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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
2010s American Modern Decorative Art
Maple
1980s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Gesso, Paint
Mid-20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Paint
1970s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
1940s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Bronze
1970s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
1970s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Paper
Early 2000s Swedish Modern Decorative Art
Paint
1950s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
2010s British Modern Decorative Art
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Modern Decorative Art
Brass, Bronze
2010s Colombian Modern Decorative Art
Textile, Canvas, Thread
2010s Colombian Modern Decorative Art
Textile, Canvas, Thread
2010s Modern Decorative Art
Aluminum
2010s Modern Decorative Art
Aluminum
1940s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
1960s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Plaster
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Glass, Paper, Wood
20th Century French Modern Decorative Art
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Gold Leaf
Late 20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Giltwood
Late 20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Canvas
1960s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Wood, Paint
1980s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
1970s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Paint
2010s American Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Linen
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Decorative Art
Paper
1940s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic
20th Century Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
1980s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Porcelain
2010s American Modern Decorative Art
Latex, Paint
1970s French Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic, Plexiglass
Late 20th Century French Modern Decorative Art
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Art Glass
1970s Mexican Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Paint
2010s American Modern Decorative Art
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Decorative Art
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Decorative Art
Paint
2010s Danish Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Paint
20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Paint, Paper, Masonite
1970s Spanish Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Glass
2010s North American Modern Decorative Art
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Art
Paper
Late 20th Century French Modern Decorative Art
Glass
1990s Italian Modern Decorative Art
Crystal
1990s Danish Modern Decorative Art
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Art
Aluminum, Gold Leaf
1970s French Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Paper
1980s American Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Wood, Paint
1960s French Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Canvas, Paint
2010s American Modern Decorative Art
Paper
20th Century American Modern Decorative Art
Paint
20th Century French Modern Decorative Art
Paper
1980s German Vintage Modern Decorative Art
Acrylic