Modern Wall Decorations
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
1980s American Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
1960s Dutch Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Paint
2010s Finnish Modern Wall Decorations
Ceramic
1980s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Acrylic, Paper
1960s French Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paint
1990s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s Spanish Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Paint
1990s French Modern Wall Decorations
Glass, Paper
Early 2000s American Modern Wall Decorations
Glass, Wood, Paper
Mid-20th Century American Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Acrylic
1970s North American Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s Argentine Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
Late 20th Century American Modern Wall Decorations
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Wool, Cotton
Late 20th Century North American Modern Wall Decorations
Metal
2010s British Modern Wall Decorations
Leather
2010s British Modern Wall Decorations
Leather
2010s British Modern Wall Decorations
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Wall Decorations
Onyx, Stainless Steel, Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Wall Decorations
Art Glass, Fiberglass, Paint
2010s British Modern Wall Decorations
Leather
2010s British Modern Wall Decorations
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Wall Decorations
Art Glass, Fiberglass, Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Wall Decorations
Onyx, Statuary Marble, Stainless Steel, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Wall Decorations
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Wall Decorations
Paint, Art Glass, Fiberglass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Wall Decorations
Resin, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Wall Decorations
Carrara Marble, Granite, Onyx, Gold Leaf, Stainless Steel, Brass
1970s German Vintage Modern Wall Decorations
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Steel
Late 20th Century Mexican Modern Wall Decorations
Glass, Wood, Paper
2010s Swedish Modern Wall Decorations
Concrete
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Acrylic
2010s Dutch Modern Wall Decorations
Ceramic
1990s French Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Granite, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s Argentine Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s Romanian Modern Wall Decorations
Other
2010s Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Crystal, Brass
2010s Polish Modern Wall Decorations
Stainless Steel
1990s Dutch Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
Early 2000s Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Paper, Wood
Early 2000s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
2010s Mexican Modern Wall Decorations
Other
2010s Indian Modern Wall Decorations
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas, Acrylic
20th Century French Modern Wall Decorations
Canvas
Late 20th Century American Modern Wall Decorations
Wool, Thread
Late 20th Century American Modern Wall Decorations
Wool, Thread
Early 2000s Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Metal
Late 20th Century Modern Wall Decorations
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Brass
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paint, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Decorations
Brass
2010s American Modern Wall Decorations
Paint, Paper