Modern Wall Decorations
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
Late 20th Century Senegalese Modern Wall Decorations
Acrylic, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Resin, Wood, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Resin, Scagliola
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Paint
1950s American Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Acrylic, Paint
1980s German Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s Danish Modern Wall Decorations
Fiberglass
1990s Modern Wall Decorations
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
2010s Dutch Modern Wall Decorations
Cotton, Wood
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Wall Decorations
Ceramic, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Paint
1960s Bulgarian Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Other
2010s German Modern Wall Decorations
Acrylic, Plywood, Paint
1990s Danish Modern Wall Decorations
Other
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Ceramic
Early 2000s Austrian Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
Early 20th Century American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
1970s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Paint
2010s Malaysian Modern Wall Decorations
Ceramic
Late 20th Century American Modern Wall Decorations
Wood, Paint
2010s European Modern Wall Decorations
Maple
2010s Dutch Modern Wall Decorations
Cotton, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Fabric, Paper, Bamboo, Paint
1960s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Wall Decorations
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Wall Decorations
Marble, Copper
20th Century French Modern Wall Decorations
Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Epoxy Resin
1980s European Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Epoxy Resin
20th Century Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Paint
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas
Late 20th Century American Modern Wall Decorations
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Paint
20th Century Danish Modern Wall Decorations
Wood
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
1980s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Wool
1960s Scandinavian Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Aluminum
1970s Swedish Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Other
1970s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
1960s American Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Wood, Masonite
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
20th Century French Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s Spanish Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper, Paint
1960s American Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
1970s Unknown Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Wood, Plywood
1990s American Modern Wall Decorations
Metal
1970s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
20th Century French Modern Wall Decorations
Wood
1970s Danish Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas
1960s Finnish Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paint
2010s Dutch Modern Wall Decorations
Metal, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Clay, Organic Material
1970s British Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Glass, Giltwood
1980s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Acrylic, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Wool, Cotton
1970s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Other
Late 20th Century Mexican Modern Wall Decorations
Ash, Paint
1970s Danish Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Art Glass, Mirror, Birch