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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
Mid-20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Art Glass
Late 20th Century Chinese Modern Furniture
Ceramic
1990s Danish Modern Furniture
Wool
Mid-20th Century American Modern Furniture
Pottery
1940s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Fabric, Wood
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Marble, Chrome
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Steel
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Fabric
1930s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass, Enamel
20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
Late 20th Century American Modern Furniture
Canvas, Wood, Paint
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Wood, Leather
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Leather, Wood
1940s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Burl
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Glass, Lacquer
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Blown Glass
1990s Italian Modern Furniture
Aluminum
20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
Late 20th Century French Modern Furniture
Metal
1990s Dutch Modern Furniture
Plexiglass
1960s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Composition, Marble
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Paint, Paper
1990s Canadian Modern Furniture
Zebra Wood
20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Copper, Enamel
1990s Modern Furniture
Pottery
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Furniture
Walnut, Masonite
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Metal
1970s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Chrome
1930s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1990s American Modern Furniture
Steel
1970s German Vintage Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
20th Century Unknown Modern Furniture
Velvet
1980s North American Vintage Modern Furniture
Lucite
1970s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Bronze
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Stone
1960s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Hardwood, Paint, Yarn
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Teak
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Porcelain
1990s German Modern Furniture
Velvet
1980s Spanish Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Teak
20th Century Modern Furniture
Art Glass
1990s American Modern Furniture
Glass, Art Glass, Sommerso
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Glass
1980s British Vintage Modern Furniture
Marble
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal, Brass
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Metal
1920s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Fabric, Cotton, Linen, Upholstery, Wood, Cherry
1970s Italian Vintage Modern Furniture
Plastic
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass
1950s Spanish Vintage Modern Furniture
Plaster, Wood
1980s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Silk, Plexiglass, Giltwood
Mid-20th Century Modern Furniture
Acrylic, Shell, Lucite
1970s Unknown Vintage Modern Furniture
Brass
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Glass, Art Glass
1990s American Modern Furniture
Wood





