Modern Furniture
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
20th Century Indian Modern Furniture
Wool, Silk
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Slate, Gold Leaf
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal, Silver Plate
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Plexiglass, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Mirror
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Velvet, Wood, Trimming
2010s American Modern Furniture
Marble, Carrara Marble
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Quartz, Rock Crystal
1950s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool
20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
2010s American Modern Furniture
Aluminum, Steel
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Velvet, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool
20th Century American Modern Furniture
Sterling Silver
2010s North American Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Fabric, Upholstery, Feathers
2010s Taiwanese Modern Furniture
Aluminum, Steel
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Wicker
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Iron
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Rock Crystal, Gold, Bronze
Late 20th Century Mexican Modern Furniture
Chrome
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ash
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Velvet
1980s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Leather
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Glass, Wood
1980s Austrian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Aluminum, Steel
1980s Vintage Modern Furniture
Silver
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Textile, Fruitwood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Velvet, Walnut
2010s American Modern Furniture
Fabric
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Paper
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Faux Bamboo, Rattan
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture
Metal
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Marble, Brass
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
2010s American Modern Furniture
Wool, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Marble, Brass, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Crystal
1920s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Bronze
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture
Walnut
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Travertine, Metal
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Brass