Abstract Mixed Media
Beginning in the early 20th century, abstract art became a leading style of modernism. Rather than portray the world in a way that represented reality, as had been the dominating style of Western art in the previous centuries, abstract paintings, prints and sculptures are marked by a shift to geometric forms, gestural shapes and experimentation with color to express ideas, subject matter and scenes.
Although abstract art flourished in the early 1900s, propelled by movements like Fauvism and Cubism, it was rooted in the 19th century. In the 1840s, J.M.W. Turner emphasized light and motion for atmospheric paintings in which concrete details were blurred, and Paul Cézanne challenged traditional expectations of perspective in the 1890s.
Some of the earliest abstract artists — Wassily Kandinsky and Hilma af Klint — expanded on these breakthroughs while using vivid colors and forms to channel spiritual concepts. Painter Piet Mondrian, a Dutch pioneer of the art movement, explored geometric abstraction partly owing to his belief in Theosophy, which is grounded in a search for higher spiritual truths and embraces philosophers of the Renaissance period and medieval mystics. Black Square, a daringly simple 1913 work by Russian artist Kazimir Malevich, was a watershed statement on creating art that was free “from the dead weight of the real world,” as he later wrote.
Surrealism in the 1920s, led by artists such as Salvador Dalí, Meret Oppenheim and others, saw painters creating abstract pieces in order to connect to the subconscious. When Abstract Expressionism emerged in New York during the mid-20th century, it similarly centered on the process of creation, in which Helen Frankenthaler’s expressive “soak-stain” technique, Jackson Pollock’s drips of paint, and Mark Rothko’s planes of color were a radical new type of abstraction.
Conceptual art, Pop art, Hard-Edge painting and many other movements offered fresh approaches to abstraction that continued into the 21st century, with major contemporary artists now exploring it, including Anish Kapoor, Mark Bradford, El Anatsui and Julie Mehretu.
Find original abstract paintings, sculptures, prints and other art on 1stDibs.
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Plastic, Mixed Media, Permanent Marker
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Plastic, Mixed Media, Permanent Marker
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Lithograph, Screen
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Plaster, Board, Pigment
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Paint, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic, Mulberry Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Postcard, Pen, Graphite
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Varnish, Mixed Media, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Charcoal, Gouache, Color Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Crayon, Acrylic, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Carbon Pencil, Color Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Plastic, Permanent Marker
Artist Comments
Soft transitions of tonal color create a cloud-like form in this modern abstract painting. Yellow and black provide contrast in the background, while a bold red...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Encaustic, Linen, Monotype
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Watercolor, Gouache
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Metal, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Ink, Pigment
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Glitter, Mixed Media, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Fiery orange and warm light burst against a cool blue background. Dark, branching lines stretch like twisted trees while a soft orb of light hovers on the left....
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Textile, Canvas, Linen, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Rice Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Spray Paint
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Thread, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Rag Paper, Screen
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil, Charcoal, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Glitter, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil, Acrylic, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Carbon Pencil, Color Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Crayon, Acrylic, Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
Artist Comments
A woman strikes a dynamic pose, with one hand placed behind her and the other resting on her shoulder. The composition draws the viewer into its rips, gestural ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Crayon, Acrylic, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Cotton Canvas, Spray Paint, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic, Mulberry Paper




