Abstract Mixed Media
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.
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Canvas, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Artist Crystal DiPietro displays an impressionist view of flourishing Palo Verde trees. It blooms with bright yellow flowers in the ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Board, Canvas
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Archival Pigment
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Archival Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Board, Wood
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Panel, Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Archival Ink, Acrylic, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Graphite
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Monotype
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Organic Material, Paper, Acrylic, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Graphite
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Watercolor, Archival Paper, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Plywood, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment, Fabric
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Graphite
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paste, Fabric, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Archival Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Crayon, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Artist Patrick O'Boyle demonstrates an abstract landscape with distinct formations. He uses acrylic glaze and washes to establish color, shape, and pattern placement. Pages of old dictionaries and collage papers add points of interest to the composition. "This painting is purely an abstracted reference to places I have sketched on location," says Patrick.
About the Artist
Patrick O'Boyle primarily paints in a studio, rarely using reference material other than his own thoughts and dreams. He always paints in a series of five - at the end of the fifth painting he revisits and reworks all of them until he feels they're complete. Using extra-long handles on his brushes, Patrick paints at a distance from the canvas so he can see the works evolve as a whole from the one color he starts with to the vibrant array at the end.
Words that describe this painting: abstract, landscape, bright, mixed media, collage, abstract, mixed media artwork, yellow...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Foam Board
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Muslin, Silk, Wood
Artist Comments
A loosely constructed geometric abstract by artist Terri Bell. Free-floating arrangements of circles, dots, and various patterns appear in squares, laid out on ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Charcoal, Mixed Media, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Cotton, Muslin, Thread, Wood, Dye
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Muslin, Wood, Cotton, Thread, Dye
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Cotton, Muslin, Silk, Wood, Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Wood, Varnish, Oil Pastel, Archival Ink
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Linda Shaffer creates a vibrant multi-layered abstract heart. She paints it a crimson red over a turquoise and purple background. Monoprints with unique marks e...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
Artist Comments
Part of artist Patrick O'Boyle's Dream Land series. Ethereal places that only exist in his mind. "I aim to share the experience with the viewer," says Patrick. ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Resin, Ink, Panel, Ballpoint Pen
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Muslin, Silk
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Watercolor, Mulberry Paper, Pigment, Fabric
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Plaster, Encaustic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Wax, Cardboard