Abstract Abstract Paintings
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.
1970s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Paper, Oil, Pencil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Mylar, Oil
1990s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic, Paper, Mixed Media
1990s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1950s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Newsprint
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Leather, Acrylic, Panel, Fiberboard, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Metal
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic Polymer, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Newsprint, Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil Crayon, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Glowing circles cascade from the sky backlit by the sun. Reminiscent of a field of spring flowers in bright morning light. Part of artist Natasha Tayles signa...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Paint, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Wood Panel
Artist Comments
Artist Kajal Zaveri paints a vibrant abstract landscape inspired by changing seasons and the onset of fall. She draws inspiration from her trip to New York duri...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Oil
1960s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Linen, Plaster, Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic, Handmade Paper
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1970s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel
20th Century Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Oil Crayon, Encaustic, Board
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Linen, Acrylic
20th Century Abstract Abstract Paintings
Paper, Gouache
1990s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Foam Board, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Oil, Board
Artist Comments
Warm festive summer tones blanket the canvas in artist Joey Korom's contemporary abstract piece. He translates the anticipation of a parade in thick overlayin...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Mixed Media, Oil, Board
2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings
Oil