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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
Untitled Abstract Expressionist watercolor, pencil signed, Japanese-American art
Located in New York, NY
Taro Yamamoto Untitled Abstract Expressionist watercolor, ca. 1957 Watercolor wash, drips & splatter on rice paper Pencil signed on the front 12 × 16 inches Unframed Mid century mod...
Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor, Rice Paper, Pencil

Monotype of Abstract Rounded Type, Modern Shapes and Layers, Blue Tones
Located in Carballo, ES
Blue Minimal Painting is an original artwork realized by TUSET in 2020. We can frame it in natural wood or black on request. The title of this works is "From the Apollonian pictori...
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21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Handmade Paper

Abstract Watercolor Painting, 'Design for Light', c. 2000 by David Ruth
Located in Oakland, CA
This is a contemporary abstract watercolor painting by artist David Ruth. This series of paintings often feature bright colors and vibrant layouts that draw the viewer in. They are c...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

"This is for Nadine": hand signed unique marker drawing in exhibition catalogue
Located in New York, NY
James Siena "This is for Nadine", signed drawing, 2005 Original drawing done in black marker, bound in the title page of softcover PACE Gallery catalogue with stiff wraps hand signe...
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Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset, Felt Pen

Evolve * Develop * Learn From Past
Located in Jersey City, NJ
Evolve * Develop * Learn From Past Gouache and metallic ink on 1957 Encyclopedia page Feminist Art and Contemporary Feminist / Geometric Abstraction / Gestural Abstraction / Abstra...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Acrylic, Gouache, Magazine Paper

"June" Diana Kurz, Abstract Colorist Composition New York Abstract Expressionism
Located in New York, NY
Diana Kurz June Watercolor and pastels on board 17 x 23 inches Diana Kurz (born 1936) is an Austrian-born feminist painter. In 1938, Diana Kurz's family fled Austria, first to Engl...
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1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Pastel, Watercolor, Board

'Abstract in Red and Ochre', AWS, NWS, Who’s Who in American Art, Albuquerque
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower left, 'Carole Barnes AWS' (American, 20th century) and painted circa 1985. Carole Barnes has exhibited widely and with success and is the r...
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1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor, Laid Paper, Gouache

Chorus Line
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Chorus Line Oil pastel on paper, c. 1960's Signed (see photo) Provenance: Estate of the Artist Estate of the artist (Estate No. 745) Condition: Excellent Image/Sheet size: 5 3/4 x 4 inches Sam Spanier (1925-2008) Born in Brooklyn New York, Sam Spanier studied painting with Hans Hofmann (1949–50) and also at the Taos Valley Art School (1951). His formative years as a working artist were spent in Paris (1951–52), where he also became involved with the work of G. I. Gurdjieff, through his disciple, Mme. Jeanne de Salzmann. By 1953, Spanier’s work had already begun to meet with critical acclaim. That year, he had his first solo gallery show, and was selected by Milton Avery and Hans Hofmann to receive the prestigious Lorian Fund Award. His second solo exhibition, in 1955, was curated by renowned museum director, Gordon Washburn. Spanier’s early work was reviewed by Dore Ashton, Donald Judd, Fairfield Porter, Stuart Preston, and Irving Sandler, among other significant critics of the period. Spanier’s spiritual path increasingly became the central focus of both his life and his art. In 1960, he was introduced to the teachings of Sri Aurobindo, which led to visits to the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, India, in 1962 and 1964, during which he was inspired to leave New York City and found Matagiri (in 1968)—a spiritual center in Woodstock, New York—with his lifelong partner, Eric Hughes. The work he embarked upon there bifurcates his life as an artist, separating him from New York’s art world, and radically altering the trajectory of his career. From that point forward, it would be difficult, perhaps impossible, to consider his artistic endeavor apart from the life of dedication he had undertaken, and to which he remained committed. As early as 1954, Dore Ashton had recognized in Sam Spanier a “haptic visionary;” in 1960, Irving Sandler wrote that the people in Spanier’s paintings “seem to have witnessed some transfiguring event.” In his later paintings—usually worked in oil pastel on panel or paper—made during intermittent creative periods, from the mid-1970s to the final years of his life, the artist’s inner life remains always apparent in his subject matter; and from the portraits and abstract Buddha-like figures and heads, to the fantasy landscapes, the paintings are redolent with a rich intensity of color and light that can only be described as inspired. Sam Spanier’s works are in the collections of the Historical Society of Woodstock Museum, and the Woodstock Artists Association & Museum. He received the Woodstock Artists Association Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007. Selected Solo Exhibitions: Urban Gallery, New York (1954, 1955, 1956); Wittenborn Gallery, New York (1958); Gallery Mayer, New York (1958, 1959, 1960); Unison Gallery, New Paltz (1986, 1995, 2009); Limner Gallery, New York (1988); Fletcher Gallery, Woodstock, New York (1999). Selected Group Exhibitions: Salon des Comparaisons, Musée d’Art Moderne, Paris, France (1952); October Exhibition of Oil Paintings, New York City Center Gallery, New York (1954); Salon de Mai, Musée d’Art moderne de la ville de Paris, Centre Culturel de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Paris, France (1954); Carnegie International, Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1955); Les Plus Mauvais Tableaux, Galerie Prismes, Paris (1955); Première Exposition Internationale de l’Art Plastique Contemporain, Musée des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris (1956); Recent Paintings USA: The Figure, The Museum of Modern Art (1960); Winter’s Work, Woodstock Artists Association, Woodstock, New York (1985); Juried Group Show, Woodstock Artists Association, Woodstock, New York (1986); Woodstock Artists, Self-Portraits, Historical Society of Woodstock Museum, Woodstock, New York (1988); Portraits, Albert Shahinian Fine Art, Poughkeepsie, New York (2003); The World We Live In, Upstate Art, Phoenicia, New York (2003); Show of Heads, Limner Gallery, Phoenicia, New York (2004). Selected Writings on the Artist: Dore Ashton, “Sam Spanier,” Art Digest (May 1, 1954) and “Sam Spanier,” The New York Times (March 16, 1960); Cassia Berman, “Sam Spanier: A Divine Calling,” Woodstock Times (February 7, 2008); Lawrence Campbell, “Sam Spanier: Exhibition of Paintings at Urban Gallery,” Art News (April 1, 1954); Sam Feinstein...
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1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil Crayon

Abstract Expressionist British Original Pastel Yellow Black and Red Colors
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Abstract Composition (c.2022) by Robert Somerton, British, born 1972. pastel on art paper, unframed size: 12.5 x 9.5 inches condition: excellent
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil Pastel

geometric drawing Abstract Circles
Located in Roma, GB
Aureum's work on paper has been included in the Vatican Museums collection since 2017 painting on paper one of a kind, 300msg Fabriano paper , hand signed
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21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor, Pencil

Double Pyramid Thought Form
Located in Houston, TX
Matt Magee Double Pyramid Thought Form, 2019 Oil on aluminum 25 1/2 x 19 1/4 in (64.8 x 48.9 cm) JPHB 5837
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21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil

Untitled '71 Abstract Expressionist drawing. Signed by renowned sculptor, Framed
Located in New York, NY
Anthony Padovano Untitled Abstract Expressionist drawing, 1971 Ink wash on paper drawing Signed and dated in ink wash Unique Original (unique) signed Abstract Expressionist ink wash ...
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1970s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink

Untitled II
Located in London, GB
'Untitled II' abstract composition, mixed media on soft board, Japanese ink, oil, pencil and gouache by Erez Yardeni (2018). There is so much energy in th...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Oil, Gouache, Board, Pencil

Light Blue and Brown Chine Colle Watercolor with Found Object Collage
Located in Soquel, CA
Beautiful abstract expressionist collage by Bay Area artist Michael Pauker (American, b.1957). Composed of two contrasting sections of light blue and brown, this piece has layers of ...
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21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor, Found Objects

Provence Abstract mid 20th Century Painting
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Provence Abstract by Louis Bellon (French 1908-1998) Initialled lower right gouache painting on paper, unframed measurements: 9.5 x 14 inches (overall sheet measures 12.5 x 17.5 inc...
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Mid-20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Gouache

French Expressionist Abstract Original Painting Artists Studio Provenance
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on canvas unframed: 9.5 x 7.5 inches condition: excellent provenance: all the paintings we have fo...
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Mid-20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil

Morning. Abstract composition. 2021. Paper, mixed media, 70x47 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Māris Abiļevs (born 23 April 1956 in Kazakhstan) is a Latvian graphic artist and printer, brother of graphic artist Andris Abiļevs. He works in etching, lithography and various mixed...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Permanent Marker

Abstract Cityscape Mid 20th Century Modern Cubist Work on Paper Drawing Ariel
Located in New York, NY
Abstract Cityscape Mid 20th Century Modern Cubist Work on Paper Drawing Ariel 11 x 4 1/2 inches. Framed by Heydenryk. Provenance: Gary Snyder Fine Art B...
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1950s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Gouache

Study for Sculpture, Unique signed drawing by renowned modernist sculptor Framed
By Richard Stankiewicz
Located in New York, NY
Richard Stankiewicz Study for Sculpture (Untitled), ca. 1968 Graphite on Paper Signed in graphite lower right front Frame Included: held in original vintage frame with Kulicke label ...
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1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Graphite

Monday Series 18
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...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil Pastel

Robert Petersen After A Rain #2 unique abstract signed collage, Castelli Gallery
Located in New York, NY
Robert Petersen After A Rain #2, 1987 Collage on Paper: Pencil, Oil, Acrylic and Cloth Hand signed, dated and titled on lower front with Castelli Graphics label on the back Frame Inc...
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1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Textile, Oil, Acrylic, Graphite

Muse with a Tear-Stained Face
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...
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Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil Pastel

Adrian Heath Modern British Art 'Abstract Study I' watercolour painting
Located in London, GB
To see our other Modern British Art, scroll down to "More from this Seller" and below it click on "See all from this Seller" - or send us a message if you cannot find the artist you want. Adrian Heath (1920-1992) Abstract Study I (1970) Gouache and ink 35x33cm Heath was born in Burma in 1920 and arrived in England aged five. In 1938 he studied art under Stanhope Forbes at Newlyn and later at the Slade School of Art. While serving in WWII, he was captured and placed in a prisoner-of-war camp in Bavaria. Heath attempted to escape from the camp but was recaptured and placed in solitary confinement; this isolation proved crucial to the development of his artistic style, as he spent much of his time there experimenting with abstract forms. When released from confinement, Heath befriended a fellow prisoner of war: Terry Frost. Together they explored the methods of painting which they had developed during their time in the camps, and following the war both became celebrated artists. We have several Terry Frost pieces available too. In 1949 and 1951, Heath returned to Cornwall. He spent time with artists like Ben Nicholson, Victor Pasmore, and Anthony Hill...
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Mid-20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor

Wayfinding (No. 4) Forest-Inspired Work on Paper by Katherine Filice
Located in Hollister, CA
Wayfinding (No. 4) is a 16.5 x 11.5-inch ink and pastel drawing on paper that captures the spirit of searching—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. With ribbon-like gestures and...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil Pastel, Pastel, Archival Ink, Archival Paper

Lost Pets XV : Abstract artwork on paper
Located in New York, NY
Abstract artwork on paper by a Bulgarian/American artist Iliyan Ivanov. Ivanov continues to treat color in a multilayered approach, introducing a wid...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Lost Pets IX : Abstract artwork on paper
Located in New York, NY
Abstract artwork on paper by a Bulgarian/American artist Iliyan Ivanov. Ivanov continues to treat color in a multilayered approach, introducing a wid...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Lost Pets VII : Abstract artwork on paper
Located in New York, NY
Abstract artwork on paper by a Bulgarian/American artist Iliyan Ivanov. Ivanov continues to treat color in a multilayered approach, introducing a wid...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Original, unique signed Study for sculpture Motu Viget (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
Located in New York, NY
Mark di Suvero Study for Motu Viget, ca. 1977 Ink wash on notebook paper. Hand signed in black marker 14 × 11 1/4 inches Boldly signed in black marker o...
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1970s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, India Ink, Permanent Marker

Light Dark - abstract painting, made in black, grey, beige color, 2025
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...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, India Ink

Set of 3 Stamps. Framed. From The Series Terms and Conditions
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Set of 3 Stamps Framed by Rodrigo Spinel From The Series Terms and Conditions . Chinese ink on Fabriano paper 250 g. Overall size: Image size: 29.7 cm H x 63 cm W Frame size: 42 c...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, India Ink

Untitled 2002 (Abstract Drawing)
Located in London, GB
Untitled 2002 (Abstract Drawing) Pastel on paper - Unframed. In her abstract drawings, collages and paintings, Fieroza Doorsen brings to life the tensions and harmonies that emerge...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Pastel

"Modern Woman"
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Joseph Meierhans (1890 - 1980) Joseph Meierhans is one of the most important modernist painters associated with Bucks Count...
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20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Charcoal

Everything is Connected
Located in San Francisco, CA
Paula Valenzuela Everything is Connected, 2025 Watercolor, alcohol and acrylic inks on paper 14 x 10 inches This one-of-a-kind work on paper comes unframed and ships in a tube. Exte...
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21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Colorful Abstract Watercolor by Mac Jamison
By Mac Jamison
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Mac Jamison, American Title: Untitled Medium: Watercolor, signed l.r. Size: 30 in. x 41.5 in. (76.2 cm x 105.41 cm)
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1970s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor

French Expressionist Abstract Original Painting Artists Studio Provenance
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on paper/ card unframed: 12.75 x 10 inches condition: excellent provenance: all the paintings we ha...
Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil

Picos Tercio, Esfera transparencia 3 and Cubos Transparencia 3. Drawings
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Set of 3 Abstract Drawing on paper, 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 56 cm W. Fram...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, India Ink

Flow
Located in San Francisco, CA
Paula Valenzuela Flow, 2025 Watercolor, alcohol and acrylic ink on paper 14 x 10 inches This one-of-a-kind work on paper comes unframed and ships in a tube. External, visible frame ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Dawn. Abstract composition. 2021. Paper, mixed media, 48x71 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Māris Abiļevs (born 23 April 1956 in Kazakhstan) is a Latvian graphic artist and printer, brother of graphic artist Andris Abiļevs. He works in etching, lithography and various mixed...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Permanent Marker

Blue Blossom unique signed work on handmade hand dyed paper ex Tupperware Coll.
Located in New York, NY
Margie Hughto Blue Blossom, 1983 Dyed Handmade paper Hand signed and dated by the artist on the lower right front. Titled on the back. Frame Included in ...
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1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Dye, Handmade Paper, Mixed Media, Permanent Marker

"Superposition 06" stylish blue and teal textured abstract pigment work on paper
Located in Dallas, TX
Emma's artwork is inspired by the Parisian luxury world of fashion, textures and colour. This beautifully layered blue and teal tone artwork titled "Superposition 06" works well on i...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Acrylic, Archival Paper, Pigment

ORIGINAL INK UNIQUE PIECE GEORGES MATHIEU MANUFACTURE DES GOBELINS
Located in Tel Aviv - Jaffa, IL
Original ink on paper Hand signed Unique piece Manufacture Nationale des Gobelins
Category

1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink

"Colorful Geometric Abstraction, " Simon Samsonian, Armenian Artist
Located in New York, NY
Simon Samsonian (1912 - 2003) Colorful Geometric Abstraction, 1981 Oil on paper 16 x 22 inches Signed and dated lower right Provenance: Estate of the artist This survivor of the Armenian genocide wound up in a Cairo orphanage in 1927. He rose to fame as one of Egypt’s great modernists, but after moving to Long Island late in life he withdrew into anonymity. Now his compelling story is being told. Art historians are finally beginning to realize that the power of abstraction in its early years was a zeitgeist not limited to the major European centers of the avant-garde — Paris, Munich, and Moscow — but one that quickly rippled to major cities throughout the world. Within a few decades that original shock of a new vision had inspired thousands of artists from different cultures — particularly those the Middle East — whose translations were not slavish imitations of works by seminal figures like Picasso, Braque, Malevich, and Kandinsky but creative variants colored by their respective cultures. This essay focuses on an extraordinary Armenian artist, his harrowing survival of the genocide, his rise to fame in Cairo, and his creation of a unique style of abstraction. Art historians have typically formed a chorus that teaches the history of abstraction like this: Just before and during the World War I era, several avant-garde artists emerged to create shockingly different new forms by which artists could express themselves. In Paris, Picasso and Braque broke out with cubism, quickly followed by Mondrian. In Moscow, Malevich created Suprematism, the ultimate hard-edge geometric abstraction. And in Munich, Kandinsky emerged as the father of Abstract Expressionism. Within these few short years a zeitgeist was sensed throughout the art world. American pioneers, too — particularly Stanton Macdonald-Wright and Morgan Russell — felt this explosive freedom of expression. When Europe was recovering after World War I it became clear that Paris would retain its title as capitol of the art world, lasting through the Roaring Twenties and even through the Great Depression. But the end of World War II changed everything. A parallel war had been won by a group of irascible young Abstract Expressionists in New York — led by Pollock, Rothko, DeKooning, and Kline. No sooner had Paris been liberated from the Germans than Picasso, Matisse, Breton, and Duchamp surrendered to the Americans. From that point on New York would be the epicenter of the art world. But a lens that focuses myopically on the war between the avant-garde of Paris and New York misses the wider narrative of multiple aesthetic modernities that developed in the several decades following World War I. For Armenian artists the matter is even more complex owing to the genocide of 1915 where more than 1.5 million people — seventy-five percent of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire — were massacred. Those not shot on the spot were sent on death marches through the Mesopotamian desert without food or water. Frequently, the marchers were stripped and forced to walk naked under the scorching sun until they dropped dead. As a child Samsonian witnessed the murder of his parents and most of the members of his family. Soon thereafter, his older sister, Anahid, quickly shepherded him into a line of children being rescued by Greek nuns. But they became separated and he lost her, too. He was sent to a Greek orphanage in Smyrna (now Izmir), on Turkey’s west coast. Because he only knew his first name, the orphanage gave him a last name based on the place where they found him — Samsun — a major port on Turkey’s north coast on the Black Sea. His birth date was unknown, too. According to Samsonian’s vague recollections he assumed he was about three or four years old at the onset of the genocide, which would place his birth year in 1911 or 1912. In 1922, when Samsonian was about 10, the Turks ended their war with the Greeks by putting Smyrna to the torch in what has been called the “Catastrophe of Smyrna.” Once again, the child was on the run, escaping the fire and slaughter. He found temporary refuge in Constantinople, but within a year that major port would fall to the Turks, too, and become renamed as Istanbul. This time, Samsonian was whisked away to an orphanage in Greece founded by the American charity, Near East Relief — which is credited with saving so many Armenian orphans that the American historian Howard M. Sachar said it “quite literally kept an entire nation alive. Any understanding of Samsonian’s approach to modernism requires careful consideration of the impact of his early years because his art is inseparable from the anguish he experienced. In 1927, when he was a teenager, he was transferred to Cairo, Egypt, then a cosmopolitan city hosting a sizable portion of the Armenian diaspora. There he lived with thirty-two other children on the top floor of the Kalousdian Armenian School. Upon graduating in 1932 he won a scholarship to attend the Leonardo da Vinci Art Institute — an Italian art school in Cairo — where he won first prize in final examinations among one hundred students. He found work with an Armenian lithographic printer and he returned to the Kalousdian Armenian School to teach drawing. In 1939 he married one of his students, Lucy Guendimian. The Cairo in which Samsonian matured as an artist was home to many prominent art collectors after World War I. In this receptive environment Samsonian exhibited widely and won many awards. Beginning in 1937 and for the next thirty years he exhibited annually at the prestigious Le Salon du Caire hosted by the Société les Amis de l’Art (founded in 1921). After World War II he hit his stride as a modernist in Cairo, counting among his peers other artists of the Armenian diaspora such as Onnig Avedissian, Achod Zorian, Gregoire Meguerdichian, Hagop Hagopian...
Category

1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Oil

Abstract Watercolor Painting, 'Design for Light', C. 1995 by David Ruth
Located in Oakland, CA
This is a contemporary abstract watercolor painting by artist David Ruth. This series of paintings often feature bright colors and vibrant layouts that draw the viewer in. They are c...
Category

1990s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Into the Sunset
Located in New York, NY
Andrei Petrov is an American artist of Russian origins. He is best known for his abstract oil paintings where calibrated stratifications of intense shades of colors are scraped to ex...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Oil

«Geometry of the Time Archipelago»
Located in Zofingen, AG
The painting is ready to hang, the painting has no decorative frame. «Geometry of the Time Archipelago» — a work from the "Mosaic of Time" series, exploring the fragility and antifr...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Mixed Media, Canvas

French Expressionist Abstract Original Painting Artists Studio Provenance
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on paper/ card unframed: 10.75 x 8.25 inches condition: excellent provenance: all the paintings we ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil

Joan Mirò (1893-1983) - Ubu rey (Ubu Roi) - 1966
Located in Varese, IT
Color lithograph on fine Arches paper Published 1966 Publisher: Maeght, Paris Limited edition Signature and numbering in pencil by the artist Numbered specimen: 68/75 Paper size: 54...
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1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper

'Migration: In Flux Pandemic Collection, ' by Peter Healy, Painting, 2020
Located in Oklahoma City, OK
This framed 27" x 37" watercolor painting by Irish artist, Peter Healy is from the 'In Flux' Pandemic Collection. The painting comes vibrantly alive as the...
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2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Watercolor, Paper

Signed Chinese Calligraphy Drawing, (Memorial Sloan Kettering Art Coll.), Framed
Located in New York, NY
Zhang Hui (b. 1969) Untitled Calligraphy Drawing (from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Art Collection), 2007 India ink on hand made fine art paper Signed and dated in graphite pencil on...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

India Ink

Untitled 171215
Located in Philadelphia, PA
"Untitled 171215" is an original acrylic and acrylic transfer on panel painting by Ryan Beck measuring 16"h x 16"w. Ryan Beck works in an abstract style that aims to link contempora...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Acrylic, Panel

Blue Mother Drawing #3 (Geometric Abstract Watercolor Painting in Blue & Black)
Located in Hudson, NY
Blue Mother Drawing #3, by Jeanette Fintz in 2020 22 x 30 inches watercolor, gouache on Fabriano paper Signed lower right corner Framed: 32 x 39.5 inches, custom white frame, 8 ply w...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor, Gouache, Archival Paper

Abstract drawing n°2 by Julien Dinou
Located in Geneva, CH
Drawing on paper without frame Size A4
Category

1960s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil Pastel

Series "Composition", 50 x 35 cm, acrylic on paper
Located in Yerevan, AM
Series "Composition", 50 x 35 cm, acrylic on paper The work is sold without a frame and mat
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Series "Shells", 42 x 30 cm, acrylic on paper
Located in Yerevan, AM
Series "Shells", 42 x 30 cm The work is sold without a frame and mat
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Regular. From The No. 1 Series. Abstract Drawing on paper.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Regular, 2017 by Rodrigo Spinel From The No. 1 Series Chinese ink on Fabriano paper 250 g. Image size: 14.8 cm H x 21 cm W Frame size: 22 cm H x 29 cm W x 4 cm D One of a Kind N...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, India Ink

The Dead Tiger
Located in Fairlawn, OH
The Dead Tiger Ink and watercolor on paper, 1955 Signed and dated in ink (see photo) Condition: Aging to the entire sheet (it's 78 years old) Image/Sheet size: 18 1/4 x 23 inches On...
Category

1950s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor

Nancy Pantirer: Underwater Series. Royal Blue Organic Abstract Watercolor
Located in New York, NY
Nancy Pantirer Untitled Watercolor on paper 28 x 22 inches Part of Nancy Pantirer’s UNDERWATER series Nancy Pantirer’s UNDERWATER series features large watercolor and acrylic piece...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor

Nancy Pantirer: Underwater Series. Deep Blue Pools of Watercolor Wonder
Located in New York, NY
Nancy Pantirer Untitled Watercolor on paper 28 x 22 inches Part of Nancy Pantirer’s UNDERWATER series Nancy Pantirer’s UNDERWATER series features large watercolor and acrylic piece...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor

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.

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