19th Century Photographers Portrait Backdrop
19th Century Victorian Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
People Also Browsed
19th Century Victorian Still-life Paintings
Oil, Canvas
1880s Post-Impressionist Portrait Paintings
Oil
17th Century Old Masters Portrait Paintings
Canvas, Oil
17th Century Old Masters Portrait Paintings
Canvas, Oil
17th Century Old Masters Portrait Paintings
Oil, Canvas
Early 19th Century Victorian Portrait Paintings
Oil, Canvas
1910s Academic Figurative Paintings
Pastel, Board
Early 20th Century Portrait Paintings
Oil, Canvas
Early 19th Century Academic Portrait Paintings
Oil
19th Century Victorian Landscape Paintings
Oil, Canvas
18th Century Old Masters Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas
19th Century Victorian Portrait Paintings
Oil, Canvas
17th Century Old Masters Portrait Paintings
Oil, Canvas
19th Century Portrait Paintings
Canvas, Oil
18th Century Old Masters Portrait Paintings
Canvas, Oil
19th Century Victorian Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas
Recent Sales
Antique 19th Century French Paintings
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Abstract Photography
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Photography
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Black and White Photography
Silver Gelatin
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Black and White Photography
Silver Gelatin
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Black and White Photography
Silver Gelatin
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Black and White Photography
Silver Gelatin
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Abstract Prints
Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Abstract Prints
Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Abstract Prints
Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Abstract Photography
C Print, Other Medium, Photographic Film
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Abstract Prints
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
1870s Romantic Landscape Paintings
Oil, Canvas
1990s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Photographic Paper
A Close Look at contemporary Art
Used to refer to a time rather than an aesthetic, Contemporary art generally describes pieces created after 1970 or being made by living artists anywhere in the world. This immediacy means it encompasses art responding to the present moment through diverse subjects, media and themes. Contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, performance, digital art, video and more frequently includes work that is attempting to reshape current ideas about what art can be, from Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s use of candy to memorialize a lover he lost to AIDS-related complications to Jenny Holzer’s ongoing “Truisms,” a Conceptual series that sees provocative messages printed on billboards, T-shirts, benches and other public places that exist outside of formal exhibitions and the conventional “white cube” of galleries.
Contemporary art has been pushing the boundaries of creative expression for years. Its disruption of the traditional concepts of art are often aiming to engage viewers in complex questions about identity, society and culture. In the latter part of the 20th century, contemporary movements included Land art, in which artists like Robert Smithson and Michael Heizer create large-scale, site-specific sculptures, installations and other works in soil and bodies of water; Sound art, with artists such as Christian Marclay and Susan Philipsz centering art on sonic experiences; and New Media art, in which mass media and digital culture inform the work of artists such as Nam June Paik and Rafaël Rozendaal.
The first decades of the 21st century have seen the growth of Contemporary African art, the revival of figurative painting, the emergence of street art and the rise of NFTs, unique digital artworks that are powered by blockchain technology.
Major Contemporary artists practicing now include Ai Weiwei, Cecily Brown, David Hockney, Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami and Kara Walker.
Find a collection of Contemporary prints, photography, paintings, sculptures and other art on 1stDibs.
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