Abstract Figurative 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.
Artist Comments
A mother embraces her child in artist Diana Elena Chelaru's tender expressionist portrait. "We all know as children and later on, as parents how much we love be...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Clay, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Board
Artist Comments
Artist Warren Keating displays an image of a man riding a bicycle from an aerial view. "This painting was inspired by an early morning cyclist traveling on a de...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Benjamin Thomas shows a sunny beach with softly crashing waves on the dark sand. Three Amish sisters enjoy a stroll on the receding water with their bare...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
1990s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Pastel, Tempera, Cardboard
1990s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Board
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Two women take a refreshing dip in the pool in artist Benjamin Thomas' expressionist piece. He paints the pristine waters with repeated swirling semi-abstract e...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
Artist Comments
Artist Warren Keating takes after a late winter drizzle in Paris. He displays the light texture of falling rain over a moving figure holding their umbrella upwa...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Oil, Spray Paint, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Watercolor, Charcoal, Oil Crayon, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
Early 2000s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
Early 2000s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil Crayon, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Early 2000s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
Artist Comments
"I've painted this contemplative piece when the pandemic started and the world started changing around us," shares artist Claudia Verciani. An elderly woman gaz...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic, Clay
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Ink, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Resin, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Resin, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Resin, Wood Panel
Artist Comments
"This painting is another composition that depicts a group of figures with graceful and fluid movements," says artist Nancy Hughes Miller. They sway their hips in unison with bare feet in light tiptoes. Their dresses glow with intricate floral adornments.
About the Artist
Romanian-born painter Diana Chelaru’s paintings are colorful and contemporary interpretations of human emotion. For Diana, art is a means of communication. “It is how I express my thoughts, hopes, regrets and joys,†she says. Though she gets great pleasure from applying paint to canvas, it is the expression of emotions that she finds to be most important. Diana’s style is influenced by Byzantine mosaics as well as Gustav Klimt’s subject matter and use of decorative patterns within his compositions. Each artwork is created intuitively, resulting in paintings that speak to the soul.
Words that describe this painting: dance, music, figurative, figure, expressionism, movement, motion, wind...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic, Paper, Oil
1950s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Clay, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Linen, Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Gouache
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
Soft ripples on the water distort the reflection of two figures with an umbrella standing on the lake's edge. Artist Andres Lopez offers a unique perspective by...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
Late 20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas