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, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic, Handmade Paper
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Oil, Archival Paper
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Ink, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Late 20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Gouache
1990s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Conté
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Ink
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Oil, Archival Paper
1950s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Linen, Oil
Late 20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Gouache
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Cardboard, Canvas
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Cotton Canvas
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Early 2000s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Acrylic
Early 2000s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Oil, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
A young girl walks along the beach in search of shells buried in the sand. Artist Claudia Verciani used the light coming off of the water to illuminate the ch...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic, Magazine Paper
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
1990s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
1960s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Panel
Late 20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Oil, Archival Paper
1960s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1990s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Pastel, Tempera, Cardboard
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Acrylic, Canvas
Artist Comments
A young girl sits at a park on a late summer's day in August, lost in a story of a compelling book. The strong afternoon sunlight highlights her hair and back. "I saw this girl sitting by the reflecting pool in Washington, DC", shares artist Faye Vander Veer. "I wanted the painting to be about her, so I obscured surrounding details and kept the brushwork loose. What was her story, what was she reading?”
About the Artist
Artist Faye Vander Veer seeks out moments with engaging narratives and captures them with an impressionist style. She describes herself as an observer of people living their day-to-day lives. Her goal is to offer viewers a look into her sensory memory while also prompting the beginning of a story. Faye always keeps her camera by her side, ready to capture reference material. "For me, each painting is an opportunity to explore my emotional reactions to the color and light I observe," says Faye. She enjoys being in her glass-walled studio surrounded by nature to inspire her creative process. When she is not putting paint on canvas, Faye can be found in nature, journaling or writing poetry. Her artwork has been showcased in both American Art Collector and Art of the West magazines.
Words that describe this painting: figure, figurative, female, woman, girl, impressionism, impressionist, water, book, Manet, Degas, people, park, book, hair, impressionism, people, oil painting, brown
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Paper
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Pastel, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Linen, Archival Ink, Spray Paint, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Plywood, Oil
1960s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1970s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Clay, Acrylic
1990s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Gouache
Mid-20th Century Abstract Figurative Paintings
Gouache
1970s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Oil
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Ink, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Ink, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Masonite, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Onelio Marrero paints a tender mother and daughter moment in a river. Created as a figurative study for a larger painting of the same setting. The subj...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Figurative Paintings
Paper, Oil, Acrylic