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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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
Maple, Velvet
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Hardwood, Walnut
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Metal, Aluminum
2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Cane, Fabric, Teak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
2010s Ukrainian Modern Furniture
Leather, Fabric, Wool, Alpaca, Bouclé, Faux Leather, Acrylic, Wood, Ash
2010s American Modern Furniture
Upholstery
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Marble
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Oak
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Walnut, Mirror
2010s American Modern Furniture
Cut Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Concrete, Cement
2010s Modern Furniture
Crystal, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Furniture
Travertine, Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Upholstery, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Ukrainian Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s Malaysian Modern Furniture
Copper
2010s American Modern Furniture
Marble, Brass, Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Oak, Wenge, Sapele Wood
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Metal, Aluminum
2010s Malaysian Modern Furniture
Copper
2010s Indian Modern Furniture
Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Polish Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s Swedish Modern Furniture
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Oak
2010s Ukrainian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wool, Bouclé, Fur, Faux Fur, Sheepskin
2010s American Modern Furniture
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Metal, Steel, Stainless Steel
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Metal, Steel, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
2010s American Modern Furniture
Wood, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Malaysian Modern Furniture
Copper
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Furniture
Yarn, Wool
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Resin
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s British Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Ukrainian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Textile, Bouclé, Sheepskin, Wool, Velvet, Faux Fur, Ash
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
2010s Canadian Modern Furniture
Leather, Wood, Walnut
2010s Ukrainian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wool, Bouclé, Faux Fur
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Mirror, Oak, Ceramic
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Walnut
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Oak
2010s Turkish Modern Furniture
Wood, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Concrete, Cement
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal