Furniture

Shumacher Margarete 22" Pillow in Ivory on Charcoal

21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Furniture

Schumacher Jokhang Tiger Velvet 20" x 14" Lumbar Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Feather Bloom Sisal Wallpaper In Venetian Pink

21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture

Schumacher Haruki Sisal Wallpaper In Oatmeal

2010s American Modern Furniture

Roxbury I/O Pillow in Navy, 20"

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Venetian Silk Velvet in Mink 18" Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture

Schumacher Moire Throw in Cream

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Hickox Indoor Outdoor 16" Pillow in Yellow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schuamcher Hampton Stripe I/O 20" Pillow in Pool

2010s American Modern Furniture

Shumacher Marguerite Embroidery 20" Pillow in Blue & Ochre

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Vanderbilt Velvet 18" Pillow in Tortoise

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schuamcher Zebra Palm I/O 16" Pillow in Navy

21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Furniture

Schumacher Sophia Velvet Cocoa Lumbar Two-Sided Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture

Schumacher Shengyou Toile Blue Linen Cotton Two-Sided Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Sun Rise Hand Block 20" Pillow in Rose & Copper

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Ocean in Blue 16" x 24" Lumbar Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Iconic Leopard Wallpaper in Ink

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Faire Garden in Yellow & Ivory 22" Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Elodie Embroidery 24 x 12" Pillow in Rose

2010s American Modern Furniture

Pompeii Hand-Knotted Rug in Blues, 2x8'

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Fitzgerald 9' x 12' Rug In Brown

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture

Schumacher Editions Puffin 84" Dining Table in Soft Black

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schuamcher Piña Cove I/O 18" Pillow in Aquamarine

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture