Contemporary Portrait Paintings
CONTEMPORARY STYLE
Used to refer to a time rather than an aesthetic, Contemporary art generally describes pieces created after 1970 or being made by living artists anywhere in the world. This immediacy means it encompasses art responding to the present moment through diverse subjects, media and themes. Contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, performance, digital art, video and more frequently includes work that is attempting to reshape current ideas about what art can be, from Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s use of candy to memorialize a lover he lost to AIDS-related complications to Jenny Holzer’s ongoing “Truisms,” a Conceptual series that sees provocative messages printed on billboards, T-shirts, benches and other public places that exist outside of formal exhibitions and the conventional “white cube” of galleries.
Contemporary art has been pushing the boundaries of creative expression for years. Its disruption of the traditional concepts of art are often aiming to engage viewers in complex questions about identity, society and culture. In the latter part of the 20th century, contemporary movements included Land art, in which artists like Robert Smithson and Michael Heizer create large-scale, site-specific sculptures, installations and other works in soil and bodies of water; Sound art, with artists such as Christian Marclay and Susan Philipsz centering art on sonic experiences; and New Media art, in which mass media and digital culture inform the work of artists such as Nam June Paik and Rafaël Rozendaal.
The first decades of the 21st century have seen the growth of Contemporary African art, the revival of figurative painting, the emergence of street art and the rise of NFTs, unique digital artworks that are powered by blockchain technology.
Major Contemporary artists practicing now include Ai Weiwei, Cecily Brown, David Hockney, Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami and Kara Walker.
Find a collection of Contemporary prints, photography, paintings, sculptures and other art on 1stDibs.
Style: Contemporary
Color: Beige
The curious #1 Caroline Veith, 21st Century art Contemporary figurative painting
Located in Paris, FR
Acrylic paint on paper
Signed and dated lower right
Unique work
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Paper, Acrylic
La Guadalupe
By Jose Bedia
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
José Bedia
(Havana, Cuba, 1959) Lives and works in Miami, FL
José Bedia is the most solid representative of post-1959 revolution Cuban art. He was part of the now mythical group s...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
Fascination- 21st century Dutch painting of a child playing
By Mitzy Renooy
Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant
Mitzy Renooy made this painting in the autumn of 2019.
A child playing in the water. One of her favorite inspiration is the way children move and stay in their own world.
This painting makes an impression due to the simplicity of the brushstrokes and the narrative that is told by artist Mitzy Renooy. Mitzy Renooy finds her inspiration, people in their environment, movement and the ryhthm of life, Cuba...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
Marilyn Monroe Iconic Portrait Figure Pop Art Modern Contemporary Cubism Signed
By Dara Piken
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Te Quiero (Marilyn)" is an original mixed media acrylic and oil pastel on canvas by Dara Piken. Marilyn Monroe and her signature gaze look out at the viewer, with tequila bottles...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil Pastel, Canvas, Acrylic
Portraits of Androids, Blond Sophia
By Lee Wells
Located in New York, NY
Portraits of Androids, Blond Sophia #1, 2018
Hand embellished monoprint on canvas
47 1/5 × 35 2/5 in
120 × 90 cm
Sophia’s Safehouse in an Uncanny Valley examines the recent celebrity culture of humanoid AI as a way to better understand humanity, authenticity, identity, and memory in the early 21st century. The installation, inspired in part by the dystopian literary works of George Orwell, Mary Shelley, Philip K. Dick, Isaac Asimov...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic, Graphite, Monoprint
Fashion designer Marc Jacobs blue shadow, Portrait. Watercolor on paper
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Marc's blue shadow, watercolor on paper
One of a Kind
Unframed
___________________________________________
The worlds of fashion, society, and pop culture are explored through the i...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Archival Paper, Watercolor
"Malcolm Little" Pop Art Portrait
Located in Houston, TX
Large abstract portrait of human rights activist Malcolm X titled "Malcolm Little" by artist Patrick Lace made of three attached canvases, cir...
Category
1990s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
Wrapping like fog upon its breast -Daniel Erban, 20th Century, Outsider painting
By Daniel Erban
Located in Paris, FR
Acrylic paint on paper
Signed
Unique work
Category
1990s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Paper, Acrylic
Confetti and Balloons- 21st Century Contemporary Portrait Oil Painting
By Gerard Schriemer
Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant
The paintings by artist Gerard Schriemer ask for your attention for several reasons. The fine technique, the subjects and the way in which the subject...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Cher
Located in New York, NY
Mixed Media. Oil, enamel, egg tempera, acrylic glass/aura, L.E.D. lights, feathers, satin, found objects on wood.
About the collaborators:
New York artists Serge Strosberg and David Mandel fuse the visual language of Flemish and German portraiture with fantasy jewelry...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media
Elvis in Vegas
Located in New York, NY
Mixed Media: Oil, enamel, egg tempera, vinyl, satin, L.E.D. lights, beads, found objects. 3d.
About the Collaborators:
New York artists Serge Strosberg and David Mandel fuse the visual language of Flemish and German portraiture with fantasy jewelry and fabric design. Both artists present a very contemporary and unlikely mixture of works heavily inspired by their personal histories characterized by decadence and eccentricity of the NYC club...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media
Smoking Tom Petty
Located in New York, NY
Mixed Media. Oil, enamel, egg tempera, glass, felt hat, fabric, metallic mesh on wood.
About the collaborative artists:
New York artists Serge Strosberg and David Mandel fuse the visual language of Flemish and German portraiture with fantasy jewelry and fabric design. Both artists present a very contemporary and unlikely mixture of works heavily inspired by their personal histories characterized by decadence and eccentricity of the NYC club...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media
Lush
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Sweet, soft kind She does not fear the exposure of her heart She is a glowing star, a moon in the dark She is covered, dripping with the overflowing saturated...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Alessandro Michele, Portrait. Acrylic on canvas painting
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Alessandro Michele
One of a kind acrylic painting
16 x 11.75 inches
2018
Unframed
The worlds of fashion, society and pop culture are explored through the illustrations of Manuel Sa...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Acrylic, Archival Paper
Blond Sophia #1
By Lee Wells
Located in New York, NY
Blond Sophia #1, 2018
Hand embellished monoprint on canvas
47 1/5 × 35 2/5 in
120 × 90 cm
Sophia’s Safehouse in an Uncanny Valley examines the recent celebrity culture of humanoid A...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Monoprint, Canvas, Acrylic, Graphite
A Frail Attempt
By Adam Mysock
Located in New Orleans, LA
Sandro Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus, 1484-86
We desire attention, but no one likes a show-off. So, we’ve sharpened our ability to practice false modesty. We pretend to cover ours...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Acrylic, Varnish, Wood Panel
Dancer in Yellow
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Created during the chilly winter, this piece is a celebration of warmth and light. Bathed in the hot spotlight, this dancer shimmies around the stage and help...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Gravida 7, Para 3
By Ruth Owens
Located in New Orleans, LA
[ New Orleans, LA :: b.1959, Augsburg, Germany ]
In 1959, Ruth Owens was born to a young German woman and a Black serviceman from Georgia. The nomadic military lifestyle of her chi...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
How?
By Ruth Owens
Located in New Orleans, LA
[ New Orleans, LA :: b.1959, Augsburg, Germany ]
In 1959, Ruth Owens was born to a young German woman and a Black serviceman from Georgia. The nomadic military lifestyle of her chi...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Portraits of Androids, Erica `1
By Lee Wells
Located in New York, NY
Erica #1, 2018
Hand embellished monoprint on canvas
25 3/5 × 21 7/10 in
65 × 55 cm
Sophia’s Safehouse in an Uncanny Valley examines the recent celebrity culture of humanoid AI as a way to better understand humanity, authenticity, identity, and memory in the early 21st century. The installation, inspired in part by the dystopian literary works of George Orwell, Mary Shelley, Philip K. Dick, Isaac Asimov...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Pencil, Monoprint, Canvas, Acrylic
Oil on canvas Painting -- The Subterranean
By Gary Masline
Located in Troy, NY
A young blonde woman descends down the stairs as she steps into the shadows of this oil painting. The scene evokes a historic town painted mostly in lush reds with browns and olive s...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Concussion
By Emily Smith
Located in Philadelphia, PA
"Concussion" is an original watercolor painting with a floral fabric overlay/background by Emily Smith measuring 23"h x 16"w. The piece is shipped in the pictured fabric-covered cus...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Fabric, Watercolor
Race againts a shadow - XXI Century Figurative Oil Painting, Monochromatic
Located in Warsaw, PL
PAWEŁ SKURSKI (born in 1978)
He graduated from the Faculty of painting and sculpture of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. He also studied at the Nation...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Theogene, Life size Boxer Painting, Pop expressive, oil on paper, walnut frame
Located in Dallas, TX
"The Boxer" series is an on-going body of work by Apostolos Chantzaras. As a practicing boxer himself, the artist has a passion for the sport and it shows in his bold yet whimsical w...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Archival Paper, Oil
SELF PORTRAIT WITH BLACK HAT - Female Portrait
Located in New York, NY
Russian-born artist Olga Antonova trained at the Repin Institute in Saint Petersburg and specializes in still life paintings of shiny kettles and porcelain china cups and plates, as ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Head of Antinous, Olympia Series, 2ndCAD, #32
By Lee Wells
Located in New York, NY
Lee Wells
Head of Antinous, Olympia Series 2ndCAD, 2019
Gold pigment and acrylic polymer on canvas
100 x 100 cm (39.4 x 39.4 inches)
Signed, titled and dated on verso
Lee Wells (b.1...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Acrylic Polymer, Cotton Canvas
DOUBLE PORTRAIT - Eleanor Aldrich - Contemporary Figurative Painting on Silicone
Located in Signal Mountain, TN
DOUBLE PORTRAIT was created with bubble wrap as a mold for silicone. Eleanor Aldrich then takes this silicone andP paints the portrait you see here of a couple embraced for their por...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil, Silicone
Forest
Located in Mill Valley, CA
From the beginning, Jacoby’s approach to the canvas has been fearless, following a method akin to the way the subconscious or even unconscious works. She manifests everyday life, po...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
Drawing Of Ax
Located in Sofia, BG
"Drawing of Ax" is a water color and pencil drawing on paper by Zdravko Denev.
The painting is unframed.
“The impressions of Zdravko's paintings on the viewer is so mighty, mesmeri...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Watercolor, Paper
Dancing Elephant
Located in Sofia, BG
"Dancing Elephant" is a water color painting on paper by Zdravko Denev.
The painting is unframed.
“The impressions of Zdravko's paintings on the viewer is so mighty, mesmerizing, g...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Paper, Watercolor
Double Sophia
By Lee Wells
Located in New York, NY
Lee Wells
Double Sophia, 2018
Hand embellished monoprint on canvas with projection mapped video
125 x 150 cm
Contact for video link.
Sophia’s Safehouse in an Uncanny Valley examines the recent celebrity culture of humanoid AI as a way to better understand humanity, authenticity, identity, and memory in the early 21st century. The installation, inspired in part by the dystopian literary works of George Orwell, Mary Shelley, Philip K. Dick, Isaac Asimov...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Monoprint, Canvas, Video, Acrylic, Graphite
ZD Drawing
Located in Sofia, BG
"ZD Drawing" is a oil pastel color and pencil drawing on paper by Zdravko Denev.
The painting is unframed.
“The impressions of Zdravko's paintings on the viewer is so mighty, mesme...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Color Pencil, Paper, Oil Pastel
Erica #`1
By Lee Wells
Located in New York, NY
Erica #1, 2018
Hand embellished monoprint on canvas
25 3/5 × 21 7/10 in
65 × 55 cm
Sophia’s Safehouse in an Uncanny Valley examines the recent celebrity culture of humanoid AI as a ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Monoprint
Philip K Dick
By Lee Wells
Located in New York, NY
Phillip K. Dick, 2018
Hand embellished monoprint on canvas
21 7/10 × 17 7/10 in
55 × 45 cm
Sophia’s Safehouse in an Uncanny Valley examines the recent celebrity culture of humanoid AI as a way to better understand humanity, authenticity, identity, and memory in the early 21st century. The installation, inspired in part by the dystopian literary works of George Orwell, Mary Shelley, Philip K. Dick, Isaac Asimov...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Monoprint
Face Of My Muse - Oil Portrait Painting Colors Blue White Red Grey Black
By Leith Ridley
Located in Sofia, BG
"Face Of My Muse" is a portrait painting by the South African - French artist Leith Ridley.
About the artwork:
TECHNIQUE: oil painting
STYLE: Portrait, Contemporary
Edition : Uniq...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Acrylic, Canvas, Oil
Joy and Ferdinand
Located in New Orleans, LA
Gina Phillips is a mixed media, narrative artist who grew up in Kentucky and has lived in New Orleans since 1995. The imagery, stories and characters of both regions influence her wo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Fabric, Paint, Thread
Mixed Media Portrait on Canvas -- Huracana
Located in Troy, NY
This mixed media portrait shows a Caribbean woman bearing red on her face and surrounded by images of daily rural life. There is a maroon rooster, a turquoise shack, and green palm f...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media, Canvas
Seeking Funn SEXY friends - mw4mw - 30 (NO ky SO oh)
Located in New Orleans, LA
paint chip sample mosaic on panel and vintage swing frame
Born in 1971 in Cincinnati, Ohio, Carlton Scott Sturgill received his Masters of Arts (Fine Art) from London’s Chelsea Coll...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media, Paint
Martin Luther King / Once Upon a TIme
Located in Burlingame, CA
'Portrait of Martin Luther King' or 'A Black Man on a Black Horse; from Badgley Arnoux's 'Once Upon A Time' series is an oil painting on canvas — 72 x 66 inches. The grand artwork ca...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
More than eye candy - POP-ART by Craig Alan
By Craig Alan
Located in New York City, NY
MIXED MEDIA ORIGINAL PAINTING BY CRAIG ALAN
Craig Alan is a Pop Surrealist, internationally recognized for his ingenious portraits of iconic figures and or images drawn from popular...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media, Acrylic
Work and Play (Mickey Mouse)
By Craig Alan
Located in New York City, NY
MIXED MEDIA ORIGINAL ON PANEL WITH HIGH GLOSS FINISH!
Craig Alan is a Pop Surrealist, internationally recognized for his ingenious portraits of iconic figures and or images drawn fr...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media, Acrylic
Love Me Tender Salma Vs. Frida
Located in New York, NY
Cao meticulously places each smaller image to form a dynamic gradient from dark to light which tricks the eye into seeing one image. This expertise in contrast is exemplified in all ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Stainless Steel
Jetset
By Nemo Jantzen
Located in New York, NY
Nemo Jantzen, born 1970 in The Haque, studied art, design and photography at the RTO Art Academy in Rotterdam. After his studies, he moved to Antwerp to work as a graphic designer an...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Plexiglass, Resin
Beauty Balloon Silver
Located in New York, NY
With the distinctive medium of post-it notes, Özmenoğlu re-contextualizes everyday objects from something ordinary to a beautiful work of art. The individualized behavior of each pos...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Screen, Adhesive
Colorful Contemporary Chuck Close Style Abstract Self Portrait Painting
Located in Houston, TX
Colorful abstract self portrait painting by contemporary artist Matt Aston. The work features the mosaic-like cells that were popularized by the iconic arti...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil
Lipstick Mania
Located in New York, NY
With the distinctive medium of post-it notes, Özmenoğlu re-contextualizes everyday objects from something ordinary to a beautiful work of art. The individualized behavior of each pos...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Screen, Paper
Ubuntu
Located in Miami, FL
Isabelle Scheltjens’ elegant glass portraits celebrate materiality. Growing up with a love of pop art, Scheltjens infused her passion with natural talent and years of education at SI...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Glass
Ebba
Located in Miami, FL
Isabelle Scheltjens’ elegant glass portraits celebrate materiality. Growing up with a love of pop art, Scheltjens infused her passion with natural talent and years of education at SI...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Wood Panel, Glass
POW
By Nemo Jantzen
Located in New York, NY
Unique glass spheres are arranged to create a playful portrait of young woman. The light reflects off the glass spheres and the woman's sunglasses, creating a dynamic interplay.
Pop...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media, Glass
Bottoms Up
By Nemo Jantzen
Located in New York, NY
Unique glass spheres are arranged to create a colorful portrait of young woman. The light reflects off the glass spheres, creating a dynamic interplay.
In the latest series, inspire...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Glass, Mixed Media
Gobsmacked
By Nemo Jantzen
Located in New York, NY
Unique glass spheres are arranged to create a colorful portrait of young woman. The light reflects off the glass spheres, creating a dynamic interplay.
Fashion, brands, magazine, ha...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Glass, Mixed Media
Boogie Woogie
By Nemo Jantzen
Located in New York, NY
Unique glass spheres are arranged to create a playful portrait of ayoung woman. The light reflects off the glass spheres and the woman's sunglasses, creating a dynamic interplay.
Ro...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Glass, Mixed Media
Portrait of a Lady
Located in New York, NY
This unique painting was created by using the technique of cake pipe painting; the pipes used for cake decorating. Pinar du Pre would pipe acrylic paint onto the canvas in parallel ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
Luma
Located in New York, NY
Alea Pınar du Pre was born in Vienna, where she grew up under the intense influence of the artistic legacy left by the Vienna Secession and the Wiener Werkstatte. Du Pre studied mark...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Fabric, Canvas, Glitter, Acrylic, Mixed Media
Closed - contemporary hyperrealistic close-up detail eye human face oil painting
By Anne Moses
Located in London, GB
Anne's work has mutated but the same themes have remained constant i.e: close up & detailed observation of the skin, facial features & texture; montaged images; ambiguity. The main area of interest has always been the human face...
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Tre Grazia - Marilyn, Madonna and Brigitte Bardot, Mixed Media
Located in San Francisco, CA
"Tre Grazia - Marilyn, Madonna and Brigitte Bardot" is a mixed media edition piece by Israeli artist Dganit Blechner. She expresses a unique perspective on urban life and pop culture...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Mixed Media
Binding
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is an original oil painting on panel by Lauren Rinaldi measuring 12in x 6in.
Lauren Rinaldi's work inhabits the space where objectification, female power and sexual empowermen...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel
Continuidad de los sueños
Located in New York, NY
Julio Alan Lepez
Continuidad de los sueños, 2013
Mixed Media on board
33.8 x 17.3 in
(85.85h x 43.94w cm)
Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings
Materials
Board, Mixed Media, Oil
Contemporary portrait paintings for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Contemporary portrait paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add portrait paintings created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, orange, purple, pink and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Nemo Jantzen, America Martin, Jack Graves III, and Timothy Archer. Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Fabric and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Contemporary portrait paintings, so small editions measuring 2 inches across are also available. Prices for portrait paintings made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $88 and tops out at $430,743, while the average work sells for $4,000.
Recently Viewed
View AllMore Ways To Browse
Italian Food Posters
Hyacinthe Rigaud
Holy Roman Emperor
Set Of Carousel Horses
Greek Russian Icon
Lord Chancellor
Montse Valdes
Antique British Military Portraits
Adickes Red
Grisaille Portrait
Sunday At Tiffanys
Joseph Richardson
Miniature Portrait Of A Boy
Suchitra Bhosle
St Rocco
Mummy Painting
Gentleman Dog Portrait
Sundays At Tiffanys