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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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

Schumacher Florentine Velvet 24" x 12" Pillow

Modern Furniture

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Florentine Velvet 24" x 12" Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher x Marie-Chantal Buffalo Embroidered 16 x 12" Pillow in Natural

21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture

Schumacher Toile De Fleurs Wallpaper in Grisaille

2010s American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Abstract Ikat Rug in Ivory, 9x12'

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Santorini Indoor/Outdoor Geometric Marine Blue Two-Sided 18" Pillow

2010s American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Loulou 18" Pillow in Opal

2010s American Modern Furniture

Trickledown Pillow in Natural, 18x12"

2010s American Modern Furniture

Seema Indoor/Outdoor Rug in Rust, 8x10'

21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture

Schumacher x Porter Teleo Filigree Wallpaper in Linen

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Lisboa Velvet 20" Pillow in Midnight Blue

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Katsugi 22" Pillow in Gold & Mushroom

21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture

Schumacher Shantung Silhouette Sisal Wallpaper In Peacock

21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture

Schumacher Haruki Sisal Wallpaper In Flax

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Santa Monica Ikat in Indigo 22" Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture

Schumacher Acanthus Stripe Sisal Wallpaper In Filigree

2010s American Modern Furniture

Gilded Star Block Print Pillow in Green, 20"

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Feather Bloom Sisal Wallpaper In Two Blues

21st Century and Contemporary South Korean Modern Furniture

Schumacher Hemp Shimmer Wallpaper In Ivory Shimmer

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Pyne Hollyhock Floral Chintz Charcoal Wallpaper

21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Furniture

Schumacher Chevron Throw

21st Century and Contemporary South Korean Modern Furniture

Schumacher Hemp Shimmer Wallpaper In Cocoa Shimmer

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Nicholson in Brown 24" x 12" Lumbar Pillow

2010s American Modern Furniture

Shumacher Blair Silk Épinglé 16" Pillow in Worcester Blue

21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Modern Furniture

Lubic Abaca Basket, Light Natural 16"

21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture

Schumacher by Caroline Hurley Sepiessa Wallpaper Mural in Sky

21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture

Schumacher Twiggy Paperweave Wallpaper In Sky

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Octavia Sisal Wallpaper in Navy

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Paul Poiret Drapery Wallpaper in Bone

2010s American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Strawberry Jam 18x12" Pillow in Green

21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture

Schumacher Shantung Silhouette Sisal Wallpaper In Yellow

21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Furniture

Schumacher Trifid Blue Area Rug in Hand Knotted Wool by Patterson Flynn

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Pearl River 22" Pillow in Blues

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Lotus Garden in Mocha 22" Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Vasily Linen 16" x 12" Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Tutsi in Natural/Ivory 20 x 12" Pillow

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture

Schumacher Editions Mokki 75" Dining Table in Natural Matte

2010s American Modern Furniture

Shumacher Margarete 18" Pillow in Ivory on Charcoal

2010s American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Elsa 20x14" Pillow in Moonstone

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture

Schumacher Brigitte Stripe 14" Pillow

2010s American Modern Furniture