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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 Tunisian Modern Furniture
Natural Fiber, Seagrass, Rush
Early 2000s American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Tunisian Modern Furniture
Natural Fiber, Seagrass, Rush
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Silver Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Tunisian Modern Furniture
Natural Fiber, Seagrass, Rush
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Oak, Lacquer
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Travertine
2010s American Modern Furniture
Leather, Walnut
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Mirror, Hardwood, Oak
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal, Chrome
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass, Gold Leaf
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Stone, Brass, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Cotton, Wool
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Mirror, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Mohair, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Sheepskin
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Walnut, Birdseye Maple
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Cotton, Jacquard, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Walnut, Birdseye Maple
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass, Steel
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Travertine, Stone
Early 2000s American Modern Furniture
Leather, Maple
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Brass
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Marble, Stone
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Ash, Maple, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Ash, Maple, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Natural Fiber
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Maple
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Foam, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Linen
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Wood
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Chrome
2010s American Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Synthetic
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Furniture
Metal
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal, Brass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Wood, Lacquer
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Tunisian Modern Furniture
Rush, Natural Fiber, Seagrass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Leather, Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
1980s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Marble, Metal