Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
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 The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics.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.
Late 20th Century American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Moroccan Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Moroccan Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Chrome
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Moroccan Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass, Wire
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Steel
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal, Chrome
Early 2000s Japanese Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Plastic
2010s Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Chrome
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Wood
2010s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Birdseye Maple
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Gold
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Birdseye Maple
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass, Steel
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Copper
2010s British Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Steel
2010s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Lacquer
2010s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Lacquer
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Maple
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Ebony
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Walnut
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Ebony
20th Century American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Nickel
Mid-20th Century American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Mirror, Wood
2010s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Oak
2010s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal
2010s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal
1950s Italian Vintage Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass
2010s British Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass, Steel
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Ebony
1990s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Steel
1940s Finnish Vintage Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Birch
2010s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Copper
1960s Vintage Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Wood
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal, Bronze
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal, Chrome
1970s American Vintage Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Steel, Brass
2010s Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Wood, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Wood
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Ebony
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Birdseye Maple
2010s American Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Metal
2010s German Modern Wardrobes and Armoires
Chrome, Metal