Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
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
Bust, Abstract Expressionist Gouache Painting by Arnaldo Coen
Located in Long Island City, NY
Arnaldo Coen, Mexican (1940 -) - Bust, Year: 1969, Medium: Gouache on Paper, signed and dated lower right and signed in pencil on verso, Size: 14 x 8.5 in. (35.56 x 21.59 cm), Des...
Category
1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Gouache
Abstract Composition, Abstract Mixed Media Drawing by Martha Holden
Located in Long Island City, NY
Martha Holden, American (1951 -) - Abstract Composition, Year: 1983, Medium: Monotype, stencil, graphite and ink on handmade paper, signed and dated in pen lower right, Size: 38 x...
Category
1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Graphite, Monotype
Sunset over Mountainscape, Abstract Expressionist Pastel Drawing by Souleymane
Located in Long Island City, NY
Souleymane Keita, Senegalese (1947 -2014) - Sunset over Mountainscape, Year: 1983, Medium: Pastel on J Perrigot Arches Special MBM, signed and dated in pencil lower right, Size: 2...
Category
1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pastel
Pink Abstract, Abstract Expressionist Gouache Painting by Arnaldo Coen
Located in Long Island City, NY
Arnaldo Coen, Mexican (1940 -) - Pink Abstract, Year: circa 1968, Medium: Gouache On Paper, Size: 14 x 8.5 in. (35.56 x 21.59 cm), Description: ex-collection Sergio Aragones.
Category
1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Gouache
Green Symphony, Abstract Expressionist Pastel Drawing by Souleymane Keita
Located in Long Island City, NY
Souleymane Keita, Senegalese (1947 -2014) - Green Symphony, Year: 1982, Medium: Pastel on J Perrigot Arches Special MBM, signed and dated in pencil lower right, Size: 22.25 x 29.7...
Category
1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pastel
Josette Urso "Bella" Watercolor on Paper
By Josette Urso
Located in New York, NY
Of her recent works, Urso states, "I make exploratory paintings, working in response to my immediate environment. My approach involves moment-to-moment extrapolation governed by intu...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor
'Where Hummingbirds Swim, ' by Lisa Miceli, Watercolor on Paper Painting
By Lisa Miceli
Located in Oklahoma City, OK
This framed 27" x 14" watercolor on paper by artist Lisa Miceli depicts the abstracted movement of birds, figures, and aquatic imagery that the artist uses...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor, Paper
Paul COLIN (1892 – 1986), cubist composition
By Paul Colin
Located in Paris, FR
Paul Colin (1892–1986), a painter, illustrator, set designer, and major poster artist of the 20th century, is renowned for his influence on Art Deco. He grew up in Nancy, a hub of av...
Category
Early 20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Gouache
Modernist Abstract Expressionist Watercolor Painting Bauhaus Weimar Artist
By Pawel Kontny
Located in Surfside, FL
Abstract watercolor composition bearing the influence of the earlier color-block compositions of Paul Klee and Abstract Expressionist master Sam Francis.
Pawel August Kontny, (Polish-German-American artist) He was born in Laurahuette, Poland, in 1923, the son of a wealthy pastry shop owner. In 1939 he began studying architecture in Breslau where he was introduced to the European masters and to the work of some of the German Expressionists, soon afterward banned as "degenerate artists" and removed from museums throughout Germany by the Nazi regime. His studies were interrupted by World War II. Drafted into the German army, traveling in many countries as a soldier, he sketched various landscapes but in 1945, he was captured and held as a prisoner of war in Italy. After the war, he studied at the Union of Nuremberg Architects to help design buildings to replace ones destroyed in the war. He recorded his impressions of the local population and the landscapes through his watercolors and drawings. Pawel Kontny thereafter moved to Nuremberg, Germany, becoming a member of the Union of Nuremberg Architects and helping to rebuild the city's historic center. He soon decided to concentrate on his professional art career. He married Irmgard Laurer, a dancer with the Nuremberg Opera. Pavel Kontny 's career as an artist was launched with his participation in an all German exhibition, held at the Dusseldorf Museum in 1952. He held one-man shows in Germany, Switzerland and the United States. During his trip to the United States in 1960, Kontny became instantly enamored with Colorado, and decided to relocate to Cherry Hills with his wife and two children. He quickly established himself in the local art community, being affiliated for a time with Denver Art Galleries and Saks Galleries. His subject matter became the Southwest. During this time he received the Prestigious Gold Medal of the Art Academy of Rome. His extensive travel provided material for the paintings he did using his hallmark marble dust technique. he also worked equally in pastel, watercolor, charcoal and pencil-and-ink. in a style which merged abstraction and realist styles, influenced by Abstract Expressionist painting and South Western American landscapes. In the early 1960s he was one of only a few European-born professional artists in the state, a select group that included Herbert Bayer (1900-1985), a member of the prewar Bauhaus in Weimar and Dessau, Germany, and Roland Detre (1903-2001), a Hungarian modernist painter. As a Denver, Colorado resident, Pavel Kontny exhibited at galleries and museums throughout the United States, Germany and Japan. There, he was inspired by frequent trips to Native American pueblos in the Southwest, as well as by the study of the Plains Indians of Montana and Wyoming. Over the years Kontny had a number of students and generously helped young artist by hosting exhibitions at his Cherry Hills home. For many years he generously donated his paintings to support charitable causes in Denver. Influences during his European years included German pastelist C.O. Muller, German Informel painter Karl Dahmen and Swiss artist, Hans Erni. In the early 1950s his painting style showed the influence of the Die Brücke (The Bridge), a group of German expressionist artists formed in Dresden in 1905 who had a major impact on the evolution of modern art in the twentieth century in Germany. By the middle of the decade his style incorporated more referential abstraction and total abstraction, resulting in part from his study of Hans Hartung, a German artist based in Paris who exhibited his gestural abstract work in Germany. The American moon landing in 1969 inspired Paul Kontny...
Category
20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor, Archival Paper
Sequestor (Abstract Drawing)
Located in London, GB
Neill is inspired by the fluid geometric qualities of curve and line, in particular how the natural qualities of the earth and sky intermingle with urban elements of object and archi...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Charcoal
Light breath of wind - abstract painting, made in black, grey color, 2025
By Mila Akopova
Located in Fort Lee, NJ
Interior design paintings. The work was done with india ink in black and grey color on Yupo paper. The work is 11 by 14 inches in size, framed with a glass on a mat board in white wi...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, India Ink
Paysages premiers VI (Abstract painting)
Located in London, GB
Paysages premiers VI (Abstract painting)
Watercolor on Arches paper — Unframed
Paper's dimensons: 41 x 31 cm / 16.1 x 12.2 inch
Image's dimensions: 21 x 15 cm / 8.3 x 5.9 inch
An...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Watercolor
Orage terre (Abstract painting)
Located in London, GB
Orange terre (Abstract painting)
Watercolor, acrylic and graphite lead on Bréhat paper — Unframed
Paper's dimensons: 74.5 x 53.5 cm / 29.3 x 21 inch
Image's dimensions: 60 x 42 cm /...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Acrylic, Watercolor, Graphite
Moldovan Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Untitled
By Doïna Vieru
Located in Paris, IDF
Acrylic & charcoal on canvas
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Charcoal, Acrylic, Canvas
Abstract Composition CJ1
By Chaumard Jacques
Located in Nice, FR
Mixed media and gouache on collage, signed on the back
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Balancing Act 1 (Abstract painting)
By Tracey Adams
Located in London, GB
Gouache, graphite and ink on Rives paper - Unframed
This work (unframed) incorporates graphite, ink, and gouache, and is a combination of intuition-based and planned execution.
Ba...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, India Ink, Gouache, Graphite
"Vibrant spring colors" (contemporary abstract expressive acrylic floral)
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
In this abstract floral artwork I experience the world of nature through the bright colors of a spring period.
While painting, I sought to capture the beauty of spring flowers which...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Acrylic
Night 01 - stylish contemporary blue abstract acrylic and pigment on board
Located in Dallas, TX
Emma's artwork is inspired by the Parisian luxury world of fashion, textures and colours.
"I work on a white surface, usually leaving the background pure, happily playing with the ...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Acrylic, Pigment, Lacquer, Board
Untitled Abstraction
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Untitled Abstrraction
Gouache, watercolor and pigments on paper, c. 1960
Signed lower right in pencil (see photo)
Image: 17 x 22 inches
Sheet: 25 1/4 x 29 3/4 inches
Frame: 25 1/4 x ...
Category
1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor
Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) - King and Queen - Etching on Japan paper - 1968
Located in Varese, IT
etching on Japan paper , Edited in 1968,
first state (of two)
Limited edition of 30 copies for each state ,
numbered 8/30 in lower left
Hand signed in pencil by artist in the lower r...
Category
1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Etching
Set of 4 Abstract Drawing on paper. From the series Illusions of the Line
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Set of 4 Abstract Drawing on paper, 2018 by Rodrigo Spinel
From the series Illusions of the Line
Chinese ink on Fabriano paper 250 g.
Overall size:
Image size: 29.6 cm H x 42 cm W...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, India Ink
Bloques Desalineado 2, Espejo, and Regular. Abstract Drawings
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Set of 3 drawings by Rodrigo Spinel
From the series Illusions of the Line
Chinese ink on Fabriano paper 250 g.
1. Bloques Desalineado 2, 2017 (Chinese ink on bond paper)
2. Espejo...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, India Ink
Chroma VIII - Monstera, Painting, Watercolor on Other
Located in Yardley, PA
2023 / 16 x 20 / Metallic watercolor and pen on black Canson illustration board Abstract metallic bubbles form a composition derived from dream state, representative of a Monstera le...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor
SHIZEN SERIES V
By Kim Fonder
Located in Tulsa, OK
Kim Fonder, SHIZEN SERIES V, Mixed Media on Handmade Paper with Plexi, 12.00 X 12.00 in, $600.00, Blue
Abstract, contemporary, White, mixed media, fine art
Kim Fonder loves texture ...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Plexiglass, Mixed Media, Handmade Paper
Silver Pencil Shape (Bourgognone) - Original Contemporary Abstract Drawing
Located in Boston, MA
"Silver Pencil Shape (Bourgognone)
17.0 x 14.0 x 0.2, 0.5 lbs
Acrylic paint on archival paper
Hand signed by the artist
Artist's Commentary:
""This is a drawing made with acrylic ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Acrylic
Three Pyramids + Blue Ball
Located in Palm Desert, CA
"Three Pyramids + Blue Ball" is a gouache on paper by Alexander Calder. The work is signed in the lower right, "Calder 73”.
Although renowned for his innovative and groundbreaking sculptures, Alexander Calder started his artistic career as an abstract painter, preferring to use gouache. What is gouache? Gouache is a water-soluble paint – a type of opaque watercolor.
As Calder returned to gouache painting towards the end of his life, he was now armed with a lifetime of experience as a sculptor. He explored the three-dimensional vocabulary of sculptural forms he had developed onto the two-dimensional surface of the paper. Certain shapes and colors recur throughout his gouaches and sculptures. Circles, ovals, and other geometric forms dominate the space. There is the same sense of energy and fluidity. The shapes do not sit on the surface but vibrate giving a feeling of movement in contrast to the static nature of painting.
Like his sculpture, Calder’s gouache...
Category
1970s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Ink, Gouache
French Abstract Contemporary Art by Daniel Cayo - Untitled No.10
By Daniel Cayo
Located in Paris, IDF
Mixed media on paper, framed
20 x 30 cm - 30 x 40 cm with white mat passe-partout
Unique copy
Signed on the front
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Mixed Media
French Abstract Contemporary Art by Daniel Cayo - Untitled No.23
By Daniel Cayo
Located in Paris, IDF
Mixed media on paper, framed
15 x 20 cm - 24 x 30 cm with white mat passe-partout
Unique copy
Signed on the front
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Mixed Media
Emotional color chart 098 (Abstract painting)
By Kyong Lee
Located in London, GB
Emotional color chart 098 (Abstract painting)
Pencil and acrylic on Fabriano-pittura paper - Unframed.
This series, started in 2016 conveys a color and emotional language and is in...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Acrylic, Pencil
Soft Light S 01 (Abstract Painting)
Located in London, GB
Soft Light S 01 (Abstract Painting)
Acrylic on Hahnemühle paper - Unframed
Emma Godebska is a French abstract artist living in Nimes, France.
Her use of n...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Acrylic
Jazz Baby
By Teri Brudnak
Located in Boston, MA
Artist commentary:
A painting based on jazz rhythms and colors of the 1960's.
Words that describe the piece: colorful, rhythm, graphic, music, abstract, colorful,
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Archival Paper, Digital
Set of 6 drawings. From the series Architects
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Set of 6 drawings, 2022 by Rodrigo Spinel
From the series Terms and conditions
Gliceé printed on Hahnemule Fiber matte paper, intervened by the art...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, India Ink, Color
Abstract Homage to Alexander Calder.
Located in Cotignac, FR
Modern abstract pastel on paper, the work is signed to the back of the paper, Djoklevic.
A bright and colourful abstract pastel in the style of Alexander Calder. It could be an inte...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pastel
PHENOMENA Chinese Light Chalice 1989 Abstract Expressionist Watercolor, framed
By Paul Jenkins
Located in New York, NY
As a teen, Paul Jenkins worked with ceramicist James Weldon which led to a fascination with glazes; Jenkins cultivated and eventually achieved a similar effect in his paintings by mixing oil and enamel on canvas in the 50s. In 1937, Jenkins attended classes at the Kansas City Art Institute where he painted his first series of watercolors he called interior landscapes inspired by caves in the Ozarks. After serving in the US Naval Air Corps for 2 years, Jenkins moved to New York to study with Yasuo Kuniyoshi and Morris Kantor at the Art Students League from 1948 to 1952. During those years, Jenkins met Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock and Barnett Newman.
In 1953 left for Paris where he discovered and was struck by the color density and luminosity in abstract oil works termed ébauches by Gustave Moreau and pastels by Odilon Redon. He began to experiment with poured paints in various thicknesses on canvas and paper and found this technique achieved luminosity of color which in its own way was comparable to that of Moreau and Redon. The next year, Jenkins added Winsor Newton pigments and chrysochrome, a viscous enamel paint, into his poured paintings, further enriching their color density and incandescence. The next major development in technique came in 1959 when he began using an ivory knife to guide the flow of paint. That same year, he also began to title his paintings Phenomena followed by a key word or phrase. A film on Jenkins' technique titled The Ivory Knife: Paul Jenkins at Work was shown at the Museum of Modern Art and received the Golden Eagle Award at the Venice Film Festival in 1966.
In 1954 Jenkins had his first solo exhibition in Paris where he met Martha Jackson, whose New York gallery included Jenkins in a group show the following year. In 1956, Martha Jackson Gallery held a solo exhibition of Jenkins’ work at which Divining Rod...
Category
1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor, Paper
M377 (Abstract new media)
By Jesús Perea
Located in London, GB
M377 (Abstract new media)
Digital creation, printed on Hahnemühle Photo Rag de 308 gr - Unframed.
Fluctuating between illustration and expressionism, connecting the geometric and ...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Digital
'In France, On A Bike' - organic abstraction - monotype - rainbow - Agnes Pelton
Located in Atlanta, GA
"In France, On A Bike" is a monotype with gouache on kozo paper featuring hues of yellow, purple, blue and pink. This work is framed in a gold frame measuring 1...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Archival Paper, Lithograph, Monotype
"This Place is a Dream (Nightshade)" - botanical - cyanotype - flowers - moody
Located in Atlanta, GA
This piece is an abstract botanical work on paper featuring hues of dark blue, grey and tan. It is framed in a simple white box frame behind UV Plexiglas. The unframed work measures ...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Acrylic, Archival Paper
Challenge - line drawing figure with red gloves
By Mila Akopova
Located in Fort Lee, NJ
Interior design paintings. The artwork was done with watercolor on watercolor paper 360g. The works are 14 by 11 inches in size, framed (black) with a styrene face on a mat board in ...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Watercolor
Terra Incognita 1 (Abstract painting)
By Jessica Snow
Located in London, GB
Terra Incognita 1 (Abstract painting)
Acrylic on 300lb. Arches hotpress paper - Unframed
Snow sees her work as a constant play between order and chaos, logic and emotion. She combi...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Acrylic
36A, Modern Abstract Acrylic on Paper Painting by Yasmin Brandolini
Located in Long Island City, NY
A large minimal abstract painting on paper by Yasmin Brandolini.
Artist: Yasmin Brandolini d'Adda, South African/Italian (1929 - )
Title: 36A
Year: 1986
Medium: Acrylic on Paper, Mo...
Category
1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Canvas, Paper, Acrylic
Strata Aqua
By Teri Brudnak
Located in Boston, MA
Artist commentary:
Underwater seabed deposits slide under the seams of the tectonic plates to become new rock.
Words that describe the piece: Underwater, geology, rocks, aqua, wate...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Archival Paper, Digital
Unique drawing Geometric Abstraction on postcard conceptual art (hand signed)
By Sol LeWitt
Located in New York, NY
Sol LeWitt
Unique Geometric Abstraction on Postcard, 1982
Original drawing done on postcard from the Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam), mailed, stamped and postmarked (franked) from Spolet...
Category
1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Ink, Postcard, Mixed Media, Offset
Not yet 004 (Abstract Painting)
By Kyong Lee
Located in London, GB
Not yet 004 (Abstract Painting)
Pencil and acrylic on Canson-Montval paper - Unframed
This artwork conveys a color and emotional language and is inspired by the series Color as Adj...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Acrylic, Pencil
Botanical Experiment #1
Located in San Francisco, CA
Paula Valenzuela
Botanical Experiment #1, 2025
Alcohol and watercolor inks on Yupo paper
14 x 11 inches
This one-of-a-kind work on paper comes unframed and ships in a tube. External...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Ink, Watercolor
'Girl with Sun, Bicycle and Car' original watercolor signed by Joseph Rozman
Located in Milwaukee, WI
The present painting is an excellent example of Joseph Rozman's pictographic style. The composition is dominated by abstracted vignettes: A fashionable woman beneath the sun, a car, ...
Category
1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor
Connecticut Hills
Located in Miami, FL
This later work by Lyonel Feininger approaches almost full abstraction. It was executed in 1950 at a crucial moment in American art history. Abstract Expressionism and non-representational art were in full gear and taking the world by storm. Yet Feininger who was associated with the German expressionist groups: Die Brücke...
Category
1990s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
India Ink, Watercolor
"Motherhood" Watercolor painting 14.5" x 11" inch (1991) by Shaker El Maadawy
Located in Culver City, CA
"Motherhood" Watercolor painting 14.5" x 11" inch (1991) by Shaker El Maadawy
signed & dated
Shaker El Maadawy graduated from the Faculty of Fine A...
Category
20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Watercolor
Vagues 'Wave' by TOSHIMITSU IMAÏ - Abstract Art, 20th-Century Japanese Artist
Located in London, GB
Vagues “Wave” by TOSHIMITSU ÏMAI (1928-2002)
Acrylic on paper
127 x 95 cm (50 x 37 3⁄8 inches)
Signed in Japanese and English lower right, inscribed and dated 1992 on the reverse
Provenance:
Studio of the artist
Dr Jean-Paul Coussy (Director of MCAP Museum, France), acquired directly from the artist, March 15th 1998
Dr Giorgio Tosetti, Italy, acquired from the above
Exhibitions:
Paris, Galerie Chozo Yoshii, Hommage à André Malraux - Les voix du Silence, September - November 1997
Literature
G. C. Calza, Imaï, Electa, Milan, 1998 (Onde/Waves series)
Artist biography:
Born in Kyoto, Japan in 1928 Imai was part of the 20th century Japanese avant-garde. He began his formal education at the Tokyo State Art Academy where he took up painting. His early works are characterised by colourful abstractions, reminiscent of Favuism. In 1951 Imai was awarded the Kansai-Shinseisaku Prize and in 1952 the prize for the best new artist at the 15th Shinseisaku Salon.
Imai relocated to Paris in 1953, the same and subsequent year he exhibited at the Salon de L’Art Sacré. Meanwhile, he attended the Académie de la Grande Chaumière and the Sorbonne to read medieval history and philosophy. In 1955, Imai completely abandoned representational art in favour of abstraction. After meeting the art critic Michel Tapié via the artist Sam Francis, Imai was the first Japanese artist to join the Art Informel movement.
In 1956 Imai was called upon by the Japanese artist Taro Okamoto to curate an exhibition entitled The World: Today’s Art in Tokyo. Artists such as Jean Dubuffet, Jean Fautrier, Lucio Fontana, and Karel Appel gained important exposure in Japan. It was also in 1957, when Imai arranged for Tapié and the artists Georges Mathieu and Sam Francis to travel to Japan, that a connection between Art Informel and Gutai occurred. The Ashiya-based Gutai Art Association formed in 1954 was proclaimed a kindred spirit by Tapié which he subsequently promoted internationally. Founding members included Yoshihara Jiro, Kanayma Akira, Murakami Saburo, Shiraga Kazuo and Shozo...
Category
1990s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Acrylic, Paper
Bobine
Located in Palm Desert, CA
"Bobine" is a gouache and ink on paper by Alexander Calder. The work is signed in the lower right "Calder 72".
Although renowned for his innovative and groundbreaking sculptures, Alexander Calder started his artistic career as an abstract painter, preferring to use gouache. What is gouache? Gouache is a water-soluble paint – a type of opaque watercolor.
As Calder returned to gouache painting towards the end of his life, he was now armed with a lifetime of experience as a sculptor. He explored the three-dimensional vocabulary of sculptural forms he had developed onto the two-dimensional surface of the paper. Certain shapes and colors recur throughout his gouaches and sculptures. Circles, ovals, and other geometric forms dominate the space. There is the same sense of energy and fluidity. The shapes do not sit on the surface but vibrate giving a feeling of movement in contrast to the static nature of painting.
Like his sculpture, Calder’s gouache...
Category
1970s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Ink, Gouache
Not yet 012 (Abstract painting)
By Kyong Lee
Located in London, GB
Pencil and acrylic on Canson-Montval paper - Unframed.
This artwork conveys a color and emotional language and is inspired by the series Color as Adjective, a series of drawings and...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Acrylic, Pencil
Covers 24 Blue D Summer
Located in London, GB
Gouache on handmade Khadi paper - Unframed.
Joanne Freeman's works on paper are made with gouache on handmade Indian Khadi paper.
She uses tape to mask out shapes and employ hard ed...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Gouache
U 125 - grey abstract geometric minimalist 3D composition with folded paper
Located in New York, NY
Anna Kruhelska is a visual artist and architect working across fields of art and design. She creates abstract, three-dimensional paper wall reliefs that startle in their intricacy an...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Archival Paper
No. 370
By Clara Fialho
Located in Westport, CT
Brazilian artist, Clara Fialho, is based in New York. Her abstract work with bright and exuberant colors is inspired by her Latin heritage.
She received her BFA from the prestigious...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Watercolor, Gouache, Pencil
An Interior Language IV
Located in New York, NY
About the Series:
Gilliam began the series Life Lines in 2017 after recently coming into possession of MRI scans of her brain. The scans, which she spent hours pouring over, both fas...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Etching, Aquatint, Photographic Paper, Photogram
"The Nature of Things, " Abstract Oil Pastel Drawing initialed by Reginald K. Gee
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"The Nature of Things" is an original oil pastel drawing on paper by Reginald K. Gee. The artist initialed the piece on the back. This work features a variety of abstract techniques-...
Category
1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Oil Pastel
Untitled (ID 1276)
Located in London, GB
Oil and pastel on paper - Unframed
In her abstract drawings, collages and paintings, Fieroza Doorsen brings to life the tensions and harmonies that emerge when structure meets intui...
Category
2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Pastel, Oil
Untitled: Floral Still Life in Orange, Yellow, Purple and Green
Located in New York, NY
Unidentified/Unknown Artist Signature (Miller) "Untitled: Floral Still Life in Orange, Yellow, Purple and Green", Abstract Impressionist Still...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Canvas, Oil
The Colors of Happiness
Located in New York, NY
Friederike Oeser, a contemporary abstract painter, lives and works in Munich, Germany. For Oeser there is no hierarchy of visual value. It all has import—whether it be a trickle of w...
Category
Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Oil Pastel
Abstract abstract drawings and watercolors for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Abstract abstract drawings and watercolors 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 abstract drawings and watercolors created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, orange, purple, red and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Martin Reyna , Mila Akopova, Jaanika Peerna, and Sumit Mehndiratta. Frequently made by artists working with Paper, and Paint 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 abstract drawings and watercolors, so small editions measuring 0.5 inches across are also available. Prices for abstract drawings and watercolors 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 $1 and tops out at $400,000, while the average work sells for $1,502.