Abstract 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 Paintings
Oil, Canvas
Artist Comments
Artist Joanie Ford depicts a few beachgoers enjoying a relaxing day out by the shore. Clouds provide a cool shadow from the sun's summer heat as a gentle bree...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
1920s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Gold Leaf
Artist Comments
Artist Terri Bell arranges organic circular shapes in a two-part composition. Subtle pops of color punctuate the predominantly monochromatic grid in unpredict...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
Late 20th Century Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Cotton Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Paintings
Watercolor
Early 20th Century Abstract Paintings
Watercolor, Rag Paper, Pencil
Late 20th Century Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1960s Abstract Paintings
Gouache, Handmade Paper, Mixed Media, Pencil
Late 20th Century Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Paintings
Oil, Paper
2010s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Plaster, Glaze, Acrylic
1950s Abstract Paintings
Oil Pastel, Cardboard
2010s Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Paintings
Paper, Ink
1960s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1950s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1960s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Late 20th Century Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1980s Abstract Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Paintings
Paper, Ink
Mid-20th Century Abstract Paintings
Oil, Board
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Oil
1980s Abstract Paintings
Masonite, Oil
20th Century Abstract Paintings
Oil, Board
2010s Abstract Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
1940s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1980s Abstract Paintings
Wood, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Ryan Pickart layers art historical references in this sensual nude. The painting tells the Greek myth of Alcmene and Galant...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Paper, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Paintings
Gold Leaf
Early 2000s Abstract Paintings
Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Paintings
Gesso, Canvas, Oil, Acrylic, Wood Panel
Late 20th Century Abstract Paintings
Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Paintings
Paper, Encaustic, Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars
Artist Comments
Reflections on the water in Monet's pond at Giverny. Onelio spent some time there taking in the splendor of the setting. "Each view of the place was a paintin...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Copper, Gold Leaf
2010s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Paintings
Board, Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Archival Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Abstract Paintings
Oil
2010s Abstract Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Abstract paintings for sale on 1stDibs.
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