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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
Period: 21st Century and Contemporary
Cut-Up Paper 2004
Located in London, GB
Acrylic on paper - Unframed. Pedersen works with acrylic paint. When painting a composition, she tends toward a limited color palette, often reducing the composition to minimal, ha...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Daily Drawing Series - 40 Days, original drawings, large scale installation
Located in New York, NY
The discipline of creating a drawing each day is a process, like a written diary, to clear the mind, to declutter thoughts, and to observe patterns. It is a method that allows the mind a freedom to wander and drift. A visual journal becomes a safe space for personal reflection–a self-awareness fueled by the opportunity for contemplation and immersion. The painted surface for the drawings was created by dividing five large paintings into 40 separate pieces. I chose five paintings from my Perspective Series (1993-94), which relied on day-to-day imagery that narrated a story about shifting time and how time anchors our day. The brush strokes of Perspectives are fluid, with muted colors – moving from deep blacks to taupe whites. Dividing these pieces was a means for me to rethink ideas and recurring images in my older work. The very thin gold leaf applied to each piece has a wonderful amber tone. This gold leaf is from Myanmar, where it is used as decoration for Buddha or for the dome of a temple or monastery. In the drawings, the gold element relates to the sense of infinity – like the sky in an enclosed courtyard. An architectural element is a critical component in my studio work that I wanted to carry over into these pieces. I envisioned a courtyard–a safe space that opens up to the sky. Unfolding circles define the beginnings of an open interior space. The process felt open-ended. It was an opportunity to get lost in thought and to give me an opportunity to reflect, muse and declutter my thinking. Then repeat. 40 days...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media, Wax, Acrylic

"Macrovision 10", pastel, drawing, microscopic, abstract, blue, green, grey
Located in Natick, MA
Kay Hartung’s “Macrovision 10” is a 19.5 x 25 inch pastel drawing done on black Canson Mi Teintes paper. In colors of blue, green and yellow on a background of grey, the shapes form ...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Pastel

Marincanto View, 2002
Located in Quogue, NY
Watercolor on paper
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Going Down, Drawing, Pen & Ink on Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
Pen, colored pencil, graphite, India ink on paper :: Drawing :: Abstract :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenticity signed by the artist :: Ready to Hang: No :...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Pen

Untitled White 1 (Abstract Geometric Mixed Media Work on Wooden Panel)
Located in Hudson, NY
Untitled White 1, 2018 12" X 14" mixed media on board This abstract geometric composition on wooden board, part of the "Unititled White" series, features a playful grid motif that ...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Acrylic, Gouache, Archival Paper, Graphite

Warren St 8
Located in London, GB
Spray paint, pencil, ink, watercolor on paper. Unframed. Peter Soriano works on relatively large sheets of Japanese paper with a tendency to work from something observed, ideally ar...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Spray Paint, Watercolor, Pencil, Paper

Untitled No. 26 (Modern Black & Grey Abstract Fruit Drawing in Black Frame)
Located in Hudson, NY
Vertical charcoal drawing on Arches paper 18 x 13 inches unframed 25 x 20 inches in black metal frame with AR non-glare glass & 8-ply mat This contemporary, abstract charcoal drawin...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Charcoal

Black_X - 21st Century, Abstract, Drawing, Black, White, Monochrome
Located in Berlin, DE
Black_X, 2016 pencil, white pastel on black cardboard 27.55 H x 19.68 W in. 70 H x 50 W cm Alina Aldea's drawings project all the possible forms which appear to rapidly disappear, w...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Pastel, Cardboard, Pencil

Untitled 2012
Located in London, GB
Ink and acrylic on paper - Unframed. In her abstract drawings, collages and paintings, Fieroza Doorsen brings to life the tensions and harmonies that emerge when structure meets int...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink, Acrylic

Untitled (Ref 19005)
Located in London, GB
Ink on paper - Unframed. Martín Reyna is an Argentinian-born abstract painter living in Paris, France. His gestural abstract paintings delight the eye and activate the mind with the...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink

Serie III number 3 -minimalism geometric stripes black and white
Located in Fort Lee, NJ
Serie III number 3 - combination of minimalism geometric draw and abstract writing (stripes). Made in black and white colors.Gouache and varnish on 250g black paper Black Black Fabri...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Varnish, Gouache

Tablescape II (Abstract Framed Gouache Drawing on Paper in Beige, Blue, Yellow)
Located in Hudson, NY
Abstract gouache on paper drawing in a palette of yellow, beige and blue with accents of red, sienna, and earth green Created by Hud...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Oil & cold wax painting, Sandrine Kern, Untitled #6
Located in White Plains, NY
'Untitled #6 in 2017 by New York City base, French artist Sandrine Kern. Acrylic, oil, and ink on paper, Paper: 13.25 x 17 in. / Frame 19 x 25 in. This abstracted landscape work on ...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Canvas, Oil Pastel, Ink, Acrylic

K2005 (Abstract work on paper)
Located in London, GB
Mixed media and collage on paper - Unframed. Harald Kröner works thoroughly with paper, of which he is a notorious collector. Harald Kröner's work is very much about perception and...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media

Indian Contemporary Art by Sumit Mehndiratta - Untitled No.74
Located in Paris, IDF
Indian ink on paper, set of 9 drawings, limited edition of 20 - artwork can be shipped in a tube or framed in a crate ...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

India Ink, Bamboo Paper

OA 19
Located in London, GB
Acrylic on paper - Unframed. Using the geometric vocabulary found in architectural schemata, Bolt tries to create a dynamic tension between foreground and background, center and edg...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

The mazes of memory-abstraction art, made in brown, light blue, aubergine color
Located in Fort Lee, NJ
Interior design paintings. The diptych is made with alcoholic ink on Yupo paper. Each work is 11 by 14 inches in size, framed without glass on a double mat board in light blue with s...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink

Sixteen Street 7.15 (Abstract Expressionism painting)
Located in London, GB
Gouache on paper - Unframed. Jill Moser is an American abstract artist whose work explores the intersection of “painting, writing and the animated image.” Her work is in the colle...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Gouache

"#152 – GOOD GIRL", ink, pencil, gouache, found vintage book, hemingway, poetry
Located in Toronto, Ontario
"#152 – GOOD GIRL" is from Amy Williams' series A Farewell to Arms – wherein the artist is working directly onto page 152 of a found copy of Ernest Heming...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Found Objects, Ink, Gouache, Pencil

OC 19
Located in London, GB
Acrylic on paper - Unframed. Using the geometric vocabulary found in architectural schemata, Bolt tries to create a dynamic tension between foreground and background, center and edg...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

BOTTOM OF THE EIGHTH
By Marvin Gould
Located in Tulsa, OK
Marvin Gould BOTTOM OF THE EIGHTH Marvin has professional experience as a draftsman, sign maker, billboard designer and painter, graphic designer, art faculty and professional musici...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Photographic Film

Woven lines 39 - abstract red blue green yellow dominant ink drawing on paper
Located in New York, NY
Dana Piazza's creates abstract colorful drawings, full of the illusion of depth, movement, and three-dimensionality. His highly obsessive ink drawings on paper are built upon algorit...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Archival Ink, Archival Paper

Untitled 2002
Located in London, GB
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 intuition. H...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Pastel

Untitled 2009
Located in London, GB
Oil on postcard - Unframed. In her abstract drawings, collages and paintings, Fieroza Doorsen brings to life the tensions and harmonies that emerge when structure meets intuition. H...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil, Postcard

Black_XIV - Contemporary, Black, Monochrome, Abstract, Drawing, 21st Century
Located in Berlin, DE
Black_XIV, 2017 Pencil, black pastel on black cardboard 27.55 H x 19.68 W in. 70 H x 50 W cm Alina Aldea's drawing projects all the possible forms which appear to rapidly disappear,...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Pastel, Cardboard, Pencil

Dolphin Dance 30
Located in London, GB
Gouache on rag tracing vellum - Unframed. This work on paper is part of a series of collaged paintings titled “Jazz: Herbieʼs ʻDolphin Danceʼ #1-22”. Those brush paintings are Pri...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Gouache, Vellum

Black_VIII - Contemporary, Drawing, Black, Monochrome, Abstract
Located in Berlin, DE
Black_VIII, 2016 pencil, black pastel on black cardboard 27.55 H x 19.68 W in. 70 H x 50 W cm Alina Aldea's drawings project all the possible forms which appear to rapidly disappear...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Pastel, Cardboard, Pencil

Untitled 1914
Located in London, GB
Pastel and pencil on paper - Unframed. In her abstract drawings, collages and paintings, Fieroza Doorsen brings to life the tensions and harmonies that emerge when structure meets i...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Pastel, Paper

In the Garden, Painting, Watercolor on Watercolor Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
Intense hues were applied in a poured technique to create this brilliant abstracted garden painting. This original piece was created on archival illustration board. The piece is fra...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor

Cut-Up Paper 2005
Located in London, GB
Acrylic on paper - Unframed. Pedersen works with acrylic paint. When painting a composition, she tends toward a limited color palette, often reducing the composition to minimal, ha...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Wings -abstract painting, made in rose, pale blue color
Located in Fort Lee, NJ
Interior design paintings. The diptych is made with alcoholic ink on Yupo paper. Each work is 11 by 14 inches in size, framed without glass on a double mat board dark blue or gray wi...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink

M336
Located in London, GB
Digital creation, printed on Hahnemühle Photo Rag de 308 gr - Unframed. Fluctuating between illustration and expressionism, connecting the geometric and biomorphic worlds, Perea co...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Digital

Scribble
Located in Phoenix, AZ
charcoal on paper Travis Rice received his MFA from Arizona State University’s Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts. Influenced by his background in architecture, his work in...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Charcoal, Paper

G_15 - Contemporary, Black, White, Abstract, Drawing, 21st Century
Located in Berlin, DE
G_15, 2019 White ink on black cardboard 39,37 H x 27.55 W in. 100 H x 70 W cm Alina Aldea's drawing projects all the possible forms which appear to rapidly disappear, without having...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Cardboard

Iguazu-made in orange, yellow, red, blue, pink, green
Located in Fort Lee, NJ
Interior design paintings. The work was done with alcohol ink in orange, yellow, red, blue, pink and green color on Yupo paper. The work is 20 by 26 inches in size, framed in fine-qu...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink

Glacier
Located in Fairfield, CT
When a simple vertical line finds itself in the midst of accidental organic chaos, a sense of directionality and stability is introduced. The line itself can act as a tool used to di...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Graphite

Dolphin Dance 24
Located in London, GB
Gouache on rag tracing vellum - Unframed. This work on paper is part of a series of collaged paintings titled “Jazz: Herbieʼs ʻDolphin Danceʼ #1-22”. Those brush paintings are Pri...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Gouache, Vellum

The Blues Will Take You There, Painting, Watercolor on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
My first painting in 2020, part of a new series about the Baltic Sea and the special light and dramatic weather conditions there. Often the light is shining through the clouds, some ...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor

Iguazu-made in orange, yellow, red, blue, pink, green
Located in Fort Lee, NJ
Interior design paintings. The work was done with alcohol ink in orange, yellow, red, blue, pink and green color on Yupo paper. The work is 20 by 26 inches in size, framed in fine-qu...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink

Ocean - abstract painting in black, yellow, turquoise blue
Located in Fort Lee, NJ
Interior design paintings. Abstraction art, made in yellow, black, white and turquoise blue. Can be positioned in horizontal or vertical mode. Lena Chernyavskaya / LENA CHER Born i...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Canvas, Resin, Acrylic

A Dissolving of Illusion (Abstract Expressionist Painting in Blue & Light Gold)
Located in Hudson, NY
Gestural abstract expressionist painting on paper in colorful hues of blue and faint gold "A Dissolving of Illusion”, painted by Bruce Murphy in 2020 30 x 24 inches unframed, enamel...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Archival Paper, Spray Paint

P13
Located in New York, NY
Julián Terán fuses Argentine folk rhythms with electronic music through his free-hand drawings. He produces a musicality in his delicate and meticulous tracing that echoes throughou...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Archival Paper

Statement of Benefits (Abstract Expressionist Painting in Orange, Red, Yellow)
Located in Hudson, NY
Gestural abstract expressionist painting on paper in colorful hues of red, yellow, orange, magenta, and silver "A Statement of Benefits", painted by Bruce Murphy in 2020 36 x 24 in...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Spray Paint, Archival Paper

M353
Located in London, GB
Digital creation, printed on Hahnemühle Photo Rag de 308 gr - Unframed. Fluctuating between illustration and expressionism, connecting the geometric and biomorphic worlds, Perea co...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Digital

P15
Located in New York, NY
Julián Terán fuses Argentine folk rhythms with electronic music through his free-hand drawings. He produces a musicality in his delicate and meticulous tracing that echoes throughou...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Archival Paper

Dorsal
Located in New York, NY
Julián Terán fuses Argentine folk rhythms with electronic music through his free-hand drawings. He produces a musicality in his delicate and meticulous tracing that echoes throughou...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Archival Paper

Hot Spots 9
Located in New York, NY
Julián Terán fuses Argentine folk rhythms with electronic music through his free-hand drawings. He produces a musicality in his delicate and meticulous tracing that echoes throughou...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Archival Paper

Gestured
Located in Phoenix, AZ
charcoal on paper Travis Rice received his MFA from Arizona State University’s Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts. Influenced by his background in architecture, his work in...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Charcoal, Paper

Gray with Blue, Green
Located in Burlingame, CA
Geometric and serene in its complexity - abstract contemporary painting created with impeccable attention to detail by deconstructing original watercolors—based largely on landscape,...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Wood, Mixed Media, Watercolor, Ink

Tingel-tangel - XXI Century, Mixed media drawing, Abstraction, Colorful
Located in Warsaw, PL
LESZEK RÓZGA (1924-2015) He studied painting at Maria Skarbek-Kruszewska private atelier in 1945-46. In 1948, he began studies at the art school in Łódź (later: Academy of Fine Arts)...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Crayon, Ink

Untitled (Ref 19016)
Located in London, GB
Ink on paper - Unframed. Martín Reyna is an Argentinian-born abstract painter living in Paris, France. His gestural abstract paintings delight the eye and activate the mind with the...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink

Hot Spots 8
Located in New York, NY
Julián Terán fuses Argentine folk rhythms with electronic music through his free-hand drawings. He produces a musicality in his delicate and meticulous tracing that echoes throughou...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Ink, Archival Paper

Terrace Positano, 2002
Located in Quogue, NY
Watercolor on paper
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Untitled (ID 1292)
Located in London, GB
Gouache on paper - Unframed In her abstract drawings, collages and paintings, Fieroza Doorsen brings to life the tensions and harmonies that emerge when structure meets intuition. ...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Gouache

Movement
Located in Phoenix, AZ
charcoal on paper Travis Rice received his MFA from Arizona State University’s Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts. Influenced by his background in architecture, his work in...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Charcoal, Paper

Grey 2 - intricate grey 3D abstract geometric drypoint drawing on paper
Located in New York, NY
Finesse and delicacy are what characterize best Antonin Anzil’s artistic practice. Paper as a medium seems incompatible with the idea of engraving or sculpturing; and yet. Using a sh...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Archival Paper

"#227 – I WAS AFRAID", ink, pencil, gouache, found book, poetry, coronavirus
Located in Toronto, Ontario
"#227 – I WAS AFRAID" is from Amy Williams' series A Farewell to Arms – wherein the artist works directly onto pages of a found copy of Ernest Hemingway's WWII romance novel. The art...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Found Objects, Ink, Gouache, Pencil

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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