Modern Lounge Chairs

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 The Modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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 principles 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, and the Eames’s 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 designs are so simple, they can blend in seamlessly with just about any type of décor. Don’t overlook them.
Early 20th Century Swedish Modern Lounge Chairs
Fur
1930s French Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Steel
1980s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Wicker, Cane, Rattan
1960s Brazilian Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
1970s French Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Lounge Chairs
Felt, Walnut
Early 2000s British Modern Lounge Chairs
Resin
1980s German Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
2010s South African Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
2010s Brazilian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
1970s American Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric
1930s Finnish Vintage Modern Lounge Chairs
Plywood
20th Century Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Lounge Chairs
Wool, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Fabric, Velvet, Faux Leather
Mid-20th Century Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Canadian Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal, Bronze, Bronze, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Beech
2010s Mexican Modern Lounge Chairs
Wicker, Hardwood
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Upholstery, Maple, Oak, Walnut
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Brass
2010s American Modern Lounge Chairs
Maple, Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Bronze
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Walnut
2010s Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Leather, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
2010s European Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
2010s European Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Papercord, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Papercord, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Lounge Chairs
Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Slovenian Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Slovenian Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak, Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Oak, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Oak