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, Other Medium
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Paste, Ink, Gouache
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Paint
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Dye, Handmade Paper, Mixed Media, Permanent Marker
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Gouache, Magazine Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Animal Skin, Organic Material, Found Objects
Artist Comments
Artist Nava Lundy pictures an impressionist display of a tranquil waterlily pond. "The heart is believed to connect the physical and the spiritual world and p...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Varnish, Spray Paint, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paste, Ink, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gouache, Magazine Paper
Artist Comments
Inspired by the sunset, artist Linda Shaffer captures the stunning colors and tranquil essence of the moment in her artwork. She creates a vibrant and multila...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Silk, Sumi Ink, Pigment, Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
LED Light, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gouache, Magazine Paper
Artist Comments
Set against a deep blue background, cut-outs of the sky, a tree, and the moon's surface are enclosed within a strip of paper and geometric-shaped thread. The ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Linen, Paper, Acrylic, Gouache, Color Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Crayon, Graphite
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Found Objects, Ink, Gouache, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Color Pencil, Graphite, Paint, Pencil, Newsprint, Cardboard, Watercolor,...
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Found Objects
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Gouache, Charcoal
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Mixed Media
Artist Comments
This piece is part of my stripes series. It is painted on a gallery wrapped canvas, with finished sides, and comes ready to hang.
About the Artist
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Sandstone
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Concrete, Sandstone
Artist Comments
"A handsome young man lost in a veiled dreamland," explains artist Darlene McElroy. "Memories of the past, fantasies of the future, and the smells of spring ...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Wax, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Pastel, Encaustic, Gouache
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Gouache, Magazine Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Gouache, Magazine Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Oil Crayon, Acrylic, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Permanent Marker, Pencil
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Ink
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Marble, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic Polymer
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Other Medium
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Found Objects, Archival Ink, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Watercolor, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wax, Encaustic, Oil, Board
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Ink, Intaglio
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
1940s Abstract Mixed Media
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Oil