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.
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Artist Comments
The Smithsonian Castle in Washington, DC on a bright summer afternoon. The brilliant green lawn and trees in the foreground ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract More Art
Canvas, Color
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Canvas, Acrylic
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Canvas, Acrylic
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Archival Ink
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Canvas, Acrylic
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Marble
1970s Abstract More Art
Lithograph
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Paper, Ink, Archival Ink, Archival Paper
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Paper, Acrylic
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Canvas, Acrylic, Gouache
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Canvas, Paper, Acrylic
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Aquatint, Color, Etching
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Paper, Ink, Archival Ink, Archival Paper
Early 2000s Abstract More Art
Porcelain
20th Century Abstract More Art
Textile
1960s Abstract More Art
Paint
2010s Abstract More Art
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Abstract More Art
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Acrylic
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Cotton, Muslin, Thread, Wood, Dye
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Canvas, Acrylic
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Paper, Acrylic
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Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract More Art
Acrylic, Wood Panel
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Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract More Art
Paper, Acrylic
1950s Abstract More Art
Paper, Ink
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Canvas, Color
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Paper, Pastel, Acrylic
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Resin, Vinyl
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Fabric, Silk, Wood
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Oil
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Canvas, Acrylic
1980s Abstract More Art
Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Wool
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Paper, Mixed Media
1980s Abstract More Art
Offset
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Paper, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract More Art
Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Wool, Dye
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Acrylic, Paper
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Paper, Giclée
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Acrylic, Board
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Canvas, Acrylic
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Watercolor
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Canvas, Color
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Acrylic, Wood Panel
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Paper, Acrylic
Early 2000s Abstract More Art
Cotton, Fabric
Mid-20th Century Abstract More Art
Tapestry
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Canvas, Oil
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Stone
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Canvas, Oil
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Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Artist Heather Foster displays a calm landscape of Northern New Mexico. Three bulls line up in the center of the grassy field in front of a breathtaking view ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Acrylic
2010s Abstract More Art
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Abstract More Art
Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Cotton, Silk
Artist Comments
Artist Jo Galang depicts a tranquil forest path illuminated by tender sunlight. She takes inspiration from her refreshing walks by the river. "Spending time i...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Oil
2010s Abstract More Art
Cotton, Digital, Pigment, Archival Pigment, Digital Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract More Art
Oil, Panel



