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Modern Abstract Paintings

MODERN STYLE

The first decades of the 20th century were a period of artistic upheaval, with modern art movements including Cubism, Surrealism, Futurism and Dadaism questioning centuries of traditional views of what art should be. Using abstraction, experimental forms and interdisciplinary techniques, painters, sculptors, photographers, printmakers and performance artists all pushed the boundaries of creative expression.

Major exhibitions, like the 1913 Armory Show in New York City — also known as the “International Exhibition of Modern Art,” in which works like the radically angular Nude Descending a Staircase by Marcel Duchamp caused a sensation — challenged the perspective of viewers and critics and heralded the arrival of modern art in the United States. But the movement’s revolutionary spirit took shape in the 19th century.

The Industrial Revolution, which ushered in new technology and cultural conditions across the world, transformed art from something mostly commissioned by the wealthy or the church to work that responded to personal experiences. The Impressionist style emerged in 1860s France with artists like Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne and Edgar Degas quickly painting works that captured moments of light and urban life. Around the same time in England, the Pre-Raphaelites, like Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, borrowed from late medieval and early Renaissance art to imbue their art with symbolism and modern ideas of beauty.

Emerging from this disruption of the artistic status quo, modern art went further in rejecting conventions and embracing innovation. The bold legacy of leading modern artists Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Piet Mondrian and many others continues to inform visual culture today.

Find a collection of modern paintings, sculptures, prints and other fine art on 1stDibs.

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Style: Modern
The Window 368 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Earthy Cool Dual Tone Artwork
The Window 368 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Earthy Cool Dual Tone Artwork

The Window 368 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Earthy Cool Dual Tone Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Tall Sunspot 63 - Modern Resin Minimalist Warm Tone Striped Abstract Artwork
Tall Sunspot 63 - Modern Resin Minimalist Warm Tone Striped Abstract Artwork

Tall Sunspot 63 - Modern Resin Minimalist Warm Tone Striped Abstract Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

The Window 375 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Beige Dual Tone Artwork
The Window 375 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Beige Dual Tone Artwork

The Window 375 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Beige Dual Tone Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

The Window 348 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown & Yellow Dual Tone Artwork
The Window 348 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown & Yellow Dual Tone Artwork

The Window 348 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown & Yellow Dual Tone Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

A Bigger Time Zone - Abstract Contemporary Colorful Geometric Resin Artwork
A Bigger Time Zone - Abstract Contemporary Colorful Geometric Resin Artwork

A Bigger Time Zone - Abstract Contemporary Colorful Geometric Resin Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Hidden Portraits VIII, Modern Acrylic on Canvas, Framed, Circa 1980s
Hidden Portraits VIII, Modern Acrylic on Canvas, Framed, Circa 1980s

Hidden Portraits VIII, Modern Acrylic on Canvas, Framed, Circa 1980s

Located in London, GB

'Hidden Portraits VIII', acrylic on canvas mounted on board, Florentine School (circa 1980s-90s). This gallery has acquired a number of paintings through an intermediary of an ageing...

Category

1980s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Vase and Fruit In Abstract Light Interior Modernist 20th Century Oil Painting
Vase and Fruit In Abstract Light Interior Modernist 20th Century Oil Painting

Vase and Fruit In Abstract Light Interior Modernist 20th Century Oil Painting

By Jacqueline Boisselot

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Interior Abstract signed initials by Jacqueline Boisselot, French late 20th century size: 18 x 15.5 inches oil on artist paper, mounted in card frame condition: very good and ready t...

Category

Late 20th Century Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil

The Window 342 - Modern Resin Minimalist Blue Two Tone Color Field Abstract Art
The Window 342 - Modern Resin Minimalist Blue Two Tone Color Field Abstract Art

The Window 342 - Modern Resin Minimalist Blue Two Tone Color Field Abstract Art

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Wiggle Room 24 - Modern Resin Minimalist Red Tone Gradient Abstract Artwork
Wiggle Room 24 - Modern Resin Minimalist Red Tone Gradient Abstract Artwork

Wiggle Room 24 - Modern Resin Minimalist Red Tone Gradient Abstract Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Cozy Friends With Wine
Cozy Friends With Wine

Cozy Friends With Wine

Located in Zofingen, AG

Colorful acrylic painting of friends relaxing in lounge chairs with wine glasses Acrylic Painting on canvas One of a kind artwork Size: 80 × 80 × 3 cm (unframed) The artwork is tit...

Category

2010s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

The Window 369 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Red and Yellow Dual Tone Artwork
The Window 369 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Red and Yellow Dual Tone Artwork

The Window 369 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Red and Yellow Dual Tone Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Warhol‑Style Colorful Flowers
Warhol‑Style Colorful Flowers

Warhol‑Style Colorful Flowers

Located in Zofingen, AG

shipped in roll Acrylic on canvas Size: 60 x 90 x 2 cm Style: Modern minimalistic and pop art Professional-grade acrylics on canvas Signed by the artist with certificate of authenti...

Category

2010s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

City at Night (Cityscape)
City at Night (Cityscape)

City at Night (Cityscape)

By Abram Tromka

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Abram Tromka (1895-1964) City at Night, ca. 1940. Oil on canvas, 16 x 20 inches; 20 x 24 inches in antique oak frame. Signed lower right. Frame is of the period, but probably not ...

Category

1930s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

The Window 357 - Original Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Yellow Layered Art
The Window 357 - Original Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Yellow Layered Art

The Window 357 - Original Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Yellow Layered Art

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Tide Pools 43 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Abstract Artwork on Wood
Tide Pools 43 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Abstract Artwork on Wood

Tide Pools 43 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Abstract Artwork on Wood

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Made In The Shade 5 - Modern Resin Minimalist Multicolor Geometric Abstract Art
Made In The Shade 5 - Modern Resin Minimalist Multicolor Geometric Abstract Art

Made In The Shade 5 - Modern Resin Minimalist Multicolor Geometric Abstract Art

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Abstract Golden Green Fields French Modernist Landscape Oil Painting
Abstract Golden Green Fields French Modernist Landscape Oil Painting

Abstract Golden Green Fields French Modernist Landscape Oil Painting

By Jacqueline Boisselot

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Golden Fields French Impressionist Landscape Oil Painting on Canvas Jacqueline Boisselot, French, late 20th century oil on canvas, unframed Canvas: 5.5 x 7 inches Provenance: from a ...

Category

Late 20th Century Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil

Vintage American Modernist Framed Abstract Original MCM NYC School Oil Painting
Vintage American Modernist Framed Abstract Original MCM NYC School Oil Painting

Vintage American Modernist Framed Abstract Original MCM NYC School Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Vintage American abstract oil painting. Oil on board. Framed. Measuring: 29 by 13 inches overall, and 27.5 by 11 painting alone. Unsigned. Excellent condition, ready to hang and en...

Category

1960s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil

Abstract Expressionist Figurative Homage to Willem de Kooning
Abstract Expressionist Figurative Homage to Willem de Kooning

Abstract Expressionist Figurative Homage to Willem de Kooning

By Michael Pauker

Located in Soquel, CA

Abstract Expressionist Figurative Homage to Willem de Kooning's "Women Singing" Colorful and dynamic abstract expressionist figurative mixed media painting contemporary piece, featu...

Category

Late 20th Century Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Magazine Paper, Stretcher Bars

Red Flowers on Turquoise
Red Flowers on Turquoise

Red Flowers on Turquoise

Located in Zofingen, AG

Acrylic painting on canvas Size: 70 × 90 × 2 cm (unframed) This artwork is sold unstretched, but I can arrange for it to be stretched upon request. The artwork comes with the a Certificate of Authenticity. Artworks are shipped rolled in a secure tube. This is a safe and reliable packaging method that ensures your artwork arrives in perfect condition while keeping shipping costs affordable. This minimalist painting features vibrant red flowers in a white vase, set against a calming turquoise background. Inspired by the styles of David Hockney and Henri Matisse, the artwork combines abstract shapes with bold brush strokes, creating a modern, eye-catching piece for your home. Painted with acrylic on canvas, it brings a playful yet elegant touch to any room. Ideal for lovers of contemporary art, this piece is perfect for brightening up living spaces, bedrooms, or offices. Add a pop of color and sophistication to your wall with this striking floral painting Minimalist red flowers in white vase with turquoise background, abstract acrylic painting inspired by David Hockney and Henri Matisse red flowers painting, minimalist art, abstract floral, turquoise background, white vase artwork, Hockney inspired, Matisse style, modern wall art, acrylic flower painting...

Category

2010s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Paper, Oil Pastel

Gamut Wave 14 - Large Original Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Tone Artwork
Gamut Wave 14 - Large Original Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Tone Artwork

Gamut Wave 14 - Large Original Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Tone Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist paintings are influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in his creative practice. His works evoke the many layers of his life...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Vintage American Modernist Abstract Framed Mid Century Original Oil Painting
Vintage American Modernist Abstract Framed Mid Century Original Oil Painting

Vintage American Modernist Abstract Framed Mid Century Original Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Vintage American modernist abstract oil painting. Oil on canvas. Framed. Provenance from a Sag Harbor, NY collection. Measuring: 20 by 16 inches image alone. Handsomely framed in w...

Category

1960s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

1970s Abstract Italian Signed Titled and Dated Painting
1970s Abstract Italian Signed Titled and Dated Painting

1970s Abstract Italian Signed Titled and Dated Painting

Located in Roma, IT

Wonderful abstract 20th-century painting by the important Venetian post-war artist Roberto Ferruzzi (VENICE 1927 - 2010) "Interno con Helene R Ferruzzi 1978" “Interior with Helene”,...

Category

1970s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Vintage American Modernist Signed Abstract Expressionist Framed Oil Painting
Vintage American Modernist Signed Abstract Expressionist Framed Oil Painting

Vintage American Modernist Signed Abstract Expressionist Framed Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Vintage American modernist abstract oil painting. Oil on board. Signed. Framed. Provenance from a Sag Harbor, NY collection. Measuring: 13 by 25 inches overall. Handsomely framed in...

Category

1940s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

"Metropolitan Abstraction" Signed Mid Century Cubist Architectural Abstraction
"Metropolitan Abstraction" Signed Mid Century Cubist Architectural Abstraction

"Metropolitan Abstraction" Signed Mid Century Cubist Architectural Abstraction

Located in Buffalo, NY

Antique American abstract cubist street scene oil painting. Oil on board. Framed. Signed. Measuring: 31 by 42 inches overall, and 25 by 36 painting alone. In excellent original con...

Category

1940s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Tide Pools 41 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Abstract Artwork on Wood
Tide Pools 41 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Abstract Artwork on Wood

Tide Pools 41 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Abstract Artwork on Wood

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

20th Century German Modernist Oil Painting Dark Grey and Red Abstract
20th Century German Modernist Oil Painting Dark Grey and Red Abstract

20th Century German Modernist Oil Painting Dark Grey and Red Abstract

By Elisabeth Hahn

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Artist: Elisabeth Hahn (German 1924-2021), Elisabeth Hahn was born in Dortmund, Germany, where she began her artistic studies. In 1953, she moved to Paris. She continued her studie...

Category

20th Century Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil

Untitled
Untitled

Untitled

By Fernando Canovas

Located in Miami Beach, FL

Constantly moving between the two- and three-dimensional worlds, Canova's painting reveals a profound preoccupation with space and time, themes that remain central to his work despit...

Category

1990s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

The Day Bangkok Stopped for a Giant Cat
The Day Bangkok Stopped for a Giant Cat

The Day Bangkok Stopped for a Giant Cat

Located in Zofingen, AG

Massive cat blocking traffic Bangkok Thailand acrylic artwork Acrylic Painting on canvas One of a kind artwork Size: 80 × 100 × 3 cm (unframed) The artwork is titled and signed on ...

Category

2010s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

A Large Mid-Century Modern, Cubist Art Deco Painting, "The Dancers"
A Large Mid-Century Modern, Cubist Art Deco Painting, "The Dancers"

A Large Mid-Century Modern, Cubist Art Deco Painting, "The Dancers"

By Charles Turzak

Located in Chicago, IL

A Large, Colorful, Modernist Art Deco Cubist Painting, "The Dancers" by Famed Chicago Painter and Printmaker, Charles Turzak (Am. 1899 - 1986). A large, vertical composition relating to the artist's notable 1930s woodcut of the same title. The painting is completed in a vividly textured Cubist style, with striking hues of rich greens and yellows, deep blues and rose pinks. The painting is oiI on canvas mounted to Masonite (artist's original mount), and offers a superb visual appeal. A perfect complement to any Mid-Century Modern home or collection. Artwork size: 38 x 24 inches (Framed size: 38 1/4 x 24 1/4 inches). Signed "Turzak" lower right. Provenance: Estate of the artist. Charles Turzak was one of Chicago’s greatest printmakers of the Art Deco-era. Son of a coal miner, Turzak was born in Streeter, IL in 1899. In 1920, Turzak won the first prize a cartoon contest sponsored by the Purina company and he used his prize money to enroll in the Art Institute of Chicago. Best known as a print maker, in the 1920s & 30s, he created woodcuts of many of Chicago’s most notable buildings, including the Merchandise Mart, Palmolive Building and the Old Water Tower, among others. In 1933, he was commissioned to create woodcuts of many of Chicago’s most iconic buildings to illustrate a guidebook called “All About Chicago” by John and Ruth Ashenhurst” that featured the upcoming Century of Progress Exhibition in Chicago. During the 1933 World’s Fair...

Category

20th Century Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Masonite

Signed Antique American Modernist Watermelon Still Life Framed Oil Painting
Signed Antique American Modernist Watermelon Still Life Framed Oil Painting

Signed Antique American Modernist Watermelon Still Life Framed Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Antique American school modernist watermelon still life pastel painting. Pastel on paper. Signed. Framed. Measuring 18 by 22 inches overall and 16 by 20 painting alone.

Category

1940s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Love Letters 20 - Abstract Contemporary Resin Minimalist Mixed Media Artwork
Love Letters 20 - Abstract Contemporary Resin Minimalist Mixed Media Artwork

Love Letters 20 - Abstract Contemporary Resin Minimalist Mixed Media Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

In a Yellow Key, Original Oil Painting by Important Female Artist, Picasso
In a Yellow Key, Original Oil Painting by Important Female Artist, Picasso

In a Yellow Key, Original Oil Painting by Important Female Artist, Picasso

By Françoise Gilot

Located in Grand Rapids, MI

Austin Christian Fine Art is proud to represent this piece by what we believe to be one of the most important women artists of the 20th century. In addition to establishing a relatio...

Category

Mid-20th Century Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Studio Flowers; yellow orchids on blue, original painting, flowers, contemporary
Studio Flowers; yellow orchids on blue, original painting, flowers, contemporary

Studio Flowers; yellow orchids on blue, original painting, flowers, contemporary

Located in Deddington, GB

An original still life from my Studio Flower series. Yellow orchids in a Moroccan inspired bowl, created in Oxfordshire. Each flower is hand crafted from Japanese paper and the back ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

20th Century German Modernist Oil Painting Blue and Grey Sky Landscape
20th Century German Modernist Oil Painting Blue and Grey Sky Landscape

20th Century German Modernist Oil Painting Blue and Grey Sky Landscape

By Elisabeth Hahn

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Artist: Elisabeth Hahn (German 1924-2021), Elisabeth Hahn was born in Dortmund, Germany, where she began her artistic studies. In 1953, she moved to Paris. She continued her studie...

Category

20th Century Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil

Christopher Street (abstract Greenwich Village cityscape)
Christopher Street (abstract Greenwich Village cityscape)

Christopher Street (abstract Greenwich Village cityscape)

By De Hirsch Margules

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

De Hirsh Margules (1899-1965). Christopher Street, 1939. Watercolor on Arches wove paper. Signed and dated in pencil by artist lower margin. Sheet measures 15.5 x 20 inches. Window in matting measures 15 x 19 inches. Framed measurement: 23 x 30 inched. Bears fragment of original label affixed on verso. Incredibly vibrant and saturated color with no fading or toning of sheet. Provenance: Babcock Galleries, NYC Exhibited: The American Federation of Arts Traveling Exhibition. From the facade of The Waverly at Christopher is depicted One Christopher Street, the 16-story Art Deco residential building erected in 1931. It is not a casual coincidence that the structure appears in this cityscape: 1 Christopher Street is the subject. The original intention of this project was to transform the neighborhood, bring a bit of affluence and make a bid to rival the Upper West Side. Margules, a sensitive aesthete, understood how a massive piece of architecture such as One changes a neighborhood. Sound, scale and focal points are forever altered. A pedestrian's sense of depth and distance becomes pronounced. All of these factors contribute to the intent behind this image. Tall buildings disrupt the human scale, change the skyline and carve up space. In this piece, negative space conforms to the man-made geometries. Clouds become gems fixed in settings. De Hirsh Margules (1899–1965) was a Romanian-American "abstract realist" painter who crossed paths with many major American artistic and intellectual figures of the first half of the 20th century. Elaine de Kooning said that he was "[w]idely recognized as one of the most gifted and erudite watercolorists in the country". The New York Times critic Howard Devree stated in 1938 that "Margules uses color in a breath-taking manner. A keen observer, he eliminates scrupulously without distortion of his material." Devree later called Margules "one of our most daring experimentalists in the medium" Margules was also a well-known participant in the bohemian culture of New York City's Greenwich Village, where he was widely known as the "Baron" of Greenwich Village.[1] The New York Times described him as "one of Greenwich Village's best-known personalities" and "one of the best known and most buoyant characters about Greenwich Village. Early Life De Hirsh Margules was born in 1899 in the Romanian city of Iași (also known as Iasse, Jassy, or Jasse). When Margules was 10 weeks old, his family immigrated to New York City. Both of his parents were active in the Yiddish theater, His father was Yekutiel "Edward" Margules, a "renowned Jewish actor-impresario and founder of the Yiddish stage." Margules' mother, Rosa, thirty-nine years younger than his father, was an actress in the Yiddish theater and later in vaudeville. Although Margules appeared as a child actor with the Adler Family[11] and Bertha Kalich, his sister, Annette Margules, somewhat dubiously continued in family theater and vaudeville tradition, creating the blackface role of the lightly-clad Tondelayo (a part later played on film Hedy Lamarr) in Earl Carroll's 1924 Broadway exoticist hit, White Cargo. Annette herself faced stereotyping as an exotic flower: writing about her publicist Charles Bouchert stated that "Romania produces a stormy, temperamental type of woman---a type admirably fitted to portray emotion." His brother Samuel became a noted magician who appeared under the name "Rami-Sami." Samuel later became a lawyer, representing magician Horace Goldin, among others. A family portrait including a young De Hirsh, a portrait of Rosa and Annette together, and individual photos of Rosa and Edward can be found on the Museum of the City of New York website. At around age 9 or 10, Margules took art classes with the Boys Club on East Tenth Street, and his first taste of exhibition was at a student art show presented by the club. By age 11, he had won a city-wide prize (a box camera) at a children's art show presented by the department store Wanamakers. As a young teenager, Margules was already displaying a characteristic kindness and loyalty. Upon hearing that two friends (one of them was author Alexander King), were in trouble for breaking a school microscope, the nearly broke Margules gave them five dollars to repair the microscope . Margules had to approach a wealthy man that Margules had once saved on the subway from a heart attack. Margules didn't reveal the source of the five dollars to King until twenty-five years later. In his late teens, Margules studied for a couple of months in Pittsburgh with Edwin Randby, a follower of Western painter Frederic Remington. Thereafter he pursued a two-year course of studies in architecture, design and decoration at the New York Evening School of Art and Design, while working as a clerk during the day at Stern's Department Store. He was encouraged in these artistic pursuits by his neighbor, the painter Benno Greenstein (who later went by the name of Benjamin Benno). Artistic career In 1922, Margules began work as a police reporter for the City News Association of New York .Margules then considered himself something of an expert on art, and the painter Myron Lechay is said to have responded to some unsolicited analysis of his work with the remark "Since you seem to know so much about it, why don't you paint yourself?" This led to study with Lechay and a flurry of painting. Margules' first show was in 1922 at Jane Heap's Little Review Gallery. Thereafter Margules began to participate in shows with a group including Stuart Davis, Jan Matulka, Buckminster Fuller (exhibiting depictions of his "Dymaxion house") in a gallery run by art-lover and restaurateur Romany Marie on the floor above her cafe. Jane Heap, left, with Mina Loy and Ezra Pound During the 1920s, Margules traveled outside of the country a number of times. In 1922, with the intent of reaching Bali, he took a job as a "'wiper on a tramp steamer where [he] played nursemaid to the engine." He reached Rotterdam before he turned back. He would return to Rotterdam shortly thereafter. In 1927, Margules took a lengthy leave of absence from his day job as a police reporter in order to travel to Paris, where he "set up a studio in Montmartre's Place du Tertre, on the top floor of an almost deserted hotel, a shabby establishment, lacking both heat and running water." He studied at the Louvre and traveled to paint landscapes in provincial France and North Africa. Margules also joined the "Noctambulist" movement and experimented with painting and showing his artwork in low light.Jonathan Cott wrote that: the painter De Hirsch Margulies sat on the quays of the Seine and painted pictures in the dark. In fact, the first exhibition of these paintings, which could be seen only in a darkened room, took place in [ Walter Lowenfels'] Paris apartment. Elaine de Kooning remarked that studying the works of the Noctambulists confirmed Margules' "direction toward the use of primary colors for perverse effects of heavy shadow." It was also in Paris that Margules initially conceived his idea of "Time Painting", where a painting is divided into sectors, each representing a different time of day, with color choices meant to evoke that time of day. In Paris, his social circle included Lowenfels, photographer Berenice Abbott, publisher Jane Heap, composer George Anthiel, sculptor Thelma Wood, painter André Favory, writer Norman Douglas, writer and editor George Davis, composer and writer Max Ewing, and writer Michael Fraenkel. Upon his return to New York in 1929, Margules attended an exhibition of John Marin's paintings. While at the exhibition, he "launched into an eloquent explanation of Marin to two nearby women", and was overheard by an impressed Alfred Stieglitz. The famous photographer and art promoter invited Margules to dine with his wife, the artist Georgia O'Keeffe, and his assistant, painter Emil Zoler. Stieglitz thereafter became a friend and mentor to Margules, becoming for him "what Socrates was to his friends." Alfred Stieglitz Stieglitz introduced Margules to John Marin, who quickly became the most important painterly influence upon Margules. Elaine de Kooning later noted that Margules was "indebted to Marin and through Marin to Cézanne for his initial conceptual approach - for his constructions of scenes with no negative elements, for skies that loom with the impact of mountains." Margules himself said that Marin was his "father and ... academy." The admiration was by no means unreciprocated: Marin said that Margules was "an art lover with abounding faith and sincerity, with much intelligence and quick seeing." Stieglitz also introduced Margules to many other artistic and intellectual figures in New York. With the encouragement of Alfred Stieglitz, Margules in 1936 opened a two-room gallery at 43 West 8th Street called "Another Place." Over the following two years there were fourteen solo exhibitions by Margules and others, and the gallery was well-respected by the press. It was in this gallery that the painter James Lechay, Myron's brother, exhibited his first painting. In 1936, Margules first saw recognition by major art museums when both the Museum of Modern Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston purchased his works. In 1942, Margules gave up working as a police reporter, and apparently dedicated himself thereafter solely to an artistic vocation. "The Baron of Greenwich Village"[edit] Margules made his mark not only as an artist, but also as an outsized personality known throughout Greenwich Village and beyond. To local residents, Margules was known as the "Baron", after Baron Maurice de Hirsch, a prominent German Jewish philanthropist. Margules was easily recognizable by the beret he routinely wore over his long hair. Writer Charles Norman said that he "dressed with a flair for sloppiness." He was said to "know everybody" in Greenwich Village, to the extent that when the novelist and poet Maxwell Bodenheim was murdered, Margules was the first one the police sought to identify the body. Margules' letters show him interacting with art world figures such as Sacha Kolin, John Marin and Alfred Stieglitz, as well as with prominent figures outside the art world such as polymath Buckminster Fuller and writer Henry Miller. Most of his friends and acquaintances found Margules a generous and voluble man, given to broadly emotionally expressive gestures and acts of kindness and loyalty. In 1929, he exhibited an example of this loyalty and fellow-feeling when he appeared in court to fight what the wrongful commitment of his friend, writer and sculptor Alfred Dreyfuss, who appeared to have been a victim of an illicit attempt to block an inheritance. The Greenwich Village chronicler Charles Norman described the bone-crushing hugs that Margules would routinely bestow on his friends and acquaintances, and speaks of the "persuasive theatricality" that Margules seemed to have inherited from his actor parents. Norman also wrote about Margules' routine acts of kindness, taking in homeless artists, constantly feeding his friends and providing the salvatory loan where needed. Norman also notes that Margules was blessed with a loud and good voice, and was apt to sing an operatic air without provocation. The writer and television personality Alexander King said I think the outstanding characteristics of my friend's personality are affirmation, emphasis, and overemphasis. He chooses to express himself predominantly in superlatives and the gestures which accompany his utterances are sometimes dangerous to life and limb. Of the bystanders, I mean. King also spoke with affectionate amusement about Margules' pride in his cooking, speaking of how "if he should ever invite you to dinner, he may serve you a hamburger with onions, in his kitchen-living room, with such an air of gastronomic protocol, such mysterious hints and ogliing innuendoes, as if César Ritz and Brillat-Savarin had sneaked out, only a moment before, with his secret recipe in their pockets." Margules was such a memorable New York personality that comic book writer Alvin Schwartz imagined him at the Sixth Avenue Cafeteria in a risible yet poignant debate with Clark Kent about whether Superman had the ability to stop Hitler. Margules' entrenchment in the Greenwich Village milieu can be seen in a photograph from Fred McDarrah's "Beat Generation Album" of a January 13, 1961 writers' and poets' meeting to discuss "The Funeral of the Beat Generation", in Robert Cordier [fr]'s railroad flat at 85 Christopher Street. Among the people in the same photograph are Shel Silverstein...

Category

1930s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Rag Paper

The Window 317 - Modern Resin Beige Minimalist Artwork
The Window 317 - Modern Resin Beige Minimalist Artwork

The Window 317 - Modern Resin Beige Minimalist Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Hidden Portraits XXII, Acrylic on Board, Modern, Framed, 1980s
Hidden Portraits XXII, Acrylic on Board, Modern, Framed, 1980s

Hidden Portraits XXII, Acrylic on Board, Modern, Framed, 1980s

Located in London, GB

'Hidden Portraits XXII', acrylic on artist's board, Florentine School (circa 1980s-90s). This gallery has acquired a number of paintings through an intermediary of an ageing art prof...

Category

1980s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic, Board

Vintage American School Coastal Seascape Trompe L'Oeil Modernist Oil Painting
Vintage American School Coastal Seascape Trompe L'Oeil Modernist Oil Painting

Vintage American School Coastal Seascape Trompe L'Oeil Modernist Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Indulge in a journey to the vibrant and nostalgic era of the 1970s with our vintage original oil painting—a mesmerizing modernist beach interior scene, capturing the essence of sandy...

Category

1970s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

The Window 352 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Dual Tone Artwork
The Window 352 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Dual Tone Artwork

The Window 352 - Contemporary Shiny Resin Minimalist Brown Dual Tone Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Tall Sunspot 66 - Contemporary Resin Minimalist Warm Dual Tone Abstract Artwork
Tall Sunspot 66 - Contemporary Resin Minimalist Warm Dual Tone Abstract Artwork

Tall Sunspot 66 - Contemporary Resin Minimalist Warm Dual Tone Abstract Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Sunspot 133 - Tall Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Autumn Tone Abstract Artwork
Sunspot 133 - Tall Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Autumn Tone Abstract Artwork

Sunspot 133 - Tall Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Autumn Tone Abstract Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Woman with Shopping Cart
Woman with Shopping Cart

Woman with Shopping Cart

Located in Zofingen, AG

shipped in roll Acrylic painting of woman in sunglasses white dress black dots green socks sitting near shopping cart full of fruits Acrylic Painting on canvas One of a kind artwor...

Category

2010s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Time Zone 11 - Original Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Colorful Abstract Art
Time Zone 11 - Original Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Colorful Abstract Art

Time Zone 11 - Original Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Colorful Abstract Art

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Double Vision 76 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Red Orange Dual Tone Artwork
Double Vision 76 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Red Orange Dual Tone Artwork

Double Vision 76 - Modern Shiny Resin Minimalist Red Orange Dual Tone Artwork

By Ricky Hunt

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ricky Hunt’s mixed media minimalist wall art is influenced by his tumultuous past that led to a paradigm shift in creativity and life. He covers the wood panel with layers of acrylic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Vintage Hawaiian Landscape Framed Tropical Modern Oil Painting
Vintage Hawaiian Landscape Framed Tropical Modern Oil Painting

Vintage Hawaiian Landscape Framed Tropical Modern Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Finely painted contemporary tropical landscape. Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed verso.

Category

Early 2000s Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Modern abstract paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Modern 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, orange, red, pink and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Stanley Bate, Christel Haag, Clarence Holbrook Carter, and Carmen Gutierrez. Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Oil 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 Modern abstract paintings, so small editions measuring 18 inches across are also available. Prices for abstract paintings made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $380 and tops out at $175,000, while the average work sells for $2,970.