Abstract Interior 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.
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
Artist Comments
A late August summer day at an old Berks County farm. Artist Doug Cosbie painted fields of pastel greens, burnished yellows, and brow...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic, Parchment Paper, Glue
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
This painting captures the brilliant light of a sunny morning in Cape May, New Jersey. Artist Onelio Marrero draws inspiration...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Fabric, Ink
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Acrylic, Board
1980s Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
An open porch welcomes the morning breeze and the warm sunrise. Artist Onelio Marrero recreates the setting from a bed and breakfast inn called "Angel of The Sea" in Cape May...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
1970s Abstract Interior Paintings
Masonite, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
A woman comfortably sits under a shaded porch on a sunny morning. Artist Onelio Marrero captures the scene from Angel of The Sea, a breakfast inn located at C...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Newsprint, Pigment, Acrylic
Artist Comments
In New York at the entrance of Central Park at Columbus Circle, there is a monument that many people use as a meeting place. On...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Sandstone, Marble
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Wood, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1990s Abstract Interior Paintings
Acrylic
1980s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Early 2000s Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Acrylic, Panel
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Acrylic, Canvas
Artist Comments
Artist Onelio Marrero depicts a mother and her child dropping coins into a fountain for good luck. The quiet moment is painted in brilliant morning light with dappled shadows in the foreground. Behind them lies a verdant backdrop of foliage around a stone church and a view of the distant city beyond. Onelio's rich textures and detailed brushwork greatly enhances the piece. "The separating line between the church and the fountain reminds us of the demarcation between faith and luck," says Onelio.
About the Artist
Onelio Marrero paints city scenes of everyday life. In an impressionistic style he captures the romanticism of New York City, the picturesque fountains in Central Park and the wet city streets after a rainy afternoon. His use of warm tones creates a sense of nostalgia and the feeling that you have visited or seen this particular scene before. Onelio will often paint from direct observation, or he will work from a combination of photographs and combine numerous sources into one piece. In this way his work combines reality with fantasy, creating a new story with each painting. His work captures an appreciation for beauty in all of its greatest forms; nature, art, and people.
Words that describe this painting: fountain, church, plaza, spring, stonework, architecture...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Acrylic
Artist Comments
On her commute, Yangzi used to pass State St in the evening when the lights were just turning on. "This is a moment of fleeting beauty that you want to stop and appreciate," she says. "This is the magnificence that Chicago has to offer." Yangzi developed the energy of the scene, roughly painting in the speeding cars and drawing the eye back into the composition with her strongly angled perspective.
About the Artist
Artist Yangzi Xu...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
Early 2000s Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil Crayon, Acrylic, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Oil Crayon
Artist Comments
Artist Faye Vander Veer came across this sunny summer moment while traveling in San Francisco. "I was drawn to the contrast be...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
1970s Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil, Canvas
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Archival Paper
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Marble
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil, Wood Panel
Early 2000s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Wood, Spray Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Adhesive, Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
Evening on Randolph Street in Chicago, home to many of the city's theatres. "The lights are on, the musicals in the theatres are on," says Yangzi. "I painted th...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Interior Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Acrylic, Paste, Glue
Early 2000s Abstract Interior Paintings
Paste, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Interior Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic