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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1990s American Modern Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century North American Modern Furniture
Pottery
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
Mid-20th Century Swedish Modern Furniture
Plywood
1970s Belgian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal, Brass
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Metal, Steel
20th Century American Modern Furniture
Lucite
Early 20th Century Unknown Modern Furniture
Bronze
1960s German Vintage Modern Furniture
Steel
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Ceramic
20th Century American Modern Furniture
Wool
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Steel
Mid-20th Century Spanish Modern Furniture
Brass, Steel
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Lucite
1970s Belgian Vintage Modern Furniture
Wood
20th Century American Modern Furniture
Walnut, Upholstery
1960s Mexican Vintage Modern Furniture
Gold Leaf
Mid-20th Century Swiss Modern Furniture
Leather
20th Century English Modern Furniture
Paper
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass, Chrome
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Glass
1960s Austrian Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Gold Leaf
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Mirror, Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Crystal, Silver Plate, Metal
20th Century Belgian Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Metal
1990s American Modern Furniture
Leather, Wood
1960s Vintage Modern Furniture
Lucite
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Chrome
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Rock Crystal, Silver Leaf
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Pine
Late 20th Century German Modern Furniture
Porcelain
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Aluminum, Steel
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Glass, Murano Glass
20th Century Mexican Modern Furniture
Brass, Bronze
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Chrome
20th Century Irish Modern Furniture
Canvas, Giltwood
20th Century Modern Furniture
Blown Glass
1970s Brazilian Vintage Modern Furniture
Chrome
20th Century Danish Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
1970s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Iron
1960s Turkish Vintage Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Crystal, Metal, Silver Plate
1950s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
1980s Japanese Vintage Modern Furniture
Ceramic
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Aluminum, Steel
1980s Vintage Modern Furniture
Leather, Glass
1960s Turkish Vintage Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Furniture
Wrought Iron
1980s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Gold Plate, Silver Plate
1970s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Ceramic
20th Century American Modern Furniture
Stoneware
1980s Norwegian Vintage Modern Furniture
Steel
1990s Chinese Modern Furniture
Plastic
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Chrome
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Fabric, Foam, Polyester, Wood
Early 20th Century Japanese Modern Furniture
Metal
1980s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Leather