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
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic
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
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil, Acrylic, Plywood
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Linen, Ink, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Spray Paint, Acrylic, Birch, Archival Ink, Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal, Wire
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Oil, Spray Paint, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media
Artist Comments
This abstract piece showcases a dynamic array of colors, textures, and finishes. Depending on the viewing angle and time of day, it captures and reflects light in multiple ways, imbuing it with a sense of movement. Artist Jennifer Hanson...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Other Medium
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Copper, Gold Leaf
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Ink, Acrylic, Gouache, Rag Paper, Graphite
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Canvas, Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Artist Linda Shaffer captures the beauty and tranquility of the sunrise in her mixed-media abstract piece. She uses a combination of paints, paper, and graphi...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Spray Paint, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Linen, Archival Ink, Spray Paint, Acrylic
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Ceramic, Screen, Porcelain
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Paper
Artist Comments
Artist Diana Elena Chelaru depicts three expressionist female figures in a wavy dance. Their flowing dresses burst into a joyous explosion of blue flowers. She achieves a unique consistency through dripped and dried enamel paint layered with acrylics. Diana patterns fine pointillism details for more playful elements.
About the Artist
Artist Diana Chelaru paints colorful expressionist interpretations of human emotion. “Art is a means of communication, it is how I express my thoughts, hopes, regrets, and joys,†says Diana. She experiments with working on large-scale paintings using the visual language of form, lines, and color to create compositions that exist only in her imagination. Growing up in Romania, she draws inspiration from Byzantine mosaics as well as Gustav Klimt’s subject matter and use of decorative patterns. She received her BFA in Painting from George Enescu Art University and finished her MA in Art History from Queens College. Diana simply goes with the flow rather than dwelling on the formulaic process. It all depends on how and what she feels at the moment. She indulges in music while she creates her work.
Words that describe this painting: patterns, dance, music, figurative, figure, expressionism, movement, wind, Klimt, people, women, eyes, mixed media, pointillism, drip, flowers, fashion, friends, dress, celebration, expressionism, people, mixed media artwork, blue
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Marble
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Paper
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Plaster, Glaze, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media, Oil
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic, Oil, Board
Artist Comments
Bold shapes and mixed-media elements define this collage. Artist Jodi Dann discovered a nest in her backyard made of horse tail hair. She photographed it and ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Silk
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
Artist Comments
Small geometric shapes densely populate the abstract composition, depicting intervals of spatial balance between grays, whites, and blacks. The upper part fea...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
