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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Ebony, Wood
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Chrome
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Chrome
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Ebony, Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Tunisian Modern Furniture
Natural Fiber, Seagrass, Rush
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Natural Fiber
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Birdseye Maple, Oak
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass, Chrome
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ash
2010s British Modern Furniture
Aluminum
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Goatskin, Wood, Lacquer
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Oak, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Lacquer, Natural Fiber, Mirror
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Granite, Chrome
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Gold Leaf
2010s Canadian Modern Furniture
Wood, Maple
1980s Philippine Vintage Modern Furniture
Shell, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Ash, Maple, Walnut
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Art Glass
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Ash, Maple, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Walnut, Birdseye Maple
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Walnut, Birdseye Maple
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Stone, Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass, Bronze, Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Birdseye Maple
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1920s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Steel, Chrome
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Leather, Wood, Lacquer
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass, Gold Leaf
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Leather, Wood, Lacquer
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Goatskin, Wood, Lacquer
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Oak
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal, Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Wood, Paint, Python
1980s Philippine Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Coral, Brass
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass, Chrome, Metal
2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture
Textile, Cane, Hardwood, Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Bronze
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Goatskin, Wood, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
2010s North American Modern Furniture
Walnut, Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Tunisian Modern Furniture
Natural Fiber, Seagrass, Rush