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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Linen, Wool, Leather, Bouclé, Oak
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Wrought Iron
2010s Norwegian Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
2010s French Modern Furniture
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Alpaca, Mohair, Bouclé, Linen, Velvet, Wood, Oak, Walnut
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Leather
20th Century Unknown Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Furniture
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Alabaster, Steel
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Art Glass
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Leather, Fabric
1990s American Modern Furniture
Lucite
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Palmwood
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Carrara Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Elm, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s French Modern Furniture
Fabric, Satin, Oak
2010s American Modern Furniture
Wrought Iron
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Guatemalan Modern Furniture
Wood
2010s Canadian Modern Furniture
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Aluminum, Steel
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Paper
2010s Argentine Modern Furniture
Leather, Wood
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
2010s American Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Furniture
Art Glass, Cut Glass, Mirror
Early 2000s Vietnamese Modern Furniture
Acrylic
2010s French Modern Furniture
Steel
Early 2000s Philippine Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Furniture
Bronze
Late 20th Century English Modern Furniture
Upholstery
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Oak, Burl
2010s Turkish Modern Furniture
Wood, Oak
20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Alabaster, Brass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ultrasuede
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Oak, Leather
2010s Indian Modern Furniture
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Furniture
Metal
1960s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Walnut
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Upholstery
2010s American Modern Furniture
Wood, Ash
2010s Nepalese Modern Furniture
Yarn
1970s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Ukrainian Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Alabaster, Steel
2010s Afghan Modern Furniture
Wool
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Cowhide, Oak, Walnut
Early 2000s French Modern Furniture
Leather
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
2010s Canadian Modern Furniture
Cherry, Walnut





