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.
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Early 2000s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Silver
Mid-20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1950s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Archival Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Ink, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Wax, Acrylic, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Robin weaves a dynamic interplay of color, line, and shape in this abstract image of a woman. Fused with shades of red, the piece achieves a unique sim...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Linen, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Gold Leaf
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Cotton, Acrylic, Rag Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Ink
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
Early 2000s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Ink
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Ink, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Board, Canvas, Mixed Media
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Warren Keating connects two expressive overhead scenes of a person holding an umbrella and a cowboy strutting forward. Their cool blue shadows converge...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas
1960s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Masonite, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Ink
1970s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Masonite, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Gold Leaf
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Spray Paint, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Wax, Acrylic, Archival Paper
Artist Comments
A gentle touch, a delicate figure, a woman glows under a warm dappled ray of sunlight. "I especially enjoyed painting all of the beautiful colors in this scene," artist Sherri Aldawood says about capturing her model Alana, posing in a garden one spring morning.
About the Artist
Sherri Aldawood didn't intend to always paint flowers, but over time her love of gardens started to permeate her art. She focuses on the light and color of the flowers on the canvas. Sherri prefers alla prima, working with wet layers of paint instead of letting them dry. She keeps the paint as wet as possible by using walnut and clove oil to extend the drying time.
Words that describe this painting: portrait, woman, figure, figurative, Arizona, southwest, garden, nature, outdoors, spring, flowers, floral, John Singer Sargent, Joaquin Sorolla, impressionism, female, romantic, impressionism, people, oil painting, green
Alana in the Flower Garden...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
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
Gold Leaf
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Late 20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
1960s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Acrylic