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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Nepalese Modern Furniture
Yarn
2010s American Modern Furniture
Concrete, Cement
2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Upholstery
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Maple, Oak, Walnut
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Fabric
2010s Indian Modern Furniture
Silk
2010s Danish Modern Furniture
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Furniture
Yarn
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Chrome
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
2010s Taiwanese Modern Furniture
Metal, Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Teak
2010s American Modern Furniture
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Leather, Hardwood, Oak
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Birch, Oak, Plywood
1990s American Modern Furniture
Bouclé
2010s American Modern Furniture
Maple, Oak, Walnut
2010s American Modern Furniture
Marble, Brass, Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Marble, Metal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Maple
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Furniture
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet
2010s American Modern Furniture
Porcelain, Ceramic
1990s American Modern Furniture
Bouclé, Lucite
2010s American Modern Furniture
Leather, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Rock Crystal
1970s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Lucite, Plexiglass
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Birdseye Maple, Rosewood
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Fabric, Maple, Walnut
2010s Indian Modern Furniture
Wool
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Central American Modern Furniture
Crystal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass, Steel
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Furniture
Stone
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Velvet, Linen
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Silk, Velvet, Wood, Trimming
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Modern Furniture
Linen, Fiberglass, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Quartz, Rock Crystal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Asian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Rope, Teak