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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
1940s American Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze
Early 20th Century Israeli Modern Decorative Objects
Abalone, Mother-of-Pearl, Olive
Early 2000s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Silver
2010s Colombian Modern Decorative Objects
Other
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Decorative Objects
Marble, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Ebony
1990s French Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Decorative Objects
Composition, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
Late 20th Century English Modern Decorative Objects
Chrome
20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Murano Glass
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Blown Glass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Decorative Objects
Resin
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Metal
20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Agate, Stone
20th Century European Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Plastic
1980s American Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze, Enamel
20th Century Swiss Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze
20th Century Asian Modern Decorative Objects
Malachite, Rock Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Decorative Objects
Cement
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
1980s Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Pottery
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Gold Leaf
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
1930s Japanese Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Pottery
20th Century French Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Other
1980s Swedish Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
Late 20th Century German Modern Decorative Objects
Crystal
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Blown Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Decorative Objects
Fur, Leather, Wool, Glass, Teak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
2010s Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Metal
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Art Glass
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Decorative Objects
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Other
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Decorative Objects
Cement
20th Century Austrian Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Decorative Objects
Brass
1970s French Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Metal, Brass, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Glass
Late 20th Century Colombian Modern Decorative Objects
Bronze
1970s American Vintage Modern Decorative Objects
Goatskin, Felt, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Fiberglass
Late 20th Century American Modern Decorative Objects
Wood, Glass
2010s American Modern Decorative Objects
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Objects
Birdseye Maple
20th Century Chinese Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Decorative Objects
Marble
Late 20th Century Modern Decorative Objects
Marble, Bronze
Modern decorative objects for sale on 1stDibs.
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