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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 European Modern Furniture
Travertine
Late 20th Century French Modern Furniture
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Stone, Onyx, Marble
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Oak, Walnut
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Wool
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Oak
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Fabric, Oak
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Bouclé
1950s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Wood, Lacquer
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Travertine
2010s Greek Modern Furniture
Wood, Lacquer
20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Marble
1990s German Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Wood
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Porcelain
2010s Ukrainian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wool, Bouclé, Acrylic, Ash, Cotton, Linen, Faux Fur, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Walnut
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Hardwood
1970s British Vintage Modern Furniture
Paper
2010s Greek Modern Furniture
Wood, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Resin
2010s Greek Modern Furniture
Art Glass, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Furniture
Travertine, Stone
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Stone, Marble, Travertine, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
2010s European Modern Furniture
Velvet, Rattan, Wood
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Velvet, Wood, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Gold Plate, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Irish Modern Furniture
Fur, Silk
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Earthenware, Stoneware
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Crystal, Brass
1990s Slovenian Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Mirror, Oak
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Leather, Walnut
1960s German Vintage Modern Furniture
Porcelain
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Other
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum, Bronze, Brass
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Furniture
Metal





