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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Czech Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Fabric, Linen
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Furniture
Glass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Paint
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal, Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Wood, Lacquer
2010s Czech Modern Furniture
Glass
2010s Modern Furniture
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Furniture
Blown Glass, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Upholstery
2010s American Modern Furniture
Metal, Bronze
2010s American Modern Furniture
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture
Porcelain
2010s American Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Metal, Bronze
Early 2000s Italian Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Furniture
Paper
2010s American Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel, Brass, Metal
1930s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Birch
Early 2000s American Modern Furniture
Acrylic, Wood, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Composition
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Furniture
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Ceramic
1940s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Czech Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Furniture
Glass
1990s American Modern Furniture
Canvas, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Furniture
Glass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Silver Leaf
1940s Austrian Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Aluminum, Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Stone, Limestone, Granite, Steel, Metal
2010s North American Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s French Modern Furniture
Bronze
19th Century Chinese Antique Modern Furniture
Elm, Lacquer
2010s American Modern Furniture
Stone, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Wood, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Cotton, Wood
2010s English Modern Furniture
Wool, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Bouclé, Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel, Pewter
2010s American Modern Furniture
Pewter, Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Reclaimed Wood, Paint
2010s Belgian Modern Furniture
Oak
2010s American Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Plexiglass, Wood, Paint, Paper
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Furniture
Limestone, Granite, Stainless Steel, Metal, Bronze
2010s French Modern Furniture
Bronze