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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s Argentine Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Wood
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Stoneware
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Steel
20th Century French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
Early 2000s Spanish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver
Late 20th Century Finnish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal, Bronze
2010s Indian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Hardwood
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver Plate
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
20th Century German Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal, Silver Plate
2010s Argentine Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
Mid-20th Century French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Plastic, Plexiglass
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic, Earthenware
Mid-20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
2010s Indian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
2010s Indian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Stone, Slate
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1990s French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Serpentine, Lapis Lazuli, Gold Plate, Brass
Early 20th Century American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Sterling Silver
Late 20th Century French Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Wood
1880s Italian Antique Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Metal
1980s French Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Crystal
2010s North Korean Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Shell
2010s North Korean Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Shell
2010s Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
1940s Japanese Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Iron
1980s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1990s Italian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Terracotta
1980s American Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1970s British Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Silver
2010s Egyptian Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Acrylic
1980s German Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Porcelain
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Ceramic
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
Early 2000s North American Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Art Glass
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Murano Glass
Early 2000s South African Modern Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass
Clay