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Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

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
Untitled
Located in København S, DK
Explore Mila Francesca Cali's abstract watercolors, inspired by her plein-air studies of space and nature. With echoes of modernist painting in a contemporary context, each piece res...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Pencil

Untitled
Located in København S, DK
Explore Mila Francesca Cali's abstract watercolors, inspired by her plein-air studies of space and nature. With echoes of modernist painting in a contemporary context, each piece res...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Pencil

Untitled
Located in København S, DK
Explore Mila Francesca Cali's abstract watercolors, inspired by her plein-air studies of space and nature. With echoes of modernist painting in a contemporary context, each piece res...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Pencil

Untitled
Located in København S, DK
Explore Mila Francesca Cali's abstract watercolors, inspired by her plein-air studies of space and nature. With echoes of modernist painting in a contemporary context, each piece res...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Pencil

Speak to Me, 2023, abstract, colorful, watercolor and acrylic on paper
Located in New York, NY
Sarah Brenneman is an American artist based in West Orange, New Jersey working primarily in painting. Her overarching interest lies in abstraction as a universal language and she wor...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Black Flower 7
Located in Paris, IDF
Ink on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image to the ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Black Flower 6
Located in Paris, IDF
Ink on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image to the ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Black Flower 5
Located in Paris, IDF
Ink on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image to the ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Black Flower 3
Located in Paris, IDF
Ink on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image to the ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Untitled 5
Located in Paris, IDF
Watercolor, ink on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the i...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Untitled 4
Located in Paris, IDF
Watercolor, ink on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the i...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Untitled 3
Located in Paris, IDF
Watercolor, ink on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the i...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Nebula
Located in Paris, IDF
Watercolor on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Untitled
Located in Paris, IDF
Watercolor on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Bath 4
Located in Paris, IDF
Watercolor on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Bath 2
Located in Paris, IDF
Watercolor on Canson paper 300 g. Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Ecuadorian Contemporary Art by Doïna Vieru - Bath
Located in Paris, IDF
Watercolor on Canson paper Doïna Vieru is an Ecuadorian-Moldavian artist born in 1978 who lives & works in France, Paris. She always preferred pas/pas/passionately the image to the ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Einstein's Ring I
Located in New York, NY
Jody Rasch’s work is drawn from various science practices, including astronomy, biology, and sub-atomic physics. In his subject matter and technique, Rasch builds on historical conce...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Poplar, Gouache

Wave Function - Hyrdogen
Located in New York, NY
Jody Rasch’s work is drawn from various science practices, including astronomy, biology, and sub-atomic physics. In his subject matter and technique, Rasch builds on historical conc...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Cosmic Background
Located in New York, NY
Jody Rasch’s work is drawn from various science practices, including astronomy, biology, and sub-atomic physics. In his subject matter and technique, Rasch builds on historical conc...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Pen

Thought - Myelin 2
Located in New York, NY
Jody Rasch’s work is drawn from various science practices, including astronomy, biology, and sub-atomic physics. In his subject matter and technique, Rasch builds on historical conc...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Porch (Abstract painting)
Located in London, GB
Porch (Abstract painting) Acrylic and Ink on Arches Paper — Unframed. Laura Newman's paintings combine geometric delineations of space, ephemeral color fields, dynamic lines and org...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Acrylic

Slide (Abstract painting)
Located in London, GB
Slide (Abstract painting) Acrylic and Ink on Arches Paper — Unframed. Laura Newman's paintings combine geometric delineations of space, ephemeral color fields, dynamic lines and org...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Acrylic

Bridge (Abstract painting)
Located in London, GB
Bridge (Abstract painting) Acrylic and Ink on Arches Paper — Unframed. Laura Newman's paintings combine geometric delineations of space, ephemeral color fields, dynamic lines and or...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Acrylic

Sposobb #3 by Oleg Ustinov - Abstract painting, mixed media on paper, 2013
Located in Basel, BS
Sposobb #3 is an abstract work by contemporary artist Oleg Ustinov, made in 2013 for the artist's ongoing project "IDM" (Intelligent Dance Music). In “IDM” Oleg explores the dialogue...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media

Untitled #8 by Oleg Ustinov - Abstract drawing, color pencils on paper, 2021
Located in Basel, BS
The series of pencil drawings by contemporary artist Oleg Ustinov can can be described as "acid abstraction" — a reassembled skeleton of abstract painting, the method of creating whi...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Color Pencil

Black Holes & Filaments
Located in New York, NY
Shanthi Chandrasekar has been trained in the traditional art forms of Kolam and Tanjore-style painting. While many of her works are influenced by her Indian heritage, her true inspir...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Resin, Paper, Ink, Pen

Particles
Located in New York, NY
Shanthi Chandrasekar has been trained in the traditional art forms of Kolam and Tanjore-style painting. While many of her works are influenced by her Indian heritage, her true inspir...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Resin, Pen

Clusters
Located in New York, NY
Shanthi Chandrasekar has been trained in the traditional art forms of Kolam and Tanjore-style painting. While many of her works are influenced by her Indian heritage, her true inspir...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Pen, Ink, Resin, Paper

Kathleen Beausoleil, Transverse 2023, pink ink on paper, landscape drawing
Located in New York, NY
Kathleen Beausoleil lives and works in Fair Haven, NJ. Primarily working in oil paint, her works focus on what it means to be a social being. Beausoleil received a 2022 Fellowship fr...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink

Expressive abstract artwork. Minimalistic graphics. Lemon Accent
Located in Sempach, LU
"Lemon Accent" This intuitive abstract drawing is made with Chinese ink and pastel on watercolour paper. It conveys an impulse born in the space of sensations. "Every time I draw such abstract lines, a flow of energy moves my hand. For this to happen freely, I need to be calm and focused at the same time. I draw very quickly to keep expression and spontaneity. I never know what the result will be. The process of drawing like this is a kind of magic that turns an invisible impulse into a reflection on paper. Each drawing is unique and one of a kind." Sve Gri...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Pastel, Ink

Expressive abstract artwork. Minimalistic Graphic Drawing. Vibration of Strokes
Located in Sempach, LU
"Vibration of Strokes" is intuitive abstract drawing is made with Chinese ink, pencil and pastel on watercolour paper. It conveys an impulse born in the space of sensations. "Every time I draw such abstract lines, a flow of energy moves my hand. For this to happen freely, I need to be calm and focused at the same time. I draw very quickly to keep expression and spontaneity. I never know what the result will be. The process of drawing like this is a kind of magic that turns an invisible impulse into a reflection on paper. Each drawing is unique and one of a kind." Sve Gri...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Pastel, Ink, Pencil

鳥 Bird
Located in New York, NY
2020, Handmade Senshi paper, sheep and weasel hair brush, oil smoke ink
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Oil, Handmade Paper

Cuaderno de Bitácora, n° 86
Located in Madrid, ES
This series of drawings entitled Notebook of Bitácora are almost traces of ink, traces that emerge as the paper dries and that transmit the memory of the shapes left by the tides in ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink

Cuaderno de Bitácora, n° 83
Located in Madrid, ES
This series of drawings entitled Notebook of Bitácora are almost traces of ink, traces that emerge as the paper dries and that transmit the memory of the shapes left by the tides in ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink

Cuaderno de Bitácora, n° 82
Located in Madrid, ES
This series of drawings entitled Notebook of Bitácora are almost traces of ink, traces that emerge as the paper dries and that transmit the memory of the shapes left by the tides in ...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink

Networks - Pentagon
Located in New York, NY
Cosmology "I am fascinated by abstract theories and hypothetical ideas in physics, especially in cosmology, which is the science of the universe’s origin, its evolution and its even...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Pen

Modern Vandalism: Albert Kahn, Sheet 4M
Located in Detroit, MI
Graffiti ink on salvaged blueprint 32 x 41.50 inches 2022 (10/10)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Albert Kahn, Sheet 11
Located in Detroit, MI
Graffiti ink on salvaged blueprint 32 x 41.50 inches 2022 (9/10)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Albert Kahn, Sheet 7
Located in Detroit, MI
Graffiti ink on salvaged blueprint 32 x 41.50 inches 2022 (8/10)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Albert Kahn, Sheet 2
Located in Detroit, MI
Graffiti ink on salvaged blueprint 32 x 41.50 inches 2022 (7/10)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Albert Kahn, Sheet 8
Located in Detroit, MI
Graffiti ink on salvaged blueprint 32 x 41.50 inches 2022 (5/10)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Albert Kahn, Sheet 1
Located in Detroit, MI
Graffiti ink on salvaged blueprint 32 x 41.50 inches 2022 (3/10)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Albert Kahn, Sheet 3M
Located in Detroit, MI
Graffiti ink on salvaged blueprint 32 x 41.50 inches 2022 (2/10)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Albert Kahn, Sheet 9
Located in Detroit, MI
Graffiti ink on salvaged blueprint 32 x 41.50 inches 2022 (1/10)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Minoru Yamasaki, Sheet 406
Located in Detroit, MI
Upcycled carbon emissions on salvaged blueprint, 2023 24 x 36 inches (9/11)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Minoru Yamasaki, Sheet 404
Located in Detroit, MI
Upcycled carbon emissions on salvaged blueprint, 2023 24 x 36 inches (6/11)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Minoru Yamasaki, 402 R
Located in Detroit, MI
Upcycled carbon emissions on salvaged blueprint, 2023 24 x 36 inches (4/11)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Minoru Yamasaki, Sheet 407
Located in Detroit, MI
Upcycled carbon emissions on salvaged blueprint, 2023 24 x 36 inches (2/11)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Modern Vandalism: Minoru Yamasaki, Sheet 406 R
Located in Detroit, MI
Upcycled carbon emissions on salvaged blueprint, 2023 24 x 36 inches (1/11)
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Cosmic Web - Filaments
Located in New York, NY
Cosmology "I am fascinated by abstract theories and hypothetical ideas in physics, especially in cosmology, which is the science of the universe’s origin, its evolution and its even...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Pen

Multiverse
Located in New York, NY
Cosmology "I am fascinated by abstract theories and hypothetical ideas in physics, especially in cosmology, which is the science of the universe’s origin, its evolution and its even...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Pen

SHIZEN SERIES I
Located in Tulsa, OK
Kim Fonder, SHIZEN SERIES I, Mixed Media on Handmade Paper with Plexi, 12.00 X 12.00 in, $600.00, Blue White, Abstract, works on paper Kim Fonder loves texture and touch. Her painti...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Plexiglass, Mixed Media, Handmade Paper

Expressive Abstract Drawing. Free Association
Located in Sempach, LU
This calligraphic abstract drawing is made with Chinese ink and pastel on heavy white paper. Looking at it you can feel the freshness of instant impulse and the charge of cheerful en...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Pastel, Ink

Black Holes & Wormholes - Red Orange
Located in New York, NY
Cosmology "I am fascinated by abstract theories and hypothetical ideas in physics, especially in cosmology, which is the science of the universe’s origin, its evolution and its even...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Pen

Black Holes & Wormholes - Blue Green
Located in New York, NY
Cosmology "I am fascinated by abstract theories and hypothetical ideas in physics, especially in cosmology, which is the science of the universe’s origin, its evolution and its even...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Pen

Time Crystals - Hexagon
Located in New York, NY
Cosmology "I am fascinated by abstract theories and hypothetical ideas in physics, especially in cosmology, which is the science of the universe’s origin, its evolution and its even...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Pen

Time Crystals - Square, 2023
Located in New York, NY
Cosmology "I am fascinated by abstract theories and hypothetical ideas in physics, especially in cosmology, which is the science of the universe’s origin, its evolution and its even...
Category

2010s Abstract Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Pen

Abstract drawings and watercolor paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Abstract drawings and watercolor paintings 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 drawings and watercolor paintings 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 drawings and watercolor paintings, so small editions measuring 0.5 inches across are also available. Prices for drawings and watercolor paintings 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 $1,408.

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