Abstract Nude 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.
1970s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
An expressionist portrait of relationships as a dance. Dominant blue palette with hints of red, purple and pink that offers both cal...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Pastel
Artist Comments
More and more I love to experiment with abstraction. It's amazing how realism with some abstraction somehow looks more true than when rendered using just real...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Laid Paper
Late 20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Paper, Pastel
1950s Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil, Panel
1960s Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil, Canvas
Artist Comments
Broad strokes of blue and green merge with the strong lines of the figure to create a sense of lightness and buoyancy. "This painting was inspired by a holida...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Crayon, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Charcoal, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Charcoal, Acrylic
1950s Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil, Illustration Board
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic, Charcoal
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil, Board
1950s Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil, Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Ink
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil Pastel
Early 2000s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1950s Abstract Nude Paintings
Linen, Oil
Artist Comments
Swirling shapes in shades of purple and blue evoke a cosmic scene, with a cluster of bright yellow stars bursting at the center of each formation. This artwor...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic
1970s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Ink
1970s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Nude Paintings
Gesso, Oil
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Watercolor, Paper
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Linen, Oil
1960s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Linen, Oil
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic
1980s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1960s Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil, Board
1970s Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Cotton Canvas, Acrylic, Oil, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Early 2000s Abstract Nude Paintings
Mixed Media, Cardboard
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Paper, Pastel, Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Paper, Pastel, Ink, Acrylic, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic, Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Fabric, Thread, Mixed Media
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Sharon Sieben heavily relies on imagination in her work. "I‘ve begun to put my impressions and feelings onto the canvas rather than overthink," she s...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
A live model was the inspiration for this painting. Feeling moved by her pose, I started with a basic line drawing using charcoal. I...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Nude Paintings
Cotton, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
Acrylic
Late 20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
20th Century Abstract Nude Paintings
Oil, Board
1970s Abstract Nude Paintings
Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Nude Paintings
India Ink, Acrylic