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.
ID No. 13 The Startled. Limited edition photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
In this early photographic series, Dubravka Lazić turns her lens toward a subject rarely treated with such a quiet dignity: domestic cats. Shot in 2005, these portraits mimic the fo...
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Man Ray, Electricite Rayograph, 1931, Framed Heliogravure
By Man Ray
Located in Barcelona, ES
Framed Rayograph Heliogravure by Man Ray for Compagnie Parisienne de Distribution d'Electricite´, 1931. Printed in Heliogravure and signed in the negative. Limited to 500 copies. ...
Paper
Gaia 8, Diptych Monochrome Photograph, Limited Edition of 10
Located in Brighton, GB
Gaia 8 by Jaume Llorens Bach Gaia 8 is a 18cm x 24cm Black-and-White print on Premio Kozo 180gsm White Paper by Awagami Factory This size in a Limited Edition of 10 + 2 Artist's Pr...
Photographic Paper, Black and White, Digital
A New Life 01 and Below 01, Diptych. Abstract color 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...
Archival Pigment
#199, 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...
Pigment
#243, 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 ...
Pigment
#269, 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 ...
Pigment
#139, 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 ...
Pigment
Gaia 114 - Limited Edition Black and White Print, 18cm x 24cm Diptych Print
Located in Brighton, GB
Gaia 114 by Jaume Llorens Bach Gaia 114 is a 18cm x 24cm Black and White Photographic print on Premio Kozo 180gsm White Paper by Awagami Factory This size is a limited edtion of 10...
Black and White, Digital, Photographic Paper
"I Have Your Back", Abstract Expressionist, Portrait, Red, Blue, Oil Painting
By Sorin Bica
Located in Franklin, MA
Sorin Bica's "I Have Your Back" is a 30 x 30 x 2 inch abstract expressionist oil painting on canvas. Abstract double-faced portrait in vivid red, blue, and yellow tones, bold brushst...
Canvas, Oil
Set of 9 unique photographs altered by the artist. Mixed media portrait
Located in Miami Beach, FL
This artwork was created by the artistic duo Hunter & Gatti (2010–2023). These works are part of the archive managed and exhibited by Cristian Hunter. The artist's technique cons...
Wax, Oil, Acrylic, Archival Paper
Gaia 31, Black and White Print of Daisies and Sparrows, Limited Edition
Located in Brighton, GB
Gaia 31 by Jaume Llorens Bach Gaia 31 is a 18cm x 24cm Black-and-White print on Premio Kozo 180gsm White Paper by Awagami Factory This size in a Limited Edition of 10 + 2 Artist's ...
Photographic Paper, Black and White, Digital
Space Field, Digital Iris Print Muse X Large Photograph on Heavy Paper
Located in Surfside, FL
These are from the 1990s printed at Muse X and never framed. they are unsigned and unnumbered but from a very small edition. they are quite beautiful. Victor Raphael was born in Los ...
Archival Pigment, Digital Pigment
$656Sale Price|20% Off
Wave III, Unique Monotype Cyanotype, Horizontal Diptych of
By Kind of Cyan
Located in Barcelona, ES
Wave III, is an exclusive handmade cyanotype horizontal diptych that captures the gentle curl of an organic mid-motion wave. Rendered in deep Prussian blues and ethereal whites, the...
Paper, Monotype
Naming Rights, Quampium (Long Water, Greenwood Lake)
Located in New York, NY
Cyanotype print on Muslin Fabric, sewn with thread and stretched over a wooden frame. Using the cyanotype process, the artist places the UV treated fabric into bodies of water docu...
Photogram
Surfer, Perth, Western Australia (Oceans series)
Located in New York City, NY
David Burdeny Surfer, Perth, Western Australia (Oceans series), 2016 Archival Pigment Print Signature Label Print only. Ask us for framing options. Also available in 59 x 59 inches
Archival Pigment
#204, 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 ...
Pigment
Framed Brassai Black and White Heliogravure Photography, circa 1949
By Brassaï
Located in Barcelona, ES
With its quiet graphic strength and unusual subject matter, this framed black and white heliogravure by Brassaï is a compelling example of the photographer’s ability to turn overlook...
Paper
The Long Night - NYC Skyline Photography, 30"x40", Signed Limited Edition of 10
By Viet Chu
Located in New York, NY
" I took this picture when New York was the epicenter of the Covid pandemic in the U.S., to reflect the idea that the nights are always darkest before they turn bright. As it turned ...
Archival Pigment
Abstract Landscape #
Located in New York City, NY
Daniel Mansur Abstract Landscape #22 Canvas Fine Art - Framed Archival Pigment Print
Canvas, Archival Pigment
Anemorphose Cabo Verde #4
Located in New York City, NY
27 x 44 in Edition of 9 EUR 3.500 35 x 57 in Edition of 9 EUR 5.500 48 x 71 in Edition of 9 EUR 7.100 Dye Sublimation on Aluminum 48 x 77 in Edition of 9 EUR 9.100 Dye Sublimation...
Dye Transfer
$347Sale Price|20% Off
Contemporary abstract expressionist woman's portrait "Through her eyes "
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
This contemporary abstract expressionist woman's portrait was created by French artist Natalya Mougenot and is part of her ongoing series dedicated to Women. This series holds deep ...
Paper, Acrylic
$560Sale Price|20% Off
Mountain Sunrise 3 (Cyanotype framed to 29 x 23 inches)
By Christine So
Located in Oakland, CA
Though it resembles a giant abstract watercolor painting owing to its soft gradations and luminous quality, this is a form of photography called a cyanotype, photogram or sun print. ...
Paper, Archival Paper, Rag Paper, Monotype, Photogram
#271 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 ...
Pigment
#132, 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 ...
Pigment
Space Field, Digital Iris Print Muse X Large Photograph on Heavy Paper
Located in Surfside, FL
These are from the 1990s printed at Muse X and never framed. they are unsigned and unnumbered but from a very small edition. they are quite beautiful. Victor Raphael was born in Los ...
Archival Pigment, Digital Pigment
#130, 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 ...
Pigment
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...
Archival Pigment
#117, 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...
Pigment
Seascape XIII - large scale abstract photograph of monochrome seascape
By Frank Schott
Located in San Francisco, CA
Mesmerizing large scale photograph from the artist's Seascape series, a body of works capturing the tactile surfaces and monochromatic nature of oceanic water and cloudscapes Seasca...
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Black and White, Giclée, Archival Pi...
#260, 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 ...
Pigment
Framed Brassaï Photogravure of Picasso Sculpture, France, 1948
By Brassaï
Located in Barcelona, ES
A beautifully presented photogravure by Brassaï, showing one of Picasso’s sculptures with the dramatic clarity and sculptural sensitivity for which the photographer is celebrated. Pu...
Paper
Daydream - black and white landscape photography Limited edition 2 of 20
By Ugne Pouwell
Located in London, GB
'Daydream' London, United Kingdom 2022. It is a still life black and white film photograph, made with a large format 4x5 Linhof camera. The photograph is signed front and back an...
Film, Photographic Film, Giclée
Miami. Black and White Landscape Architectural limited editionPhotograph
By Luca Artioli
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The 'Miami Skin Series' it’s not a traditional collection of photos about the architecture of Miami and Miami Beach. It’s rather a quick journey between its own skin from the Art Dec...
Black and White, Archival Pigment
Dark Forest, Giclée Print Diptych Landscape, Blue Tones Impressionist Leaves
By Cyd Fontaine
Located in Barcelona, ES
Cyd Fontaine (Lausanne, 1992) is a contemporary artist renowned for her captivating use of dreamy atmospheric gradients, which has helped her carve a distinctive niche in the world o...
Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, C Print, Giclée, Archival Pigment
#238, 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 ...
Pigment
On Distant Shores #3
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...
Archival Paper
Set of 2 Cyanotype Photographs. 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...
Cotton, Archival Pigment
#144, 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 ...
Pigment
ID No. 14 The Furious. Limited edition photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
In this early photographic series, Dubravka Lazić turns her lens toward a subject rarely treated with such a quiet dignity: domestic cats. Shot in 2005, these portraits mimic the fo...
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
#64, 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 ...
Pigment
$3,000
28° 14' 22.942'' N, 114° 6' 4.129'' W-5. 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...
Cotton, Archival Pigment
#253, 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 ...
Pigment
Gaia 117 - Black and White Diptych Print, Limited Edition of 10
Located in Brighton, GB
Gaia 117 by Jaume Llorens Bach Gaia 117 is a 18cm x 24cm Black-and-White print on Premio Kozo 180gsm White Paper by Awagami Factory This size available in a Limited Edition of 10 +...
Black and White, Digital, Photographic Paper
$1,800
Burst II - large scale abstract photograph of caleidoscopic color explosions
Located in San Francisco, CA
From Christian Stoll's body of works BURST (2015), an abstract exploration of high speed photographs capturing mesmerizing explosions of caleidoscopic color 27 x 40 inches (68 x 102...
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment, Giclée
$462Sale Price|25% Off
Sardinia Giclée Print, Abstract Landscape, Limited Edition of 50, 2018
Located in Roma, IT
Sardinia is a photograph taken by Amanda Ludovisi in 2018. It represents a tranquil wave by the shore in Sardinia, which delicate colors. This is a gi...
Acrylic
Fairy, 2025. Cyanotype photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The photos from the series Let Me Tell You a Story show, each one individually, certain themes through strongly narrative visual units. Each photograph is dedicated to a specific rep...
Archival Paper
Algas 45-XIX. From the series Mareas. Cyanotype photograhs
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...
Archival Pigment
#64, 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...
Pigment
ID No. 16 The Watchful. Limited edition photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
In this early photographic series, Dubravka Lazić turns her lens toward a subject rarely treated with such a quiet dignity: domestic cats. Shot in 2005, these portraits mimic the fo...
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
#130, 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...
Pigment
#123, 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...
Pigment
#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 ...
Pigment
$880Sale Price|20% Off
Crosshatch
Located in Plano, TX
" "Crosshatch" is a classic example of my abstract PhotoLuminism technique. When light travels, the human eye cannot see its trails, but the camera can. Capturing images that are int...
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Black and White
#240, 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 ...
Pigment
Gaia 1 - Black and White Diptych, Limited Edition Photographic Print, Ed of 10
Located in Brighton, GB
Gaia 1 by Jaume Llorens Bach Gaia 1 is a 18cm x 24cm Black-and-White print on Premio Kozo 180gsm White Paper by Awagami Factory This size in a Limited Edition of 10 + 2 Artist's Pr...
Black and White, Digital, Photographic Paper
#232, 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 ...
Pigment
Blooms in Red - abstract analog colour photography, limited edition of 10
By Ugne Pouwell
Located in London, GB
This analogue colour photograph was created using a traditional film process, allowing the material qualities of colour and grain to remain present and tactile. The composition is pr...
Photographic Paper
#146, 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 ...
Pigment
Untitled X. From LenkPlay Series. Limited edition color photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The exploration of the concept of play as an artistic impulse presents playful, almost "baroque-written"photographs that are the result of a repeated (recycled) notion of play. Start...
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment