Abstract Photography
ABSTRACT STYLE
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.
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Style: Abstract
#107, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Manhattanhenge, Big Sun Sunset Manhattan Street Golden Light Silhouetted People
Located in Miami, FL
Signed, dated lower and numbered 2/15 lower right recto, unframed, other sizes available.
Manhattanhenge. Unique moment where the sun aligns with the east to west grid structure of t...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Inkjet
#63, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#67, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
New York City Abstract Multiple Exposure Kaleidoscope Reds Blues, Architecture
Located in Miami, FL
In-camera Multiple Exposure using colored gels and negative color.
Eye-popping and optically stimulating interpretation of New York skyscapers.
Signed and dated on lower right, num...
Category
1970s Abstract Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper
Yellow Ball, East Hampton
Located in East Hampton, NY
Yellow Ball, East Hampton, NY, Archival Pigment Print, $ Ed. 3/5, 2016
Printed to Order
*Photography: U Wash Truck, Death Valley and Mulford Lane, Amagansett 2012 have been feature...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Melting Curves, Blue Tones Monotype Cyanotype on Paper, Unique Abstract Piece
By Kind of Cyan
Located in Barcelona, ES
This unique monotype cyanotype, rendered in rich blue tones, invites the viewer into a dreamlike rhythm of interwoven shapes. Created using the cyanotype process, this one-of-a-kind ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Paper, Watercolor, Lithograph, Monotype
#235, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#25, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Dogs Running In Park With Early Morning Light, New York City
Located in Miami, FL
High angle view of dogs in park with long shadows.
. Signed dated and numbered 2/15 lower right recto, other sizes available, unframed, printed later, Printed on Hahnemühle Fine Art ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Inkjet
Taos Mission, New Mexico- San Francisco de Asis, Mystical Negative Color
Located in Miami, FL
Taos Mission, New Mexico San Francisco de Asis in Negative Color -
The work is Signed dated and numbered lower right, 2/15, Printed Later, and Unframed Printed on Hahnemühle Fine ...
Category
1970s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment
#22, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#165, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#44, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#161, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Lily in Charcoal
abstract expressionism photography edition of 10
By Ugne Pouwell
Located in London, GB
'Lily in Charcoal' 2023
From raw energy to sublime. 'Lily in Charcoal' is an expression piece combining an abstract charcoal drawing with a live lily...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Paper, Photographic Film, Charcoal, Archival Ink, Archival Paper
Torquidos
Located in Storrs, CT
"Torquidos" is a painting of light 'unseen.' When light travels, the human eye doesn't see its trails, but the camera does. My usual version of light painting involves leaving the li...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Metal
$1,360 Sale Price
20% Off
Holding Light In Darkness #6
Located in Los Angeles, CA
THE COLOR OF WATER
Lake Michigan blue sits at the pastel confluence of green, grey and cyan on the nearby shoreline. In truth, the color of the lake is as transitory as Chicago weather. The shade of blue is widely determined by the reflection of the sky above and the organic material and sediment carried below.
I recently learned that invasive mussel species have slowly transformed the lake from green to bluer over the past two decades. I often return to the water’s edge to document the color of a given day.
Susan Isaacson...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper
Faces1 - Part Of Un·I·Den·Ti·Fi·A·Ble Series, Abstract Photograph, 2015
Located in Boston, MA
Artist Commentary:
part of un·i·den·ti·fi·a·ble series – inspiration was to work with a portrait and distort the image until the face became invisible.
"removing identities until the...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper
Ecstasy
Located in Storrs, CT
"Ecstasy" is a classic example of my abstract PhotoLuminism technique. When light travels, the human eye cannot see its trails, but the camera can and does. Capturing images this way...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Metal
$1,720 Sale Price
20% Off
#101, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Bowl of Cherries (Contemporary Blue and White Cyanotype Still Life Photo)
By David Sokosh
Located in Hudson, NY
Bowl of Cherries
Contemporary Still Life Cyanotype Photograph of a bowl of cherries
Image is 20 x 16 inches, paper size is 24 x 18 inches, ed of 5
Unframed
David Sokosh is a storyteller with a unique ability to internalize, synthesize, and recollect. If one of his tenderly photographed stills lifes was a tiny window into the workings of his mind, then on the other side you would discover a trove of collected treasures. Vintage teacups...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper
The Blue Fire Bird. Limited edition color photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The exploration of the concept of play as an artistic impulse presents playful, almost "baroque-written"photographs that are the result of a repeated (recycled) notion of play. Start...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Pescador Archival Pigment Print, Abstract Photography, 2024
Located in Miami, FL
Pescador, 2024
by Eduardo Rezende
Series: Billboard
Pescador (2024) is part of Eduardo Rezende’s Billboard series, a body of work in which large-scale urban façades become both surf...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Canvas, Archival Pigment
Lily in Charcoal no.2
abstract expressionism photography edition of 20
By Ugne Pouwell
Located in London, GB
'Lily in Charcoal no.2' 2023
From raw energy to sublime. 'Lily in Charcoal No.2' is an expression piece combining an abstract charcoal drawing with a live lily emerging from a gash....
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Paper, Photographic Film, Charcoal, Archival Ink, Archival Paper
#20, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Gaze Into The Lake 02 and Hearing Gaia 02, Diptych. Abstract color photographs
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
#147, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#103, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#125, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#133, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#122, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#249, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#254, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#27, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#83, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#71, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#82, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#256, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
I Got Your Back 03 and Healing 03. Abstract color photographs, Diptych.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artist's computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's w...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Visible and Disappearance, Diptych From The While You Are Sleeping Series
By Arslan Sükan
Located in Miami Beach, FL
‘While you are sleeping’ (Seascape Series) In his seascape works, Sukan manipulates his imagery connected to the constant tensions between the mental grasp of the specificity and rep...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Black and White, Archival Pigment
Disappearance and Destiny, Diptych From The While You Are Sleeping Series
By Arslan Sükan
Located in Miami Beach, FL
‘While you are sleeping’ (Seascape Series) In his seascape works, Sukan manipulates his imagery connected to the constant tensions between the mental grasp of the specificity and rep...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Black and White, Archival Pigment
Golden Light In Windows On Old Brooklyn Building. New York City
Located in Miami, FL
Silhouette of man in blue window.
This archival color photograph by fine art photographer Mitchell Funk is signed, dated and numbered 2/15, lower right recto. Other sizes are availab...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Inkjet
#11, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#14, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Sail Boats with Two Men in a Boat on a Silver Gray Sea, Monochromatic
By Robert Funk
Located in Miami, FL
Simmering silver water underpins a group of sailboats punctuated by a small boat in the foreground.
The image takes on the look of traditional Asian art with its simplicity and per...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, Inkjet, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Hedge Fun - Collins Avenue Miami Beach - Blue
By Robert Funk
Located in Miami, FL
Street Art by the Rich. Robert Funk’s photographs of elaborate landscaping redefine what Street Art is. Large blue boxwood balls stand next to a long teal blue boxwood hedge
Beautiful landscaping greets visitors as they approach sophisticated residences along Miami's fabled Collins Avenue. Hedge Fun...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Inkjet, Archival Pigment
South Beach Life Guard Station in Red, Yellow and Blue
Located in Miami, FL
South Beach's iconic and colorful lifeguard station is a mecca for tourist snapshooters. Veteran color photographer Michell Funk reexamines this subject as an abstract hard-edge col...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
"Plumish" Abstract Archival Pigment Print, Signed A.P., 11x14 Oval
By Ava Blitz
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
"Plumish" is an original abstract archival pigment print made with digital and alternative photographic processes. It is an oval Image measuring 11" x 14" on a rectangular sheet of 1...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Sunday Afternoon in the Park, Abstract Archival Pigment Print, A.P.
By Ava Blitz
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
"Sunday Afternoon in the Park" is an original abstract archival pigment print made with digital and alternative photographic processes. Image measures 15" x 20", plus there is an app...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Abstract archival pigment print (photograph) of figures swimming in the bay, sea
By Ava Blitz
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
"Watermelon Bay" is an original abstract archival pigment print made with digital and alternative photographic processes. Image measures 6.5" x 6.5" on 12.5" x 11.5" 100% rag paper. ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment, Rag Paper
Abstract archival pigment print (photograph) of coleus flowering plant, flora
By Ava Blitz
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
"Ensemble" is an original abstract archival pigment print made with digital and alternative photographic processes. Image measures 20" x 30", plus there is an approx 2" white border ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Exocet, North American B25 Mitchell, Oshkosh, USA
Located in New York City, NY
27 x 44 in
Edition of 9
EUR 3.200
35 x 57 in
Edition of 9
EUR 5.200
48 x 71 in
Edition of 9
EUR 6.800
Dye Sublimation on Aluminum
48 x 77 in
Edition of 9
EUR 8.800
Dye Sublimation...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Dye Transfer
#167, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#165, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Wooden Pier on Lake, Austria, black and white fine art photography, landscape
Located in Vienna, Vienna
Black and white fine art long exposure waterscape - landscape photography. Archival pigment ink print as part of a limited edition of 7. All Gerald Berghammer prints are made to orde...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Digital Pigment
#164, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#163, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#160, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Landscape I. Areal Landscape ocean limited edition color photograph
By Jill Peters
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Peters has gone on to capture and document man’s wider imprint on nature. Whether it’s the graphic symmetry of urban architecture or the abstract choreography of the forms and hues o...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, Color, Archival Pigment
Abstract photography for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Abstract photography available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add photography created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, purple, red, orange and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Mitchell Funk, Paul Snell, Michael Banks, and Seb Janiak. Frequently made by artists working with Paper, and Pigment Print and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Abstract photography, so small editions measuring 0.5 inches across are also available. Prices for photography made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $50 and tops out at $36,000, while the average work sells for $3,359.