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
Encaustic, Oil, Board
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Metal
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Enamel
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Mixed Media, Laid Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Oil, Acrylic, Canvas
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Textile, Canvas, Paper, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Textile, Canvas, Paper, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Acrylic, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Encaustic, Board, Oil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Blue is part of my newest series of mixed media works I meticulously hand cut from vintage paper. The work is collage, watercolor and thread on heavy weight p...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Fade is part of my newest series of mixed media works. I meticulously hand cut from vintage paper. The work is collage, watercolor and thread on heavy weight paper, with archival adhesive. It is matted with an archival matte and backing but will require a frame for display. Artwork dimensions: 6(h) x 6(w) Matte dimensions: 10(h) x 10(w) White archival matte and archival backing. Backing is also signed, titled and dated.
About the Artist
John...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Pigment
Artist Comments
I draw inspiration from the ocean, where all elements of nature interact with each other. I used a range of mediums in this mixed media piece to build up ener...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Wax, Oil
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Thread, Acrylic, Pencil
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Pastel, Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Handmade Paper, Monoprint, Monotype
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Steel
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Oil
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Ink, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Glaze, Oil Pastel, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Wood, Neon Light, Plaster, Pigment
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Pastel, Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Clay, Polymer
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Ink
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Digital Pigment
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Ink, Intaglio
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
India Ink, Acrylic, Monoprint
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Archival Ink, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Acrylic, Vinyl, Pencil, Color
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Other Medium
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Charcoal, Ink
1970s Abstract Mixed Media
Bronze
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Other Medium
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Paint, Panel, Archival Paper, Inkjet
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic, Board
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Archival Ink, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
Early 2000s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Acrylic
1980s Abstract Mixed Media
Watercolor, Color Pencil
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Canvas, Mixed Media
1990s Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media, Screen
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Cotton, Fabric
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Paper, Acrylic, Digital Pigment
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Fabric, Acrylic, Archival Paper
Late 20th Century Abstract Mixed Media
Mixed Media