Modern Furniture
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Velvet
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
1970s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Alabaster, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
2010s Argentine Modern Furniture
Stone, Onyx
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Onyx, Marble, Brass, Stainless Steel, Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Travertine, Marble, Onyx, Gold Leaf
1960s Spanish Vintage Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Fabric, Velvet, Lacquer, Wood
2010s South African Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Onyx
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Onyx, Granite, Carrara Marble, Brass, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Marble, Carrara Marble, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Belgian Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
2010s Canadian Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Canadian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s South African Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Furniture
Oak, Walnut
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s French Modern Furniture
Stoneware
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Paper
1990s French Modern Furniture
Enamel
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Limestone
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Leather
2010s French Modern Furniture
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Terracotta
2010s South Korean Modern Furniture
Stone, Steel
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Art Glass
20th Century Modern Furniture
Steel
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Fabric, Sapele Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Plexiglass, Scagliola
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Scagliola, Harewood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Chrome
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Plywood, Teak
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
1980s German Vintage Modern Furniture
Mirror
20th Century Modern Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Cherry
2010s Lebanese Modern Furniture
Travertine, Brass