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, Wood Panel, Archival Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Latex, Spray Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Lacquer, Pastel, Automotive Paint, Acrylic
Artist Comments
A collage of papers, screen printer ink, and acrylic paint capture the land and seascapes of Acadia National Park. Artist Tim Engelhardt took inspiration from t...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Paper, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Steel, Wire
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Paper, Oil Pastel
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Gouache, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Found Objects, Ink, Gouache, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Glitter, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Giclée, Screen
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Ink, Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Thread, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Fiery red and orange erupt from a dark structure. The sun hovers to the right, casting a warm glow over the scene. Artist Yamilet Sempe represents one of the ma...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Mixed Media, Oil, Magazine Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Textile, Cotton
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Textile, Canvas, Linen, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Plaster, Wax, Acrylic, Panel, Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Archival Paper, Glitter
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Gouache, C Print
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Pencil
Artist Comments
Orange swatches create a structure at the center of the composition. On top is a gray orb with a beam shooting from its center. Splatters of blue and black pain...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Rice Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Paper, Acrylic, Gouache, Pencil, Color Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
House Paint, Acrylic, Permanent Marker, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Canvas, Encaustic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Ink, Intaglio
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic, Acrylic, Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Gesso, Canvas, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wax, Oil, Archival Paper, Pen
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s 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
Oil Crayon, Acrylic, Pencil
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Lithograph, Screen
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Monoprint, Screen
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic Polymer, Found Objects, Oil, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Ink, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic





