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Abstract Abstract Paintings

ABSTRACT STYLE

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.

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Style: Abstract
Untitled abstract expressionist oil painting by Cleveland School artist
Located in Beachwood, OH
Richard Andres American, 1927-2013 Untitled, c. 1980 acrylic and ink on paper mounted on canvas 30 x 34 inches Richard Andres was born in Buffalo, New York in 1927. A graduate of th...
Category

1980s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Ink, Acrylic

Tiger's Eye, Large Abstract Expressionist Painting by William Hewes
Located in Long Island City, NY
A large, dramatic abstract oil painting by Contemporary artist Bill Hewes. William (Bill) Hewes is an American self-taught artist. Hewes was born in Easthampton, Massachusetts in 19...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Enamel

Cuerpo I, Contemporary Art, Abstract Painting, 21st Century
Located in Mexico City, MX
Contemporary Art, Abstract Painting Acrylic on canvas 150x100cm Signed and dated About the artist Enrique Pichardo (Mexico City, 1973) graduated from Escuela Nacional de Pintura, ...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Monumental Mid Century Modern Abstract Minimalist Sleek Design Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
An abstract mid century painting by Duayne Hatchett . Oil on canvas, circa 1975. Signed verso. Framed. Duayne Hatchett was a visual artist whose work included prints, painting...
Category

1970s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

ABSTRACT New Black White Artwork by Contemporary Artist Carsten Beck
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
At Escat Gallery we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of trust and professionalism for our collectors. Every artwork in our collection comes with a Certificate of Au...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

“Mourning Barricade” Contemporary Gestural Red, Blue, & Green Abstract Painting
Located in Houston, TX
Contemporary red, blue, and green toned gestural abstract expressionist painting by Houston based artist Kristi Haines Herman. The work features layers of swirling brushwork in various jewel tones. Signed, titled, and dated on the reverse. Currently unframed, but options are available. Artist Biography: As an abstract painter, Kristi Haines Herman, uses her artwork to execute ideas and two-dimensional environments that create an emotional experience for the viewer. Her paintings are inspired by personal involvements and reactions to them. Phrases and words ruminate in her mind and slowly turn into abstracted figures that convey her inner thoughts. Haines Herman is highly influenced by movement as her artistic expression due to many years in dance. Movement is depicted through various gestural lines, shapes, and texture which allow the audience to venture through the canvas; thus a visual dance from one edge to another on the painting’s surface. Ballet was Haines Herman’s first love in the art world, starting at age five. She learned to use body movement as an outward expression which allowed her to explore various audience reactions. This would later correlate with her artwork. In her late teens, dance and visual art would intertwine with time on stage as well as painting for expression. Gradually, visual art became her primary artistic avenue. Haines Herman attended Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Virginia, where she majored in studio art under professors Frank Hobbs and Polly Dixon. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from The University of Texas at Austin. During her studies at UT, she was encouraged and challenged by many talented art professors, including Michael Mogavero, John Yancey and David...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

CONTEMPORARY Artwork Diptych Flowers by Argentine Artist Flora Castiglia 1110
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Diptych artwork. Artwork can be shipped separated in two pieces of 126 cm x 137 cm. So transport it can be much more easier to your address. Please contact us for any questions. Flo...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

1980's French Abstract Surrealist Original Oil Black and Grey Colors
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Artist/ School: French abstract, signed by T. Fabris, dated 1977 Title: Abstract Surrealist Composition Medium: oil on board, unframed Painting: 23 x 16 inches Provenance: privat...
Category

Late 20th Century Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil

'Abstract in Coral and Jade', Painters Eleven, Ontario, Canadian Modernist Oil
By Hortense Mattice Gordon
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower left, 'Hortense M. Gordon' for Hortense Crompton Mattice Gordon (Canadian, 1886-1961) and dated 1949. Previously with: Dominion Gallery of Montreal (stamp, verso). Photo courtesy of Art Gallery of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Hamilton artist Hortense Crompton Mattice Gordon was one of Canada’s earliest non-representational painters, embracing abstraction in the 1930s. She was also an active member of Canada's first English-speaking abstract group, Painters Eleven. A scholarship recipient, Hortense Mattice first attended the Hamilton Art School and, subsequently, moved to Chatham, Ontario. Initially focusing on porcelain painting, Mattice quickly began building a portfolio of oils and, from 1908, was exhibiting both her porcelain and landscapes at what is now the Chatham Cultural Centre (1908) and the Art Gallery of Ontario (1909). During this time, Mattice frequently traveled to the United States and, in 1915, visited the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, where she would have seen early works by important modernists including Picasso and Matisse. She started her teaching career in Chatham but, having received a job offer from the artist John Sloan Gordon, returned to Hamilton to teach at the Hamilton Art School in 1918. The two artists married in 1920. In 1922, Gordon and her husband took a study trip to France and, inspired by the fervent of Modernist ideas in Paris, expanded her own approaches to art, developing an increasingly soft, loose paint handling style. It was not until the 1930’s, after a few more trips to France and her discovery of Piet Mondrian’s work, that elements of abstraction began to appear in Gordon’s work. After the death of her husband in 1940, Gordon attended the Cranbrook Academy of Art and studied with Hans Hoffmann (1941-1945) whose influence and friendship pushed her to explore non-objective painting. After her training with Hofmann and in Cranbrook, Gordon began to exhibit regularly and with success in both Canada and the United States including at the Riverside Museum (New York, 1947), Creative Gallery (New York, 1952), in Ann Arbor (Michigan, 1952), Phillips Gallery (Detroit, 1952), the Flint Institute of Arts (Michigan, 1952), Mount Allison University (New Brunswick, 1952), the Galerie Agnes Lefort in Montréal and Art Gallery of Hamilton (retrospective, 1960). She was a member of the Contemporary Artists of Hamilton (honorary president in 1948), the Ontario Society of Artists, the Hamilton Women...
Category

1940s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Listen Close by Murray Duncan, Mixed Media on Artist Canvas Board
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Listen Close by Murray Duncan is a striking abstract composition that merges bold gestural lines with an earthy, textured surface. Rendered in a muted, organic palette, the piece evo...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Glaze, Oil Crayon, Acrylic, Pencil

Midnight Reverie - original abstract painting - contemporary expressionism art
Located in London, Chelsea
This exceptional artwork is currently on display and available for sale at Signet Contemporary Art Gallery and online. Dark, moody, and electric, Midnight Reverie captures the energ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media

Mixa. Mixed media Abstract painting on Canvas
Located in Miami Beach, FL
" The work resists framing in concepts, it overflows the contours and borders of the rational. It is through the presence of color, combined with an abstraction at times with express...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic

”Dance with a Fan" 3 in triptych
Located in Zofingen, AG
The work took part in the exhibition 2023, "Ukraine residence of FREEDOM," Riga, Latvia The third work of the triptych "Dance with a Fan" (“Dance with a Fan” Series) The work "Dance...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic, Cardboard

Onset of Autumn, Abstract Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
This piece reimagines autumn in a forest with expressive strokes and shapes, leaning toward an abstract interpretation. Bold colors convey the vibrant spirit ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

"The Beauty of Längsee"
Located in Zofingen, AG
"The Beauty of Längsee" is an extra-large contemporary painting measuring 140 x 110 x 2 cm from my series dedicated to the beauty of Austrian nature. The beauty of nature and the lak...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Rick Lewis - Edges of a Summit II, Painting 2022
Located in Greenwich, CT
Edges of a Summit II Oil, bitumen, graphite, marble powder, burlap on canvas 60" X 72" I am a visual artist whose work investigates small and large -scale abstraction primarily in t...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Marble

Algodón de Seda. FIne art drawing Framed
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Algodón de Seda, 1978 by Amelia Cajigas Image size: 3 H x 2.75 W inches. Frame size: 12 Hx 11.5 W x 1 D inches. White Frame ___ Amelia Cajigas. Artist. He was...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Archival Paper, Carbon Pencil

Untitled #1- acrylic on canvas
Located in West Hollywood, CA
Stephanie Visser, a native of southwestern Michigan, was educated at Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids Michigan. She continued her education in fine arts and painting...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Whispers of Spring among us by Gaetan de Seguin Figurative contemporary Painting
Located in DE
Contemporary figurative painting with lots of details and movement. Beautiful statement piece for any art collection. Combining a lot of different colors in any interiors and setting...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Abstract impressionist expressive vivid nature painting canvas "Spring colors"
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
An expressive abstract impressionist nature painting on canvas, "Spring Colors" captures the vibrant energy of the natural world. "Spring Colors" evokes the energy and renewal of t...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic, Canvas

British Contemporary Artstist Large Triptych Set of 3 - Green Abstracts
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Triptych Green Abstracts by Minty Ramsey, British contemporary acrylic painting on Canvas 3 x canvas, each is 20 x 16 inches Wonderful original abstra...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Abstract Purple and Peach Colored Textured Monoprint David Stephens
Located in Soquel, CA
Vibrant and dynamic monoprint by David Stephens (American, 20th Century). Sand (or a similar medium) was used in the pressing of this monoprint, creating a pocked texture in multiple...
Category

1990s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Between Us by G. de Seguin Figurative contemporary Painting
Located in DE
Contemporary figurative painting with lots of details and movement. Beautiful statement piece for any art collection. Combining a lot of different colors in any interiors and settin...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Sargasso ( Abstract New Brutalism 3D Wooden Wall Sculpture in Blues and Greens)
Located in Hudson, NY
"Sargasso" hand-carved wooden New Brutalism wall sculpture by Hudson Valley artist, Stephen Walling, made in 2013 36 x 40 x 2.5 inches Carved wood and ac...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Wood, Dye, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Dansaekhwa abstract painting by established Korean artist Hyun Ae Kang "Pray XI"
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Hyun combines traditional Korean painting with Western abstract imagery using natural materials to create innovate mixed-media works that are rich in both color and texture. Hyun Ae...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Resin, Oil

Composition by Henri Marcacci - Oil on canvas 15x15 cm
Located in Geneva, CH
Work on canvas Flush frame in silver-colored metal 15,5 x 15,5 x 2,5 cm
Category

1960s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil

French Contemporary Art by Sandra Detourbet - L'Apparition
Located in Paris, IDF
Ink on canvas & handmade paper Sandra Detourbet is a French artist born in 1967 who works & lives in Ivry-sur-Seine, near Paris. She is graduated in 1997 from ENSAD in Paris, Art-Sp...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Ink, Handmade Paper

Your Inside is Out, abstract, mixed media, collage, earth tone, iconography
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Ink, charcoal, resin on masonite Dimitri operates from the idea of the “unfinished.” It informs his choice of materials and the way he handles them. It informs the imagery. The unfin...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Masonite, Charcoal, Ink

From Here to Eternity
Located in Nashville, TN
From Here to Eternity is a large mixed media piece on canvas by artist Gee Gee Collins. She displays two female figures with symbolism of fish an...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media

Arcane knowledge - XXI century, Contemporary Abstraction Oil painting
Located in Warsaw, PL
PIOTR BUTKIEWICZ (born in 1966) Butkiewicz obtained his education at the Academy of Fine Arts in Wrocław. He graduated in 1991 in the sculpture studio of prof. Leon Podsiadły. He pra...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Land of Oz
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Frank Chiodo is a contemporary painter whose dynamic work centers on organic abstraction. Through the interplay of color and gesture on the canvas, he creates a compelling dialogue t...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

My Heart is beating too Fast - Contemporary geometric abstraction - Oil Painting
Located in DE
Lilly Muth's geometric abstractions are colourful works full figures that of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. Her use of colour is bold yet ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

ABSTRACT Artwork Orange Red Contemporary Artist Jonathan Freemantle Landscapes
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
At Escat Gallery we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of trust and professionalism for our collectors. Every artwork in our collection comes with a Certificate of Au...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

'Avon Walk no 14' c 2009 signed original mixed media painting.
Located in Frome, Somerset
'Avon Walk no 14 , ' signed original mixed media painting circa 2009. painting: 34cm x 50cm Glazed oak frame 52x 61cm. Part of a series of paintings made in Wiltshire and Somerset du...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media

French 20th Century Abstract Painting Seascape at Grey Whispers of Soft Hue
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Abstract Expressionist Composition by Gilbert Pelissier (French born 1924) signed oil painting on canvas, unframed canvas size: 46 x 35 inches condition: overall very good, a few min...
Category

Late 20th Century Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Natural Flow Series n2. Abstract Painting
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Natural Flow Series n2, 2023 by Rosario Briones From the series Natural Flow Mixed media: natural pigments, Indian ink, watercolor, and betum on canvas. Dimensions: 210 H X 117 W cm....
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Lacquer, India Ink, Watercolor, Pigment

Original Large Oil-130 YR Lime Trees in Yellow-British Awarded Artist-Expression
Located in London, GB
The avenue of 130-year-old Lime trees surrounding Shizico’s new cottage Garden captivated and inspired Shizico Yi to paint on a larger scale; with their towering...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Gesso, Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Color Field - Abstract Green and Yellow by Patricia Gren Hayes Acrylic on Canvas
Located in Soquel, CA
Color Field - Abstract Green and Yellow by Patricia Gren Hayes Acrylic on Canvas Color Field abstract composition by Bay Area artist Patricia Gren Hayes (American, b. 1932). Wide br...
Category

1980s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Abstract Watercolor Painting, 'Design for Sculpture', C. 1995 by David Ruth
Located in Oakland, CA
This is a contemporary abstract watercolor painting by artist David Ruth. This series of paintings often feature bright colors and vibrant layouts that draw the viewer in. They are c...
Category

1990s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Black Brushstrokes Gestures on Green Lime, Abstract Painting on Paper, Palette
Located in Barcelona, ES
"Lime and Black Line Work" is an abstract painting by Spanish artist Natalia Roman. It is a beautiful series of rhythmic brushstrokes combined with subtle tones and unique shapes tha...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic, Rag Paper

The Punctured Self Portrait abstract by Michael Pauker
Located in Soquel, CA
Large vertical self portrait by Bay Area artist Michael Pauker (American, b.1957). A minimalist portrait of the artist is at the center of this piece, w...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Wood, Plastic, Acrylic, Pencil, Pins

Peekin (Colorful Abstract Geometric Wood Wall Sculpture in Blue, Green & White)
Located in Hudson, NY
Abstract geometric three-dimensional wood wall sculpture in shades of blue, green, teal, with contrasts of white "Peekin", made by Hudson Valley artist, Stephen Walling, in 2020 35 x...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Wood, Acrylic, Wood Panel

"The Wave" Abstracted Seascape in Oil on Canvas
Located in Soquel, CA
"The Wave" Abstracted Seascape in Oil on Canvas Bold and textured abstracted seascape by Robert Frame (American, 1924-1999). This piece has a high horizon, with a thin strip of sky ...
Category

1960s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars

Untitled Abstract Expressionist Still Life painting
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Still Life, ca. 1950's. Tempera on paper. Image measures 14 x 17 inches. Black paper sheet measures 18 x 24 inches. Unframed. Signed lower left. Discreet tears in upper right corn...
Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Gouache

Contemporary New Abstract Artwork Dark Colors Artist Christina Gschwantner
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
In her work, artist Christina Gschwantner combines contrasting art movements such as Art Informel and Minimal Art. She succeeds in depicting and...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Raw Linen, Oil, Acrylic

Untitled abstract painting mixed media on canvas
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Artist: Deyan Valkov Title: Untitled Year: 2002 (based on the signature) Technique: Mixed media on canvas (oil and material) Dimensions: 21.65 x 18.11 inches Condition: Unframed Thi...
Category

Early 2000s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media

Quantum Color #47 Mixed media painted books on a wood panel
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Quantum Color #47, 2019 by Natasha Zupan One of a kind mixed media painted books on a wood panel Size: 70 in. H x 60 in. W x 4 D in _____________________________________ Natasha Zupan beautifully unites the old and new. A Yale-educated, internationally renowned artist, combines the innovation of her highly crafted technique with her wonder for tradition and the great Masters. Her artwork is about the juxtaposition of emotion in time and the confrontation...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Iron Man, Large Abstract Expressionist Painting by William Hewes
Located in Long Island City, NY
A large, dramatic abstract oil painting by Contemporary artist Bill Hewes. William (Bill) Hewes is an American self-taught artist. Hewes was born in Easthampton, Massachusetts in 19...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Enamel

'Radiant Abstraction', Kinetogenics, AIC, SFMoMA, SFMA, São Paulo Biennial
By Richard Irving Bowman
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower left, 'R. Bowman' for Richard Irving Bowman (American, 1918-2001), titled, 'Kg. 55' (Kinetogenics 55) and dated February 1962. Additionally titled, on stretcher bar verso, 'Kg 55'. Accompanied by a first edition copy of 'Richard Bowman: Radiant Abstractions', by Patricia Watts and Stefanie De Winter, published 2018. Richard Bowman's work is featured in the July/August 2024 issue of Architectural Digest: 'Inside a 1920s LA Respite Re-envisioned by Jamie Bush. Richard Bowman received a scholarship to study at the Art Institute of Chicago, from which he received his Bachelor's degree in 1942. He subsequently attended the University of Iowa, receiving his Master's degree in 1945. Over the course of a long and distinguished career, Bowman exhibited internationally with success and was the recipient of numerous gold medals, prizes and juried awards. With the Kinetogenics Series, which he began in 1956, Bowman explored the intersection of color and light using contemporary advances in light theory and fluorescence technology. "For this series, he started using fluorescent enamel alkyd paint, which, Bowman stated, emitted an actual, measurable energy from the canvas. He combines his early concept of elemental radiants with the gestures of a mature Abstract Expressionist. Incorporating bold fluorescent strokes of orange, yellow and blue, which are activated by the ultraviolet in daylight, Bowman's new abstractions represented a synthesis of the physical and sensorial transmissions of energy. The combination of the artist's interests in nuclear physics, atoms, and dynamism with these vibrant colors reflected Bowman's increasing confidence as an unconventional artist working in an unconventional medium." (Richard Bowman: Radiant Abstractions, p. 13) "The 'kinetogenic' series which Bowman has been painting recently, are whorls of pure energy in colors from the violet edges of the spectrum in vibrant relationship to the vivid primaries of the center. These paintings have much less sense of place or landscape than Bowman paintings we have seen before. The “Environs” group accompanying the energy pictures in this exhibition, are, on the other hand, specific about place: are of flower beds and branches of trees, painted with the same brilliant color intensity. This use of vibrant colors gives an all-over electric, textural effect in contrast to the after-image jump which obtains when the vibrants are painted flat and geometric. This textural mosaic effect is close to the vision of heat and passionate rhythm which was central to pre-Columbian art, and is still present in the Mexican arts and crafts, which were one of Bowman’s formative sources. It is interesting to note that several of the painters who have influenced many others to experiment with vibrancy and glow in color, found their own impetus in this direction while painting in Mexico. Bowman was one of the painters who was working with fluorescents when the general tendency was to paint with muck. One feels that using color thus leads the artist, as it did his pre-Columbian esthetic ancestors, in the direction where the ecstatic becomes mystic." (courtesy: Artforum, April 1964) Thomas Albright writes of the artist, "Visiting Mexico on a traveling fellowship in the early 1940s, [Bowman] met Gordon Onslow-Ford, with whom he renewed a friendship after moving to San Mateo County in the early 1950s. His paintings, although gestural and abstract, were close in spirit to those of the Dynaton artists than to the mainstream of Abstract Expressionism. They constituted an intensely lyrical and metaphorical abstract Impressionism inspired by Bonnard and an intimacy with the natural environment. Bowman was also influenced by jazz improvisation and the jazz poetry of Kenneth Patchen, a close friend" (p. 263) EDUCATION Art Institute of Chicago, BFA, 1944 University of Iowa, MFA, 1949 AWARDS 1942 Edward L. Ryerson Foreign Traveling Fellowship, Art Institute of Chicago (Mexico) 1945 William M. R. French Memorial Gold Medal, Art Institute of Chicago 1952 Modern Painting Prize, Montreal Museum of Fine Arts 1972 Gift of Time Grant, Roswell Museum and Art Center, Roswell, New Mexico SOLO EXHIBITIONS 1945 The Pinacotheca Gallery (Rose Fried Gallery) New York 1946 Milwaukee Art Institute, Wisconsin 1949 Swetzoff Gallery, Boston 1949 Bern Porter Gallery, Sausalito, CA 1950 Kinetic ... A commentary on the relationship of SCIENCE and ART. Stanford Art Gallery, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA 1956 Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA 1957-1977 (every 18 months) Rose Rabow Galleries, San Francisco 1961 Richard Bowman: Paintings and Reflections.1943-1961. San Francisco Museum of Art 1970 Richard Bowman: Paintings from 1966-1970. San Francisco Museum of Art 1972 Richard Bowman: Paintings, 1943-1972. Roswell Museum and Art Center, New Mexico. Traveled to the Museum of Texas Tech University, Lubbock, 1972; and Sacred Heart Convent Gallery, Menlo Park, 1972 1986 Richard Bowman: Forty Years of Abstract Painting. Harcourts Modern Gallery, San Francisco 2000 Rock and Sun: Richard Bowman's Pioneer Abstractions of the 1940s. Steven Wolf Fine Arts, San Francisco 2019 Radiant Abstractions, Curated by Patricia Watts. the Landing Gallery, Los Angeles TWO-PERSON EXHIBITIONS 1945 Room of Chicago Art: Paintings by Richard Bowman and Russell Woeltz. Art Institute of Chicago. 1947 Joan Mitchell and Richard Bowman: Oil Paintings. Harry and Della Burpee Art Gallery, Rockford, Illinois. Traveled to University of Illinois. Sponsored by Rockford Art Association. 1959 Gordon Onslow Ford and Richard Bowman. San Francisco Museum of Art 1990 Independent Abstraction: A Survey of Paintings by Richard Bowman and Emerson Woelffer. Harcourts Modern & Contemporary Art, San Francisco. SELECT GROUP EXHIBITIONS 1943 Ras-Martin Gallery, Mexico City 1945 56th Annual American Exhibition of Oil Paintings. Art Institute of Chicago 1945 Art of This Century Gallery, New York 1947–48 Abstract and Surrealist American Art: Fifty-Eighth Annual Exhibition of American Paintings and Sculpture. Art Institute of Chicago. Curators: Daniel Catton Rich, Frederick A. Sweet, and Katherine Kuh. Catalogue. 1948 Fourth Summer Exhibition of Contemporary Art. State University of Iowa, Iowa City. Organized by Lester D. Longman. Included Milton Avery, Max Beckmann, Leonora Carrington, Max Ernst, Hans Hofmann, and others. Brochure. 1948 Joslyn Memorial Art Museum, Omaha, NE 1949 2nd Biennial Exhibition of Paintings and Prints. Walker Art Center, juried show, Minneapolis, 1949. Brooklyn Museum. 1951 [Group exhibition of University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, artists.] Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Included William McCloy, Robert Gadbois, John Kacere, and other instructors from the School or Art, University of Manitoba. 1952 Sixty-ninth Annual Spring Show. Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Bowman awarded Modern Painting Prize. 1953 Annual Exhibition of Canadian Painting. The National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa. Included John Kacere, William McCloy, Roland Wise, and Takao Tanabe. 1953 Winnipeg Group. Vancouver Art Gallery. Included William McCloy, John Kacere, Cecil Richards, Roland Wise. 1953–54 São Paulo Biennial of Modern Art, Second edition. Canadian section. Traveled to Caracas, Venezuela, and the Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City. Catalogue. 1954 [Group exhibition of Winnipeg artists.] Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto. Included Oscar Cah n, William McCloy, and Cecil Richards. 1954 Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto 1958 Esther Robles Gallery, Los Angeles 1959 Rabow Galleries, San Francisco. Included Julius Wasserstein, Gordon Onslow Ford, and Fred Reichman. June 18, 1960 David Cole Gallery, Inverness, CA. Included Ruth Awasa, John Baxter, Nankoku Hidai, Onslow Ford, Fritz Rauh, David Simpson, and Jean Varda. 1961 Paintings from the Pacific: Japan, America, Australia, & New Zealand. Auckland City Art Gallery, New Zealand. Catalogue. 1961–62. Pittsburgh International Exhibition of Contemporary Paintings and Sculpture. Fine Arts Gallery, Carnegie Institute. 1962 50 California Artists. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. Organized by the San Francisco Museum of Art, with assistance of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Traveled to Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN; Albright-Knox Gallery, Buffalo, NY; and Des Moines Art Center, IA. Catalogue. February 1966 Contrasts. San Francisco Art Institute. Included Hassel Smith, Gordon Onslow Ford, and Ruth Asawa. October 1967 Arleigh Gallery, San Francisco. Included Lee Mullican, Fred Reichman, Amalia Schulthess, and John Baxter. 1975 Gallery 865, San Francisco 1976 Painting and Sculpture in California: The Modern Era. San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. 1978 Creation. Galerie Schreiner, Basel, Switzerland. Included Joan Mir , Fritz Rauh, John Anderson, Ruth Asawa, J.B. Blunk, Roberto Matta, Lee Mullican, Gordon Onslow Ford, Wolfgang Paalen, Fritz Rauh, Yves Tanguy, and others. Accompanying book by Onslow Ford. 1984 A Personal Selection/Collection. David Cole Gallery, Inverness, CA. Forty-eight artists including Richard Diebenkorn, Claire Falkenstein, Richard Faralla, Sam Francis, Arthur Holman, Frank Lobdell, Ed Moses, Gordon Onslow Ford, Fritz Rauh, David Simpson, Amalia Schulthess, Jean Varda, Jack Wright, J.B. Blunk. 1987 Visions of Inner Space: Gestural Painting in Modern American Art. Wight Gallery, UCLA. Fifteen artists including Sam Francis, Morris Graves, John Anderson, Lee Mullican, Gordon Onslow Ford, Mark Tobey, and Ed Moses. Co-curated by Merle Schipper and Lee Mullican. Catalogue. Traveled to National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, India, 1988 1997 Through the Light: An Exploration into Consciousness. Arts and Consciousness Gallery, John F. Kennedy University, Berkeley, California. Curated by Farbiba Bogzaran. Catalogue. 1998 Lee Mullican Memorial Exhibtion. Herbert Palmer Gallery, Los Angeles. 2007 The Rose Rabow Galleries Retrospective: 1959-1977. The 8 Gallery, San Franicsco. 2008 Landscapes of Consciousness: A Circle of Artists at the Beginning of Lucid Art. Weinstein Gallery, San Francisco. Included Gordon Onslow Ford, Fritz Rauh, John Anderson, and Jack Wright. Catalogue. 2016 Palm Springs Fine Art Fair, the Landing Gallery, Palm Springs, CA 2018 Ship of Dreams: Artists, Poets, and Visionaries of the S.S. Vallejo. Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, Sonoma, CA. Catalogue. 2019 FOG Design+Art. the Landing Gallery, San Francisco, CA 2020 FOG Design+Art. the Landing Gallery, San Francisco, CA 2022 FOG Design+Art. the Landing Gallery, San Francisco, CA MUSEUM COLLECTIONS Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art, Utah State University, Logan Oakland Museum of California San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Santa Barbara Museum of Art, California The Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago Taubman Museum of Art, Roanoke, Virginia BOOKS AND CATALOGUES 1947 Rich, Daniel Catton. Abstract and Surrealist American Art: Fifty-Eighth Annual Exhibition of American Paintings and Sculpture. Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago. 1948 Fourth Summer Exhibition of Contemporary Art. Iowa City: State University of Iowa. 1956 Porter, Bern. Kinetic: A commentary on the relation of Science and Art in conjunction with a retrospective exhibition of paintings by Richard Bowman. Palo Alto: Stanford University Art Gallery. 1986 Kim Eagles-Smith, ed. Richard Bowman: Forty Years of Abstract Painting. San Francisco: Harold Parker in association with Harcourts Modern Gallery, Inc. 1961 Culler, George D. Richard Bowman, Paintings and Reflections, 1943-1901. San Francisco: San Francisco Museum of Art. 1962 Culler, George D. 50 California Artists. New York: Whitney Museum of American Art. 1972 Nordland, Gerald. Richard Bowman, Paintings, 1943-1972, Roswell, NM: Roswell Museum and Art Center. 1978 Onslow Ford, Gordon. Creation. Basel: Galerie Schreiner. 1987 Schipper, Merle. Visions of Inner Space: Gestural Painting in Modern American Art. Los Angeles: Frederick S. Wight Art Gallery, UCLA. With introduction by Lee Mullican. 1997 Bogzaran, Fariba. Through the Light: An Exploration into Consciousness. San Francisco: Dream Creations. 2008 Bogzaran, Fariba. Landscapes of Consciousness: A Circle of Artists at the Beginning of Lucid Art. San Francisco: Weinstein Gallery. 2018 Bogzaran, Fariba, ed. Artists, Poets, and Visionaries of the S.S. Vallejo: 1949-1969. Inverness, CA: Lucid Art Foundation. ARTICLES AND REVIEWS [Review of Solo Exhibition at The Pinacotheca Gallery.] Art News. March 1945. “Joan Mitchell, Richard Bowman Open TwoMan Show Tomorrow at Art Association Meeting.” Rockford Morning Star (IL). January 1947. Robert Ayre. [Review of Exhibition, Montreal Mu-seum of Fine Arts.] Montreal Daily Star. 1951. Ben Metcalfe. "Varsity Art Shock —A Morbid Hoax?" Winnipeg Tribune, December 3, 1951. Beverly Wright. "Richard Bowman, abstract painter, has one-man show at Stanford Gallery." Palo Alto Times. February 17, 1956. "Atomic Art Show at Stanford." San Francisco Chronicle. February, 19, 1956. "P.A. Artist Portrays Energy in Oils." San Jose Mercury News. July 25, 1958. Neita Crain Farmer. "A Solitary Voice: Richard Bowman's Paintings Say Something, In A New Way." Palo Alto Times. May 30, 1959. Barbara Bladen. "Dick Bowman's Paintings Show Atomic Awareness," San Mateo Times. July 18, 1959. Arthur Bloomfield. "Two Top Painters at San Francisco Museum." San Francisco Call Bulletin. July 31, 1959. Alfred Frankenstein. "Slow and Fast Sculpture and Kinetogenics." San Francisco Chronicle. May 24, 1959. "Paintings on Display: Bowman and Onslow Ford Show." San Francisco Weekly. July 1959. Herman Wong. "Bowman's Art Seen At Show, Artist Builds Studio Near Hillside House." Red-wood City Tribune, September 15, 1960. Dean Wallace. "Four Bring Their Art to Perfec-tion." San Francisco Chronicle. September 30, 1960. Dean Wallace. "A Painter Looks at the Atom." San Francisco Chronicle. May 29, 1961. Alfred Frankenstein. [Review of retrospective at San Francisco Museum of Art.] San Francisco Chronicle. November 12, 1961. "International Art." Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Sunday Magazine. October 29, 1961. "Pacific Paintings Show Common Character-istics." The Press (Auckland, New Zealand). August 5, 1961. Naomi Baker. "San Francisco's Art Is Viewed." San Diego Evening Tribune. January 26, 1962. John Canaday. "Visitors From the West." New York Times. October 28, 1962. Arthur Bloomfield. "Lost in a World They Were Never Made For." San Francisco News-Call Bulletin. August 3, 1963. Arthur Bloomfield. "Bowman Paints His Own Path." San Francisco News-Call Bulletin. February 11, 1964. "The Rockford Fifty States of Art Exhibition." Palo Alto Times. October 5, 1965. Alfred Frankenstein. "Bowman's Radiant Ab-stract Art." San Francisco Chronicle. November 12, 1965. Thomas Albright. "A Kind of Non-Art Show: Brilliant Work by Bowman." San Francisco Chronicle, February 14, 1970. Paul Emerson, "Menlo Gallery Shows Bow-man Art: Major Retrospective Show." Palo Alto Times. October 6, 1972. Arthur Bloomfield. "A Luxuriant Impact to Bowman Paintings." San Francisco Examiner. November 20, 1972. Thomas Albright. "Two Artists Views of Na-ture." San Francisco Chronicle. October 9, 1974. Arthur Bloomfield. "All But the Kitchen Sink." San Francisco Examiner. September 24, 1974. Thomas Albright. "Realism Moves In." San Francisco Chronicle. Thursday, September 4, 1975. Suzanne Muchnic. "Inspired Visions of Inner Worlds at UCLA." Los Angeles Times. January 10, 1988. Reference: Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975: 400 Years of Artists in America, Peter Hastings Falk, Sound View Press 1999, Vol. 1, page 404; E. Benezit, Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs, et Graveurs, Jacques Busse, 1999 Nouvelle Édition, Gründ 1911, Vol. 2, page 701; Art in the San Francisco Bay Area: 1945-1980, Thomas Albright, University of California Press, 1985, page 263; A Dictionary of Contemporary American Artists, Paul Cummings, St. Martin’s Press: New York 1966, page 66-67; Mallett’s Index of Artists, Supplement, Daniel Trowbridge Mallett, Peter Smith: New York 1948 Edition, R.R. Bowker Company 1940, page 31; Richard Bowman: Radiant Abstractions, essays by Patricia Watts and Stefanie De Winter, published by Watts...
Category

1960s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Alkyd

NEW Abstract Painting Blue Pigments Contemporary Artist Gabriela Meunie 2024
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
At Escat Gallery we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of trust and professionalism for our collectors. Every artwork in our collection comes with a Certificate of Au...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic, Pigment

Ellipsism - 21st Century, Contemporary, Abstract, Miniature, Emotions, Colors
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Ellipsism is a reflective piece from the "Life in Circles" series, delving into the profound awareness of life's transience and the inevitable separation from the future of humanity....
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Ink, Acrylic

#80, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request. Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Pigment

Original 1970'S French Abstract Painting Study of Draped Forms
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Artist: Claude Lagouche (French 1943-2020) Claude Lagouche was born January 2, 1943 in Naves, died January 16, 2020. He quickly gained recognition for his talent and his work, exh...
Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil

CONTEMPORARY Figurative Devil Spray Abstract Street Art Artwork Ed Warner
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
At Escat Gallery we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of trust and professionalism for our collectors. Every artwork in our collection comes with a Certificate of Au...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic, Spray Paint, Permanent Marker

Trees Park Slope
Located in Buffalo, NY
Harriet was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and lived with her husband in Park Slope for over 35 years. She attended the Brooklyn Museum School at...
Category

1950s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Magoa (Live Another Day) - 21st Century, Contemporary, Abstract, Miniature
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Mágoa, a deeply emotive artwork, captures the essence of enduring heartbreak. The subject, with their back turned to a looming suicide tree, conveys a sense of loss and lingering sor...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Ink, Acrylic

Terres Rouges
Located in Austin, TX
Waterline Fine Art, Austin, TX is pleased to present the following work: Oil on canvas. Signed lower right, signed, dated, and titled verso. 59 x 62.75 in. 60.75 x 64.5 in. (framed) Custom framed in a matte white hardwood floater, with gilded metallic front. Roger Mühl was born on December 20, 1929 in Strausbourg, France, where he attended the National School of Decorative Arts. He spent most of his life living and working in Provence, while regularly exhibiting in London, Paris, Geneva, Tokyo, and New York. Mühl is best known for his brightly colored, heavily textured landscape renderings of the south of France. His bucolic paintings...
Category

1980s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Between Walls", Textured and Colored Geometrical Abstract Mixed Media Painting
Located in Clermont-Ferrand, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
This artwork features a tangle of white and blue rectangles and basic geometrical shapes over a textured substrate. On the middle top, aquamrine/turquoise almost vertical bands fall from the top, and a dark red pile occupies the middle of the canvas. Most of Françoise Duprat...
Category

2010s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media

Abstract abstract paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Abstract abstract paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add abstract paintings created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, purple, orange, red and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Nestor Toro, Giorgio Lo Fermo, Newel Hunter, and Sumit Mehndiratta. Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Synthetic Resin Paint and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Abstract abstract paintings, so small editions measuring 0.1 inches across are also available.

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