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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 French Modern Furniture
Leather
2010s American Modern Furniture
Upholstery, Velvet, Hardwood, Maple
2010s French Modern Furniture
Fabric, Satin, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Alabaster, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Linen, Wool, Leather, Bouclé, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Travertine, Wrought Iron
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Alabaster, Brass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Leather
2010s French Modern Furniture
Bronze
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Glass, Ash
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture
Brass
Early 20th Century French Modern Furniture
Stone
20th Century Mexican Modern Furniture
Brass, Bronze
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Metal
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Furniture
Fabric
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Velvet, Foam, Wood
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s American Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Cowhide, Oak, Walnut
Mid-20th Century French Modern Furniture
Granite
2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture
Teak, Glass, Cane
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Blown Glass
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s German Modern Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Furniture
Textile
2010s American Modern Furniture
Ultrasuede
2010s American Modern Furniture
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Plastic, Fabric
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
1960s Swiss Vintage Modern Furniture
Concrete
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Alabaster, Brass
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Leather, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Modern Furniture
Iron
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Metal
20th Century German Modern Furniture
Chrome
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Wool
20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Wood
Early 2000s French Modern Furniture
Leather
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Velvet, Foam, Wood, Down
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Furniture
Silk
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Quartz, Travertine, Marble, Brass, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Furniture
Walnut, Oak








