Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 North American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Clay
1980s British Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver, Sterling Silver
2010s Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Luster, Majolica
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal
2010s South African Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Wire
1990s French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Pewter
Late 20th Century Swedish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
Late 20th Century Swedish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
1960s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Milk Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
2010s Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
1990s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
2010s Mexican Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stone
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Stoneware
1990s Finnish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
2010s Turkish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Travertine
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
Mid-20th Century English Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
1970s Finnish Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Blown Glass
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Bronze
Early 2000s Indian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Art Glass
20th Century German Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1990s German Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
Late 20th Century French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Cotton
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Leather, Walnut
1970s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stainless Steel
Late 20th Century Mexican Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate, Brass
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
2010s Chinese Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
Early 2000s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Pottery
21st Century and Contemporary Czech Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Ukrainian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Clay
Early 2000s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1910s German Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1970s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
2010s Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
1990s American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
2010s Peruvian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Stoneware
Late 20th Century Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
2010s Brazilian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Quartz, Steel
1970s European Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
Mid-20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver