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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Balkan Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Fiberglass, Acrylic, Mirror
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Hardwood
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Furniture
Velvet
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Bouclé
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Elm, Walnut
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Hardwood
2010s British Modern Furniture
Ash
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Leather, Porcelain, Stoneware, Cotton
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Porcelain, Clay
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Metal, Aluminum
2010s American Modern Furniture
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Wood, Silk, Trimming
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Crystal, Gold Leaf
2010s Canadian Modern Furniture
Beech
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Rope, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Furniture
Quartz
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Crystal, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Nickel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Iron
2010s South African Modern Furniture
Steel, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Glass, Ebony, Olive, Rosewood
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Gold
2010s Canadian Modern Furniture
Leather, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Onyx, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Furniture
Oak
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
2010s British Modern Furniture
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Onyx
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Sycamore
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Natural Fiber
2010s American Modern Furniture
Linen