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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
Early 2000s Italian Modern Furniture
Brass
1960s Turkish Vintage Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Resin
Early 2000s Italian Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Aluminum
2010s Chinese Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
2010s South African Modern Furniture
Animal Skin
2010s Brazilian Modern Furniture
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood, Teak
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Furniture
Metal
2010s Central American Modern Furniture
Crystal
Late 20th Century Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s Dutch Modern Furniture
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Resin
20th Century French Modern Furniture
Wool, Silk
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Stainless Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Portuguese Modern Furniture
Cotton, Velvet
Early 2000s German Modern Furniture
Crystal, Silver Plate
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Cotton, Linen
1960s Turkish Vintage Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
2010s American Modern Furniture
Metal, Brass, Steel
2010s Dutch Modern Furniture
Marble
2010s Italian Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Resin
Early 2000s Spanish Modern Furniture
Chrome
2010s American Modern Furniture
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Oak
20th Century Turkish Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Furniture
Brass
2010s Spanish Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Stoneware
2010s American Modern Furniture
Steel, Iron
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Upholstery
1970s French Vintage Modern Furniture
Elm
2010s German Modern Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Furniture
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Furniture
Steel
2010s North American Modern Furniture
Wood, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Furniture
Wrought Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Resin
1960s Turkish Vintage Modern Furniture
Wool, Cotton
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Furniture
Murano Glass, Blown Glass
Mid-20th Century Modern Furniture
Onyx, Marble
2010s Dutch Modern Furniture
Marble
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Resin
Early 2000s Italian Modern Furniture
Iron, Steel
2010s American Modern Furniture
Cotton, Wood
2010s Dutch Modern Furniture
Marble
2010s Argentine Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Clay, Pottery
1940s American Vintage Modern Furniture
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Resin
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Furniture
Wrought Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Furniture
Resin
2010s Korean Modern Furniture
Acrylic
2010s Dutch Modern Furniture
Marble
2010s Mexican Modern Furniture
Resin
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Furniture
Ceramic, Teak





