Modern Obelisks
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Mexican Modern Obelisks
Epoxy Resin, Paper
2010s African Modern Obelisks
Steel, Brass
2010s Mexican Modern Obelisks
Epoxy Resin, Paper
2010s South African Modern Obelisks
Wood
2010s South African Modern Obelisks
Wood
2010s African Modern Obelisks
Wood
Mid-20th Century Modern Obelisks
Marble
2010s African Modern Obelisks
Brass, Steel
2010s African Modern Obelisks
Brass, Steel
2010s African Modern Obelisks
Brass, Steel
1970s American Vintage Modern Obelisks
Brass
1970s Vintage Modern Obelisks
Marble, Stone
Late 20th Century Modern Obelisks
Brass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Obelisks
Travertine, Marble
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Obelisks
Marble
Late 20th Century Modern Obelisks
Brass
Late 20th Century Modern Obelisks
Brass
Late 20th Century Modern Obelisks
Marble
20th Century Modern Obelisks
Rock Crystal
Late 20th Century American Modern Obelisks
Stoneware, Ceramic
2010s African Modern Obelisks
Wood
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Obelisks
Marble
Early 20th Century English Modern Obelisks
Burl
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Obelisks
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Obelisks
Marble, Alabaster
Late 20th Century Philippine Modern Obelisks
Stone
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Obelisks
Plaster, Paper, Wood
Late 20th Century Philippine Modern Obelisks
Shagreen
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Obelisks
Marble
Late 20th Century American Modern Obelisks
Lucite
1970s American Vintage Modern Obelisks
Lucite
1990s South American Modern Obelisks
Crystal
2010s Italian Modern Obelisks
Metal
2010s Italian Modern Obelisks
Metal
Early 2000s Italian Modern Obelisks
Murano Glass
Mid-20th Century American Modern Obelisks
Gold Leaf
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Obelisks
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Obelisks
Gold