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.
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic Polymer
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic
20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Crayon, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Plaster, Foam Board, Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Rice Paper
Artist Comments
Artist Gail Ragains displays a dynamic rendering of a female figure sitting. The gestural and expressive paintwork create an emotionally charged atmosphere. C...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Archival Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic, Mulberry Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gesso, Charcoal, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Paper, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Archival Paper, Canvas
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Archival Paper, Rag Paper, Digital, Monotype
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Glue, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Archival Paper, Paper, Monoprint, Monotype
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Pencil, Color Pencil, Graphite
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Wood Panel, Archival Paper
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil, Board
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Cotton Canvas, Mixed Media, Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Paper, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Laid Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Lacquer, Pastel, Automotive Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mirror, Film
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Pastel, Watercolor
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
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Wood
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
House Paint, Acrylic, Carbon Pencil, Oil Pastel, Color Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Varnish, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Ink, Handmade Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Watercolor, Found Objects
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Video, LED Light
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Stretcher Bars
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Tempera
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Cotton Canvas, Mixed Media
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Plexiglass, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Thread, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Panel, Cardboard
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Wood Panel, Archival Paper
Artist Comments
This piece contrasts an irregular, linear mesh grid with small, structured metallic circles. The background, built from layered papers, creates an organic and s...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Graphite
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Spray Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Paint, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Latex, Spray Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Varnish, Mixed Media, Acrylic





