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.
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Etching
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Paint, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Metal, Steel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
Artist Comments
A yellow color field reveals tiny squares with glints of red, green, and natural wood. The bright and saturated palette evokes vivid colors on architecture unde...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Paper, Ink, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Rice Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Plywood, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Paper, Oil Crayon, Mixed Media, Wax
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Steel, Wire
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Paper, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
House Paint, Acrylic, Carbon Pencil, Oil Pastel, Color Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Jute, Acrylic, Washi Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Monotype, Monoprint
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Plywood, Acrylic, Board
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Cotton Canvas, Mixed Media, Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Cotton Canvas, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil, Acrylic, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Crayon, Acrylic, Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Carbon Pencil, Color Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil, Paper, Glue, Stretcher Bars
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Spray Paint
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, 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
Paint, Paper, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Paint, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Postcard, Pen, Graphite
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Encaustic, Linen, Monotype
20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Steel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Ink, Pigment
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Lithograph, Screen
Artist Comments
Artist Terri Bell expresses an emotional abstraction of fragmented feelings. These small recollections span universally and happen to every one of us. She pai...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Screen
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Stainless Steel
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Resin, Panel, Digital Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Cotton Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Canvas, Encaustic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Paper, Ink, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil, Charcoal, Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Acrylic paint and strands of yarn form an abstract mixed-media piece full of lyrical movement and symbolism. Artist Sheila Grabarsky drew inspiration from the w...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media





