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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s American Modern Furniture
Wood, Hardwood, Maple, Walnut
2010s American Modern Furniture
Leather, Upholstery, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel, Iron
2010s American Modern Furniture
Leather, Zebra Hide, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Aluminum
20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary North American Modern Furniture
Ash, Paper
2010s American Modern Furniture
Travertine, Brass, Stainless Steel
1960s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood, Upholstery
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Chrome
20th Century American Modern Furniture
Carrara Marble
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Plastic
2010s American Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Furniture
Metal
1960s Swiss Vintage Modern Furniture
Concrete
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Concrete
20th Century Modern Furniture
Art Glass, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Furniture
Glass, Mirror
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Brass
20th Century Modern Furniture
Metal, Gold Leaf
2010s American Modern Furniture
Wool, Felt
20th Century Modern Furniture
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Brass
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Cotton
2010s British Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Linen
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ash, Cherry, Maple, Oak, Hardwood, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Rattan
2010s American Modern Furniture
Maple
20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Alabaster, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Furniture
Velvet, Poplar
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s European Modern Furniture
Leather, Fabric, Wood
20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
2010s American Modern Furniture
Wood, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Resin, Fiberglass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Grasscloth
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Resin, Fiberglass, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Furniture
Wood