Abstract Landscape 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
Blues and reds paint a picture of fog drifting through canyons, slowly dancing to and from the ocean. The title of the painting conveys its narrative, capturi...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Gold Leaf, Copper
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Resin, Acrylic, Panel
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Paint, Oil, Panel
1960s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Inspired by her memories of Amsterdam, artist Oksana Johnson offers this soft, impressionist view of one of the city's many waterways. "I remember it as a hap...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
Early 2000s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Paint, Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
Angela WakefieldM6 Motorway in England - a rare early critically acclaimed expressive painting, 2005
1980s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Encaustic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
Geometric shapes and lines resemble a nighttime mountain landscape. In this piece, artist John Gardner explores his fascination with the connections people se...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Acrylic
1980s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Linen, Archival Ink, Spray Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Spray Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Spray Paint, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Acrylic, Board
Late 20th Century Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Jesse Aldana composes an exciting sunset with golden peach rays stretching across a speckled blue sky and crashing waves. "In this painting, the sea an...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Artist Sarah Parsons presents an abstract depicting an expansive landscape. She paints bold contrasts of color, texture, and movement. The piece expresses tha...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
Sunsets wield a powerful influence over artist Jenn Williamson, igniting abundant creative inspiration. Her artwork originates from her imaginative mind, port...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Wood, Birch, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil, Canvas
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Clay, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Clay, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Inspired by the lush vineyards of France in the fall, artist Lisa Elley paints an impression of the scene. Light caresses the quaint village during the breathtaking summer. The vineyard flourishes in the foreground, creating a dramatic and colorful effect. She achieves a rich, buttery texture through thick impasto application.
About the Artist
Working almost exclusively with a palette knife, Lisa Elley maneuvers her artistic blade with an uncanny fluidity. Why paint only with the knife? She says, "when I paint with a brush, which I do occasionally, I tend to focus on the detail. With a palette knife I can't focus on the detail too much, so my paintings are looser, and more gestural, with bigger sweeps and strokes." This technique is called wet-on-wet. And it seems to be quite popular, as she has been bestowed the title "Knife Queen" by her facebook fans. Fun fact: Lisa's high school art teacher told her to study harder at math, as a career in art was "impossible."
Words that describe this painting: fall, autumn, season, France, Provence, village, vineyard, grapevines, winery, Europe, travel, buildings, architecture, farm, oilpaint, texture, palette knife, impressionism, landscape, impressionism, landscape, travel, oil painting, green
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Pigment
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Gentle waves lap against a sandy shore. A sand bar made with gold leaf separates the calm water from the sky. In the distance, shades of blue blend into the h...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Gesso, Gouache, Panel, Graphite
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Early 2000s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
20th Century Abstract Landscape Paintings
Board, Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
Artist George Peebles presents a beautiful palm tree overlooking warm waters. The leaves mesmerizingly sway along the gentle gusts of wind. The tropical setti...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Landscape Paintings
Wood, Birch, Acrylic
