Abstract Photography
ABSTRACT STYLE
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.
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Style: Abstract
Into The Void 03 and Be The Eye In the Storm 02, Diptych.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artist's computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's w...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Sail Boats with Two Men in a Boat on a Silver Gray Sea, Monochromatic
By Robert Funk
Located in Miami, FL
Simmering silver water underpins a group of sailboats punctuated by a small boat in the foreground.
The image takes on the look of traditional Asian art with its simplicity and per...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, Inkjet, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Ecstasy
Located in Storrs, CT
"Ecstasy" is a classic example of my abstract PhotoLuminism technique. When light travels, the human eye cannot see its trails, but the camera can and does. Capturing images this way...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Metal
$1,720 Sale Price
20% Off
#11, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#14, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Contemporary sensual, erotic photograph of nude man from historic image w/ text
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
"For Walt Whitman" by artist Paul Cava is a one-of-a-kind (unique) archival pigment print with gouache and collage on fine art paper. It depicts the negative image of a nude man base...
Category
Early 2000s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment, Gouache, Archival Paper
Rhythm, Limited Edition of 30
Located in Miami, FL
A study in light, geometry, and repetition — Rhythm transforms an architectural façade into an abstract composition of texture and shadow. The warm glow of the setting sun softens th...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Cotton Canvas, Archival Paper
I Got Your Back 01 and Healing 01. Abstract color photographs, Diptych.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artist's computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's w...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Pink Dark Sun - Black Wood Framed Abstract Photograph - Digital Print- In Stock
By Susan Daboll
Located in New York, NY
Pink Dark Sun is an abstract limited edition fine art color print by photographer and graphic artist Susan Daboll. This minimal square print is framed in a thin black wood frame and ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Luster, Paper, Digital, Wood
Snowy Night, Rainy Night in Manhattan with Orange Sky
Located in Miami, FL
A solitary hooded figure crosses a desolate Manhattan street as light snow and rain come down. For 54 years, Mitchell Funk has been chronicling the effects of light on form; here, h...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Torquidos
Located in Storrs, CT
"Torquidos" is a painting of light 'unseen.' When light travels, the human eye doesn't see its trails, but the camera does. My usual version of light painting involves leaving the li...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Metal
$1,360 Sale Price
20% Off
#220, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
The Block 02 and The Mask 03. Abstract color photographs. Diptych.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Letters
Located in Slovak Republic, SK
Picture done during a city walk, evoking intensity, could be interesting in a modern interior. This one is framed. Limited edition of 50.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment
$1,067 Sale Price
25% Off
Set of 3 Photographs. Cyanotype photograph of the ocean waves
By Paola Davila
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Water is constant in the artist's visual investigation, for her water is no longer the stage in which the body's memory bursts, but rather the environment and protagonist, constant o...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Cotton, Archival Pigment
Corkscrews
Located in Storrs, CT
"Corkscrew" is a classic example of my abstract PhotoLuminism technique. When light travels, the human eye cannot see its trails, but the camera can and does. Capturing images this w...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Metal
$1,800 Sale Price
20% Off
The Block 01 and The Mask 02. Abstract color photographs Diptych.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Red Sun - Limited Edition Abstract Color Photograph - Fine Art Digital Print
By Susan Daboll
Located in New York, NY
Red Sun is an abstract limited edition fine art color print by photographer and graphic artist Susan Daboll. This colorful square digital print ships safely in tube.
Print Size is ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Luster, Paper, Digital
Aspen Study II - large scale photograph of Indian summer autumnal color palette
By Frank Schott
Located in San Francisco, CA
Aspen Study II by Frank Schott
a series of images capturing the yellow golden Indian summer foliage palette of aspen trees in California's Sierra Nevada
...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment, Giclée
Fish (Stay) - Contemporary, Expired, Polaroid, Photograph
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Fish (Stay) - 2006,
20x24cm, Edition 4/5.
Archival C-Print, hand-printed by the artist on Fuji Crystal Archive Paper, matte surface, based on the Polaroid.
Signature label and cer...
Category
Early 2000s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Twenty cherry Trees, black and white panorama photography, limited edition
Located in Vienna, Vienna
Black and white fine art panorama landscape photography. Archival pigment ink print, limited edition of 9. Cherry Tree avenue at the edge of the cornfield, Weinviertel, Austria. All ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Psychedelic Portrait of a Young Hippie with Manipulated Color, Kali
Located in Miami, FL
As a progenitor of special effects photography and experimental photography in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Mitchell Funk employed a variety of non-digital techniques to achieve ...
Category
1970s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Papercut No.3 - black and white abstract photogoraphy, limited editon of 20.
By Ugne Pouwell
Located in London, GB
Papercute No.3 explores the sculptural qualities of light and shadow through delicately folded paper. The composition evokes a sense of movement, with fluid, organic curves resemblin...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Giclée
#240, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Look Up 03 and Manifest 03. Abstract color photographs, Diptych.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Look Up 02 and Manifest 01, Diptych. Abstract color photographs
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artist's computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's w...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Untitled 2275: still life photograph w/ yellow apples & abstract shadow patterns
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
This is an archival pigment print depicting an abstracted still life printed on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag 308 gsm by artist Paul Cava. It is from the "Table Top" series, which is one of t...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Inkjet, Archival Pigment
Set of 2 Photographs. Cyanotype photograph of the ocean waves
By Paola Davila
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Water is constant in the artist's visual investigation, for her water is no longer the stage in which the body's memory bursts, but rather the environment and protagonist, constant o...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Cotton, Archival Pigment
Follow U 01, From the series Portal. Abstract color photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
"The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
#215, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#109, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Set of 2 Cyanotype Photographs. Framed. From the Mareas series
By Paola Davila
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Water is constant in the artist's visual investigation, for her water is no longer the stage in which the body's memory bursts, but rather the environment and protagonist, constant o...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Cotton, Archival Pigment
Fish Swimming Below Water, Fresh Blue Tones Cyanotype Print, Pool Art on Paper
By Kind of Cyan
Located in Barcelona, ES
This is an exclusive handprinted unique cyanotype that takes its inspiration from the mid-century modern shapes.
It's made by layering paper cutouts and different exposures using uv-...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Emulsion, Watercolor, Monotype, Paper
CoCreate 02 and 03 Diptych, From the We Are One Series
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Discontiguous
Located in Storrs, CT
"Discontiguous" was created in the field behind my second house in Pennsylvania. It's a light painting captured in about 30 seconds.
Printed on flat archival paper, double matted, ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Inkjet
$960 Sale Price
20% Off
Pando #7, 2018, Karine Laval - Jungle, Woodland, Trees, Color Photography
By Karine Laval
Located in Brighton, GB
Pando Forest #7 is available in an Edition of 5 + 2 Artist Proofs.
Laval's new body of work continues her ongoing exploration of light in nature. Combining the natural landscape with a radical manipulation of light, Laval creates an other-worldly scape that bridges the gap between our reality and one that could only ever be imagined.
The Pando Forest is an incredible display of vegetation in Utah's Fishlake National Park in the United States. Comprised of over 40,000 individual trees, this forest is really one living organism. Connected by one enormous root system, the forest continues to exist by producing clones of itself in response to environmental stresses.
Creating small, temporary interventions in the organic landscape, Laval takes natural and artificial light and observes the interaction in nature through reflective surfaces. Marine blues and plush magentas describe this living organism, while radiant aquamarines...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
C Print
Agave - monochrome abstraction, from limited edition of 20
By Ugne Pouwell
Located in London, GB
Black and white fine art photograph capturing the sculptural elegance of an agave plant. The interplay of light and shadow emphasizes the organic geometry of the plant’s serrated edg...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Giclée
Bla bla Photography Print Limited Edition Signed
Located in Slovak Republic, SK
Print, limited edition of 15. Signed by the author.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Color, Digital
$426 Sale Price
67% Off
Holding Light In Darkness #6
Located in Los Angeles, CA
THE COLOR OF WATER
Lake Michigan blue sits at the pastel confluence of green, grey and cyan on the nearby shoreline. In truth, the color of the lake is as transitory as Chicago weather. The shade of blue is widely determined by the reflection of the sky above and the organic material and sediment carried below.
I recently learned that invasive mussel species have slowly transformed the lake from green to bluer over the past two decades. I often return to the water’s edge to document the color of a given day.
Susan Isaacson...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper
Blender 02 and CoCreate 02, Diptych. Abstract color photographs
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artist's computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's w...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
The Block 03 and The Mask 01. Abstract color photographs. Diptych.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Exquisite Ghost - photograph of an underwater reflection - archival print 16x23"
By Alex Sher
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
“Exquisite Ghost” is a part of Alex Sher’s popular series Reflections - underwater photographs that could be almost mistaken for abstract paintings as they bring up recollections of ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
South Beach Life Guard Station in Red, Yellow and Blue
Located in Miami, FL
South Beach's iconic and colorful lifeguard station is a mecca for tourist snapshooters. Veteran color photographer Michell Funk reexamines this subject as an abstract hard-edge col...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Maze Me 01 and She Said 01, Diptych. Abstract Liminited Edition photographs
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
#250, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket of realism to...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Gaia 1 - Black and White Diptych of Waves on Shoreline with Sand and Flowers
Located in Brighton, GB
Gaia 1 - Black and White Diptych of Waves on Shoreline with Sand and Flowers by Jaume Llorens Bach
Gaia 1 is a 18cm x 24cm Black-and-White print on Premio Kozo 180gsm White Paper by...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Black and White, Digital, Photographic Paper
Look Up 01 and Manifest 02. Abstract color photographs, Diptych.
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artist's computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Untitled 176 (Abstract Photography)
Located in London, GB
Untitled 176 (Abstract Photography)
C print - Unframed.
Richard Caldicott is most well known for this earlier work series which used Tupperware containers as the subject for his ph...
Category
Early 2000s Abstract Photography
Materials
C Print
Elevated View Of Women With Umbrella Walking On Scattered Leaves
Located in Miami, FL
High angle view of women with umbrella on New York City street.
This archival color photograph by fine art photographer Mitchell Funk is signed, dated and numbered 2/15, lower right...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Inkjet, Archival Pigment
Hearin Gaia 02, From the series The Journey. Abstract color photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The artists computer-generated paintings merge craftsmanship and technology, creating an eclectic and unique style. Through her art, she aims to illuminate the world.
Tcherassi's wo...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Rosa East Park - Apricot Orange Rose Royal Horticultural Society Wisley
By Giles Revell
Located in Brighton, GB
Rosa East Park Giles Revell
This is an Archival Pigment Print available in this size of 50cm x 50cm in a limited edition of 25 prints.
In Cartographic Colour, Giles Revell reduce...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Color, Archival Pigment, Photographic Paper, Pigment
Delphinium 2 - Royal Horticultural Society Wisley Flowers
By Giles Revell
Located in Brighton, GB
Delphinium 2 by Giles Revell
This is an Archival Pigment Print available in this size of 50cm x 50cm in a limited edition of 25 prints.
In Cartographic Colour, Giles Revell reduc...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Color, Archival Pigment, Photographic Paper, Pigment
Undercurrents - black and white sky photography, from limited edition of 20
By Ugne Pouwell
Located in London, GB
A restless sky, churning with unseen forces, moves in endless cycles of tension and release. Light and shadow collide, creating a scattered harmonic field where small birds glide wit...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Giclée
Faces1 - Part Of Un·I·Den·Ti·Fi·A·Ble Series, Abstract Photograph, 2015
Located in Boston, MA
Artist Commentary:
part of un·i·den·ti·fi·a·ble series – inspiration was to work with a portrait and distort the image until the face became invisible.
"removing identities until the...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper
#143, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#137, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#116, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
#109, Abstract, Photography, Painting, Expressionism
Located in München, BY
Unique piece in this size
More sizes and an Essay from Lyle Rexer about this series on request.
Joachim Schmeisser’s work rescues photography from the centuries-old straightjacket ...
Category
2010s Abstract Photography
Materials
Pigment
Twin Towers , World Trade Center Abstract
Located in Miami, FL
The image is signed dated lower right signed dated and numbered verso 2 /15, Unframed, Other sizes available, printed later
Category
1970s Abstract Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper
Alstroemeria Striped Bird - Royal Horticultural Society Wisley England Prints
By Giles Revell
Located in Brighton, GB
Alstroemeria Striped Bird by Giles Revell
This is an Archival Pigment Print available in this size of 50cm x 50cm in a limited edition of 25 prints.
In Cartographic Colour, Giles ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Photography
Materials
Color, Archival Pigment, Pigment
Abstract photography for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Abstract photography 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 photography created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, purple, red, orange and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Mitchell Funk, Paul Snell, Michael Banks, and Seb Janiak. Frequently made by artists working with Paper, and Pigment Print and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Abstract photography, so small editions measuring 0.5 inches across are also available. Prices for photography 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 $50 and tops out at $36,000, while the average work sells for $3,359.