Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
The first decades of the 20th century were a period of artistic upheaval, with modern art movements including Cubism, Surrealism, Futurism and Dadaism questioning centuries of traditional views of what art should be. Using abstraction, experimental forms and interdisciplinary techniques, painters, sculptors, photographers, printmakers and performance artists all pushed the boundaries of creative expression.
Major exhibitions, like the 1913 Armory Show in New York City — also known as the “International Exhibition of Modern Art,” in which works like the radically angular Nude Descending a Staircase by Marcel Duchamp caused a sensation — challenged the perspective of viewers and critics and heralded the arrival of modern art in the United States. But the movement’s revolutionary spirit took shape in the 19th century.
The Industrial Revolution, which ushered in new technology and cultural conditions across the world, transformed art from something mostly commissioned by the wealthy or the church to work that responded to personal experiences. The Impressionist style emerged in 1860s France with artists like Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne and Edgar Degas quickly painting works that captured moments of light and urban life. Around the same time in England, the Pre-Raphaelites, like Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, borrowed from late medieval and early Renaissance art to imbue their art with symbolism and modern ideas of beauty.
Emerging from this disruption of the artistic status quo, modern art went further in rejecting conventions and embracing innovation. The bold legacy of leading modern artists Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Piet Mondrian and many others continues to inform visual culture today.
Find a collection of modern paintings, sculptures, prints and other fine art on 1stDibs.
1930s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Pencil, Watercolor
1920s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Paper, Pen
Early 20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
2010s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil, Ink
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Charcoal
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Charcoal
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Charcoal
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pen
1980s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Pastel
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Charcoal
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Pen
Mid-20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Permanent Marker
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Pen
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Charcoal
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Gouache
1980s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor, Pen
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink
1940s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Carbon Pencil, Watercolor
1960s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
1980s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink
1960s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink
1910s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Graphite, Watercolor
Early 1900s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink
1960s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel, Paper
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Permanent Marker
1960s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Pencil
1840s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper
1920s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Graphite
1980s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Charcoal
1950s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ballpoint Pen
1960s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel, Paper
1960s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
1950s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Graphite, Watercolor
1970s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
1950s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink
1950s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
Mid-20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Lithograph
1920s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Pencil, Conté, Paper, Pen
1920s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Conté, Paper, Pen
1990s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil, Archival Paper
20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink, Watercolor
1920s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Conté, Paper, Pen
Mid-20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Gouache
Early 20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel
1920s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Conté, Paper, Ink, Pen, Pencil
Mid-20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
1920s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
1920s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pen, Ink, Paper
2010s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
1950s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Chalk, Pencil, Color Pencil
Mid-20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Etching
20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Gold Leaf
1980s Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Graphite
Mid-20th Century Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Pencil