Modern Decorative Art
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Decorative Art
Resin
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Balkan Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic, Acrylic, Fiberglass
20th Century French Modern Decorative Art
Fabric
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Decorative Art
Wood, Paper
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Paint
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Fabric, Wood
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Paint
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Canvas
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Decorative Art
Hardwood, Paint
2010s Belgian Modern Decorative Art
Wood
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
1970s Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Hardwood, Paint
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Art
Resin
1990s American Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Gold Leaf
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
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2010s French Modern Decorative Art
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1990s American Modern Decorative Art
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1970s Vintage Modern Decorative Art
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21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Porcelain
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Paint
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
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1970s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Metal
1990s Modern Decorative Art
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2010s French Modern Decorative Art
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20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Paper
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Scagliola
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Art
Resin
19th Century French Antique Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Wood, Paint, Giltwood
2010s American Modern Decorative Art
Maple
1980s Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
1970s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
1970s Finnish Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Art Glass
1980s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Wood, Paper
Late 20th Century Latvian Modern Decorative Art
Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Tunisian Modern Decorative Art
Rush, Natural Fiber, Seagrass
20th Century French Modern Decorative Art
Wood
1940s Unknown Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Wood, Giltwood, Paint
1990s Italian Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Modern Decorative Art
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Metal, Copper
2010s Mexican Modern Decorative Art
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Decorative Art
Plywood
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
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2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
2010s Modern Decorative Art
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1990s Italian Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Canvas
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Stoneware
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
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2010s Modern Decorative Art
Resin
20th Century Unknown Modern Decorative Art
Wood, Paint, Giltwood, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Iron