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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Iron
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
Mid-20th Century Swedish Modern Decorative Art
Other
2010s Modern Decorative Art
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic, Paint
20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Canvas
1920s Unknown Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Giltwood, Wood, Paint
20th Century Unknown Modern Decorative Art
Wood, Paint, Giltwood, Canvas
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Stoneware
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Stoneware
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Art
Metal, Brass
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
Late 20th Century French Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Wood, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Decorative Art
Paint, Canvas
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Decorative Art
Cast Stone
Mid-20th Century Mexican Modern Decorative Art
Copper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Gold
2010s Brazilian Modern Decorative Art
Bronze
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
2010s Ukrainian Modern Decorative Art
Wood
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Decorative Art
Iron
2010s American Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic, Giltwood
20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Art
Wood, Paper
20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
Early 2000s American Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Jute, Wood
20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Paper
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
Mid-20th Century German Modern Decorative Art
Stone
1950s French Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Paint
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Paper, Wood, Paint
2010s Brazilian Modern Decorative Art
Quartz, Steel
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Art
Glass, Mirror, Wood
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Art
Brass
2010s British Modern Decorative Art
Steel
1990s Italian Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Art
Brass
2010s French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
1980s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
19th Century Antique Modern Decorative Art
Silver Leaf
1990s Danish Modern Decorative Art
Wool
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Art
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Metal
2010s Brazilian Modern Decorative Art
Bronze
2010s Brazilian Modern Decorative Art
Quartz, Steel
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Art
Brass
Late 20th Century North American Modern Decorative Art
Paper
1990s Italian Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Art
Brass, Stainless Steel, Gold Leaf
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Art
Brass
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Art
Brass
20th Century Unknown Modern Decorative Art
Wood, Paint, Canvas