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.
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wax, Oil, Acrylic, Archival Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Silk
Artist Comments
Dots and circular shapes overlap in a mix of blacks, blues, and tans on a background of greens and yellows. Inspired by nature, artist Johnny Karwan used heat...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Roman Antopolsky demonstrates a gestural abstract with elements of minimalism. Blocks of color permeate the division of...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Gouache, Gel Pen, Graphite
Artist Comments
A white owl peers from an abstract structure, embodying its symbol as a protector and spiritual guide. The moon glows from the distance. Bold strokes of orang...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Linen, Ink, Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Linen, Ink, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel, Found Objects
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel
Artist Comments
Organic shapes create a linear wall, with dark elements concentrated at the top. Shades of cool gray, white, and black blend into a neutral composition. The s...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal, Wire
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wax, Oil, Acrylic, Archival Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Color Pencil, House Paint
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Thread, Mixed Media, Archival Paper
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Wool, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Archival Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Board
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Panel, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Gesso, Canvas, Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Abstract lines and shapes intertwine with a mix of handwritten and printed text. Through words and visual elements, artist Linda Shaffer portrays writing as o...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
Artist Comments
Bright blues, greens, and yellows create a lively composition. Artist Johnny Karwan made the artwork by recycling plastic bags with holes and fusing them with...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Part of Ryan's long-running series of portraits done in charcoal and oil paint on gold washed paper. Ryan enjoys pairing the fluidity and transparency of oil paint with the substance of charcoal. "Much like the ballet of the same name, "Giselle" combines dramatic patterns with stoic expression," says Ryan. The figure wears an abstract dress of dripping circles, her hair in modernist angles. She looks intensely at the viewer, her slender frame elongated by her strong pose.
About the Artist
Words that describe this painting: girl, ballet, Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, modern, portrait, expressionism, people, fashion, representational, mixed media artwork, yellow
Giselle
Ryan Pickart...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Paper, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Gesso, Canvas, Mixed Media
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Copper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Resin, Epoxy Resin
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Encaustic, Digital, Monotype
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic Polymer, Found Objects, Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Silk
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Handmade Paper, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Latex
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
Artist Comments
"I've always been fascinated by what people see in my paintings," says artist Patrick O'Boyle. In this series, he hints at recognizable subject matter abstrac...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media