Abstract More Art
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 More Art
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Resin, Vinyl
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Paper, Acrylic
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Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Abstract More Art
Paper, Mixed Media
Early 2000s Abstract More Art
Screen
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Canvas, Acrylic
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Screen
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Wood, Mixed Media
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Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Cotton, Silk
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Canvas, Oil
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Screen
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Acrylic, Cardboard
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Fabric, Silk, Wood
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Stainless Steel
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Stainless Steel
Early 2000s Abstract More Art
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset
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Wood, Offset
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Paper, Pastel, Acrylic
2010s Abstract More Art
Paper, Pastel, Acrylic
1960s Abstract More Art
Screen
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Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Oil, Board
Artist Comments
Artist Gary Leonard presents a portrait of a woman in a tropical setting. He paints with an impressionist approach but leaves the background subtly abstract t...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Oil
Artist Comments
"I decided to lean into the suggestive pose of the figure," shares artist Sumner Crenshaw, "creating a work that radiates with confident sensuality and femini...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Acrylic, Board
2010s Abstract More Art
Fabric, Thread, Plastic, Pins
Artist Comments
In this painting, artist Doug Cosbie features small-scale American tobacco farms with their fields. Each has a curing shed that is attached to the main structure. "The atmosphere is humid after the rain, and the air has an overwhelming but delightfully sweet and pungent smell."
About the Artist
Artist Doug Cosbie presents the vibrancy found in nature with his impressionist, rural architecture centered artwork. Longing to create something that connects with people, Cosbie spent countless years perfecting how he portrays the world on canvas. Within his journey, he studied as an apprentice in the studios of Sam Black and Jack Shadbolt. As a plein air artist, Doug's studio is a portable pochade box...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Linen, Epoxy Resin, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Ryan Pickart layers art historical references in this sensual nude. The painting tells the Greek myth of Alcmene and Galant...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Acrylic, Linen
2010s Abstract More Art
Paper, Pastel, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Copper
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Screen
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Metal
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Watercolor
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Oil
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Wood, Fabric, Silk
Early 2000s Abstract More Art
Stoneware
Mid-20th Century Abstract More Art
Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Wool, Linen, Thread
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Screen
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Stone
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Canvas, Oil
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Canvas, Color
1950s Abstract More Art
Archival Ink
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Woodcut
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Wool
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Acrylic, Canvas
1980s Abstract More Art
Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Wool
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Canvas, Oil
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Cotton, Muslin, Thread, Wood, Dye
1970s Abstract More Art
Cardboard, Lithograph, Offset
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Cotton, Digital, Pigment, Archival Pigment, Digital Pigment
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Canvas, Acrylic
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Cotton, Digital, Pigment, Archival Pigment, Digital Pigment
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Glass, Blown Glass
Mid-20th Century Abstract More Art
Silk, Screen, Fabric
Early 2000s Abstract More Art
Lithograph, Offset
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Lithograph, Giclée





