Modern Benches
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s Swedish Modern Benches
Burl
2010s Belgian Modern Benches
Steel
2010s Chinese Modern Benches
Fiberglass
1980s American Vintage Modern Benches
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Benches
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Benches
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Benches
Metal
2010s American Modern Benches
Concrete
20th Century American Modern Benches
Upholstery, Walnut
2010s English Modern Benches
Composition
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Benches
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Benches
Steel
2010s American Modern Benches
Bouclé
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Benches
Linen, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Benches
Metal
1970s American Vintage Modern Benches
Goatskin, Upholstery, Wood, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Velvet, Ebony, Wood
2010s American Modern Benches
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Benches
Metal
2010s American Modern Benches
Elm, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Indonesian Modern Benches
Leather, Teak
2010s Turkish Modern Benches
Fabric, Upholstery, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Brass, Iron
2010s Canadian Modern Benches
Oak
2010s Canadian Modern Benches
Maple, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Fabric, Velvet, Lacquer, Wood
2010s American Modern Benches
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Cedar
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Benches
Bronze
2010s Portuguese Modern Benches
Metal, Brass
2010s American Modern Benches
Oak, Walnut, Maple, Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Benches
Marble, Brass
2010s American Modern Benches
Iron, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Benches
Leather, Wood, Oak
1980s American Vintage Modern Benches
Canvas, Wood, Paint
2010s American Modern Benches
Stainless Steel
1950s French Vintage Modern Benches
Steel
2010s Mexican Modern Benches
Oak
1970s French Vintage Modern Benches
Oak
2010s South Korean Modern Benches
Stone, Steel
Late 19th Century American Antique Modern Benches
Pine
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Benches
Wood, Fabric
2010s American Modern Benches
Bouclé, Maple
2010s American Modern Benches
Bouclé, Maple
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Benches
Concrete
2010s Mexican Modern Benches
Wood, Oak, Walnut
2010s Colombian Modern Benches
Sheet Metal
2010s German Modern Benches
Wood, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Benches
Steel
1990s American Modern Benches
Velvet
2010s Mexican Modern Benches
Marble
2010s American Modern Benches
Velvet, Acrylic
2010s American Modern Benches
Steel
2010s American Modern Benches
Concrete, Cement
2010s Brazilian Modern Benches
Bouclé, Wood
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Benches
Chrome