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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
2010s Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
Late 20th Century French Modern Furniture
Paint
1930s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Walnut
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass, Steel
2010s Greek Modern Furniture
Wood, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
1950s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Indian Modern Furniture
Wool
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Earthenware, Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
1980s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s American Modern Furniture
Lacquer
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
2010s German Modern Furniture
Concrete
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Bouclé
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Wood, Lacquer
1970s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Furniture
Stone, Travertine
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Cotton, Linen
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
2010s British Modern Furniture
Brass, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Metal, Wire
2010s Danish Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s Taiwanese Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
1960s Turkish Vintage Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Furniture
Stone, Marble, Travertine
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Leather, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Afghan Modern Furniture
Wool
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Marble
2010s Indian Modern Furniture
Cotton
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Brass, Bronze, Nickel
2010s Modern Furniture
Crystal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Alabaster
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Glass, Wood
2010s South American Modern Furniture
Stone, Onyx, Metal
2010s Unknown Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery, Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Furniture
Travertine
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Furniture
Stone, Travertine
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Mirror, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Mirror, Oak
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Cotton, Linen





