Modern Decorative Objects
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Objects
Pottery
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
1960s Finnish Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Plastic
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s German Modern Decorative Objects
Ash, Cherry, Oak, Walnut, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
20th Century European Modern Decorative Objects
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Decorative Objects
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
Early 20th Century French Modern Decorative Objects
Wood
1980s French Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Acrylic, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Porcelain
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Gold
20th Century French Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Modern Decorative Objects
Lacquer
Mid-20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver
Early 2000s Canadian Modern Decorative Objects
Metal
Early 2000s Canadian Modern Decorative Objects
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Onyx, Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Stone
20th Century North American Modern Decorative Objects
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf
Late 20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Aluminum
2010s Dutch Modern Decorative Objects
Travertine
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Plastic
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
2010s Japanese Modern Decorative Objects
Wood
20th Century Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Travertine
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Plate
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Cement
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Modern Decorative Objects
Porcelain
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Concrete
2010s Scandinavian Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
2010s Scandinavian Modern Decorative Objects
Brass, Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
2010s French Modern Decorative Objects
Stoneware
2010s British Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic, Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Onyx, Travertine, Marble, Carrara Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Wood
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic, Porcelain, Clay
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
Modern decorative objects for sale on 1stDibs.
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