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A Close Look at Abstract 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.
- 1stDibs ExpertApril 26, 2024To describe abstract art, focus on its elements. Take notice of the types of lines and shapes the work features. Discuss its color and value, the term for the interplay between light and dark in a piece. You can also consider its texture, the materials used to produce it and how it fits into the space that surrounds it. Find a wide range of abstract art on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertSeptember 25, 2019
No, abstract art, by definition, is not representational. Although the shapes in an abstract composition may be based on real world objects, these objects are not recognizable in the finished work.
- How did abstract art come about?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertSeptember 25, 2019
Abstract art grew out of the desire by artists in the early 20th century, like Wassily Kandinsky, to create “pure art,” grounded not in visual reality but in the artist’s imagination.
- What influenced abstract art?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertSeptember 25, 2019
Abstract art was influenced by Postimpressionism.
- La ChrysomeleFebruary 23, 2021A definition of abstract art is art through which the artist doesn't attempt a visual depiction of the world. The artist may have other intentions : conveying a pure emotion, or achieving what (s)he perceives as visual perfection, etc. There are many kinds of abstract art : lyrical abstraction, geometrical abstraction, action painting… There is also an infinite spectrum between hyperrealism and pure abstraction, since one can argue that any brush stroke is by itself an abstraction of the reality — let alone flat color patches.
- 1stDibs ExpertSeptember 25, 2019
Wassily Kandinsky is the father of abstract art.
- What does abstract mean in art?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertFebruary 22, 2021Abstract, in art, refers to art that rejects visual reality. Instead, abstract arts utilizes shapes, colors, forms and other gestural marks to convey a certain feeling and reality.
- 1stDibs ExpertFebruary 1, 2024The six elements of abstract art are color, form, line, shape, texture and value. Color refers to the various hues featured in a composition, while form refers to the subjects or elements of a piece. Lines and shapes are the components that make up the artwork. Textures include both physical differences in the surface of a work and effects that create the illusion of textural variations. Value, the final element, describes how light or dark the colors are. On 1stDibs, shop a wide range of abstract art.
- What makes good abstract art?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertMay 30, 2024What makes good abstract art is largely subjective. People tend to think of abstract art as good when it evokes an emotional response in them. Critics may judge abstract art based on its originality and creativity, as well as on the skill and technique of the artist. Shop a diverse assortment of abstract art on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022Abstract art is meant to achieve an effect as opposed to representing an object, person, or a scene. Three characteristics of abstract art include: being non-representational art; valuation of shapes, colors, lines, and textures; and subjective art. On 1stDibs, find a variety of original abstract artwork from top artists.
- 1stDibs ExpertSeptember 25, 2019
Yes, Cubism is a form of abstract art.
- Why do people like abstract art?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertMay 30, 2024The reasons why people like abstract art vary. Some like the fact that they can interpret abstract pieces however they desire and enjoy using their imaginations to find meaning in various works. Others experience an emotional reaction when viewing abstract art and consider it to be moving as a result. In addition, people may appreciate the creativity and inventiveness that the creation of abstract art requires. On 1stDibs, shop a diverse assortment of abstract art.
- 1stDibs ExpertFebruary 13, 2024There is no single painter who experimented with abstract art and Cubism. A number of artists worked in Cubism, a style of abstract art in which reality was fragmented into flat, geometric forms. Historians generally credit Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso as being the fathers of Cubism. Other Cubist painters include Fernand Léger, Alexander Archipenko, Marcel Duchamp, Juan Gris and Jean Metzinger. Shop a collection of Cubist art on 1stDibs.
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