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.
In Search of the Ineffable #3, Abstract Photograph, 2026
Located in Edinburgh, GB
In Search of the Ineffable is a fine art photograph born from an encounter with a tree in a moment when its visible form seemed to dissolve into colour, light and movement. The branc...
Digital
Holding Light In Darkness #5
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
Abstract 2571
Located in Zofingen, AG
This artwork captures a dreamy landscape through a masterful blend of pastel colors. Soft pinks, purples, and blues dominate the scene, evoking a serene, ethereal atmosphere. Gentle ...
Oil, Acrylic
$1,720Sale Price|20% Off
Ecstasy
Located in Plano, TX
"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...
Metal
$1,800Sale Price|20% Off
Corkscrews
Located in Plano, TX
"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...
Metal
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
'Lily in Charcoal' abstract expressionism photography edition 6/20
By Ugne Pouwell
Located in London, GB
'Lily in Charcoal' 2023 From raw energy to sublime. 'Lily in Charcoal' is an expression piece combining an abstract charcoal drawing with a live lily emerging from a gash. The charc...
Paper, Photographic Film, Charcoal, Archival Ink, Archival Paper
$3,000
Y, From the series Lous and The Yakuza. Mixed media fashion color photography
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 consists...
Oil, Wax, Acrylic, Archival Paper
A II, From the series Opposed Tendencies. Intervened by the artists.
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 consists...
Wax, Oil, Acrylic, Archival Paper
Miami Downtown, Black and White Architectural Landscape Photography
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...
Archival Pigment, Black and White
$16,500
"JM Basquiat-GB5" Photograph 66" x 48" in Limited Edition of 8 by Giuliano Bekor
Located in Culver City, CA
"JM Basquiat-GB5" Photograph 66" x 48" in Limited Edition of 8 by Giuliano Bekor Year: 2020 Medium: Photography Print size: 66 x 48 Inches trim bleed Edition of 8 Artist proof: 2 Ot...
Archival Paper
Bleed # 202414 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Bleed # 202414 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 3mm Matte Plexiglas — Unframed. "Work can be hung with either the WallCleat system (support bar supplied) or the...
Plexiglass, C Print
Alice - photograph of an underwater reflection - archival print 35" x 49"
By Alex Sher
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
“Alice” 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 masterpiec...
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
$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
Algas 45-IV. From the series Mareas. Cyanotype photograhs Mounted
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, Plexiglass
$284Sale Price|86% Off
Glasses from a General, Photography, Print, Limited, Signed
Located in Slovak Republic, SK
Photography, print, limited edition of 15, signed by the author.
Archival Pigment
Hampton Fields
Located in New York, NY
Michael Williams, Untitled Landscape 4, Color Photograph on Paper, 22 x 32, 2010 - Colors: Blue, Gold, Brown, Green
Photographic Paper
$4,500
Songs of the Sky 14 (Abstract Landscape Color Photograph of Clouds & Blue Sky)
Located in Hudson, NY
Abstracted landscape color photograph of clouds and blue sky on 4 panels Japanese Kozo paper infused with encaustic on 4 panels, each panel is 36...
Wax, Encaustic, Mulberry Paper
Untitled 28 NY, From The Series Of Public On Paper. Color Photograph
By Arslan Sükan
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Sukan has set out to identify alternative sites of public display and common space within the banal recesses of the everyday world. Collecting and adopting the sketch pads and papers...
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment, Color
Water Reflection, Abstract Color Photography by Geoffrey Baris, Blue
Located in New York, NY
Water Reflection, Abstract Color Photography by Geoffrey Baris Archival pigment print on museum fine art paper Edition of 7 Includes certificate of authenticity. Signed and numbered...
Color, Archival Pigment
Untitled (W.O.F 15-1)
Located in Sante Fe, NM
Works of Fire When I look into the night sky I am awestruck by the darkness that is the universe. As the sparse light of the stars descends, I am entangled in a state of wonder, sea...
Silver Gelatin
$1,000
Anesthesia - underwater photograph series REFLECTIONS - archival pigment 23x35"
Finding the Universe in Oaxaca, Bizalu (Eye)
Located in San Francisco, CA
Gary Goldberg Finding the Universe in Oaxaca, Bizalu (Eye), 2018 Archival pigmented print 19 x 13 in Edition of 10 Gary Goldberg has been photographing the unique qualities of Oaxac...
Archival Pigment
$1,200
Anesthesia - underwater photograph - series REFLECTIONS - archival print 35x52"
By Alex Sher
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Lost in a sea of rich saturation of dark and light blue colors, a feminine form gracefully traverses the expanse of the water. Alex Sher’s “Anesthesia” invites us into an abstracted ...
Archival Pigment, Archival Paper
Untitled XIII. 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
#185 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
$193Sale Price|84% Off
Green Abstract Photography Print, Signed Limited Edition of 15
Located in Slovak Republic, SK
Print, limited edition of 15. Signed by the author.
Photographic Paper, Color, Archival Pigment, Digital Pigment
#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
#166, 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
#270, 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
#131, 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
$200Sale Price|20% Off
Desert Sunrise Abstract Cyanotype, 22 x 13 inches, Signed, 2010+
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 cyano...
Paper, Archival Paper, Rag Paper, Monotype, Photogram
$5,000
"Butterfly 1" Photograph 24" x 24" in Limited Edition of 24 by Giuliano Bekor
Located in Culver City, CA
"Butterfly 1" Photograph 24" x 24" in Limited Edition of 24 by Giuliano Bekor Title: Butterfly B1 Year: 2018 Print size: 24" x 24" Inch Edition: 1/24 Artist proof: 2 Medium: Arch...
Archival Pigment
ID No. 17 The Refined, Archival Pigment Print, Limited Edition, 2010-
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 Pigment, Archival Paper
Breath of the Hidden Grove #2, Abstract Photograph, 2025
Located in Edinburgh, GB
Breath of the Hidden Grove is an intimate encounter with the forest at the moment when its visible forms begin to dissolve. The image is carried by a deep field of blue and turquoise...
Digital
#246, 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 Archival Pigment Print, 2010+
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 Pigment, Archival Paper
#199, 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
Papel Corten, 2024. Abstract Fine Art Photography on canvas
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The interlacing of what sustains In the series Trama, Eduardo Rezende turns his gaze to the hidden structures of the built environment — the elements usually concealed beneath the po...
Canvas, Archival Pigment
$1,200
Floral Study 246: still life black & white photograph w/ abstract dried flowers
By Paul Cava
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 "Flora" series, which is one of three...
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Inkjet, Archival Pigment
ID No. 4 The Confident. 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
$248Sale Price|20% Off
Signed Abstract Photography Print, Limited Edition of 5, 21st Century
Located in Slovak Republic, SK
Abstract photography, signed by the author, limited 5.
Color
ID No. 3 The Ambitious. 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
$248Sale Price|20% Off
Wood 1 / Abstract / photography / art print / signed / limited
Located in Slovak Republic, SK
Wood 1. is photography, signed in limited edition of 5. I admire the old craftsmanship and the result, even a fragment is preserved.
Photographic Paper
HegdeFun - The Five Trees - Street Art made by the Rich
By Robert Funk
Located in Miami, FL
Robert Funk’s photographs of elaborate landscaping redefine what Street Art is. Street Art created by the Rich with the help of Landscapers and Gardeners. This type of street art...
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Inkjet, Archival Pigment
Gaia 45, Black and White Abstract Geometric Print, Limited Edition
Located in Brighton, GB
Gaia Diptych 45 by Jaume Llorens Bach Gaia Diptych 45 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 ...
Photographic Paper, Black and White, Digital
$22,500
"JM Basquiat-GB4" Photograph (FRAMED) 50" x 40" in Ltd Ed. 1/8 by Giuliano Bekor
Located in Culver City, CA
"JM Basquiat-GB4" Photograph (FRAMED) 50" x 40" in Ltd Ed. 1/8 by Giuliano Bekor Signed and numbered by the artist. Comes with COA issues by the artist. Title: Basquiat series - JM...
Metal
#223, 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
Jose Soto, Aurora, 2017, Mirror, Plexiglass, Digital Pigment Print
By Jose Soto
Located in Darien, CT
Created for the 2017 Whitney Biennial, Aurora uses a photograph of a dense, lush landscape captured at dawn. For this work, Soto developed a technique using layers of face-mounted, l...
Mirror, Plexiglass, Digital Pigment
#229, 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
#106, 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
#95, 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
#186, 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
#94, 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
Barbara Hocker, Water Verse XIV, 2022, encaustic, photography, Naturalism
Located in Darien, CT
Barbara Hocker sees her life’s vocation as being an ambassador for the natural world through her art. Nature is facing many challenges right now. Hock...
Mixed Media, Encaustic, Digital, Panel, Monotype
#114, 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
#124, 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
#179, 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
#96, 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
Barbara Hocker, Water Verse XVI, 2022, encaustic, photography, Naturalism
Located in Darien, CT
Barbara Hocker sees her life’s vocation as being an ambassador for the natural world through her art. Nature is facing many challenges right now. Hock...
Mixed Media, Encaustic, Panel, Digital, Monotype