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.
Remedy (Winter)
By Wendy Small
Located in New York, NY
48"x40" photogram Wendy Small’s “Remedy” photograms are made by collecting leaves, weeds, or flowers from a specific place (indicated in the title) and placing those leaves directly ...
Photogram
Urban Landscapes - Serie Voile N° VI, Abstract C Print, Unframed
Located in Miami, FL
Born 1959, Geneva, Switzerland Vanna Karamaounas aka Iseult Labote – Lives and works in Geneva and Berlin. Born in Geneva of mixed Greek and Swiss heritage, Labote studied art his...
C Print, Digital
Color Kinesthesia 6A423
By Anne Senstad
Located in New York, NY
Color Kinesthesia 6A425 2012 Digital photographic c print from scanned original color film negatives. 60 x 50 inches Edition of 3 Anne Katrine Senstad’s photographic art, since the ...
C Print
Soft Geometry # 13f (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Soft Geometry # 13f (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround...
Paper, C Print
Cosmosis Collage 2B CK6A422 (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Cosmosis Collage 2B CK6A422 (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks, print...
Paper, C Print
Sonoptic Parallels # 16 (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Sonoptic Parallels # 16 (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks, printed o...
Paper, C Print
Soft Geometry # 8B (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Soft Geometry # 8B (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks, printed on de...
Paper, C Print
Soft Geometry # 8C (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Soft Geometry # 8C (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround t...
Paper, C Print
Soft Geometry # 13D (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Soft Geometry # 13D (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround...
Paper, C Print
Soft Geometry # 11C (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Soft Geometry # 11C (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks, printed on demand...
Paper, C Print
Soft Geometry # 11B (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Soft Geometry # 11B (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround...
Paper, C Print
Soft Geometry # 13f (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Soft Geometry # 13f (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks, printed on d...
Paper, C Print
$12,182
Cosmosis Collages 4A579E– Composition 84 - Red and grey (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Cosmosis Collages 4A579E – Composition no 84 - Red and grey (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap ...
Paper, C Print
Cosmosis Collages 34A577BC no 126 Red (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Cosmosis Collages 34A577BC no 126 Red (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 we...
Paper, C Print
Cosmosis Collage 427.4A7 – Composition no 2C4 Blue (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Cosmosis Collage 427.4A7 – Composition no 2C4 Blue (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaroun...
Paper, C Print
Cosmosis Collage 2B CK6A422 (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Cosmosis Collage 2B CK6A422 (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks, print...
Paper, C Print
Cosmosis Collage 4A5.1 – Composition no 210.4 Blue (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Cosmosis Collage 4A5.1 – Composition no 210.4 Blue (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaroun...
Paper, C Print
$12,182
Comosis Collage 4A52.1.4 – Composition no 7E2 Yellow (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Comosis Collage 4A52.1.4 – Composition no 7E2 Yellow (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaro...
Paper, C Print
Cosmosis Collage 4A53.1.2 – Composition no 7C2 Blue (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Cosmosis Collage 4A53.1.2 – Composition no 7C2 Blue (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnarou...
Paper, C Print
Color Kinesthesia 2A9, Purple - pink (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Color Kinesthesia 2A9, Purple - pink (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 wee...
Paper, C Print
Color Kinesthesia 4A52, Turquoise (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Color Kinesthesia 4A52, Turquoise (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks,...
Paper, C Print
Universals Foldouts 07022012 Red (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Universals Foldouts 07022012 Red (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap. Turnaround time 2-3 weeks,...
Paper, C Print
Universals Foldouts 07022012 Grey (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Universals Foldouts 07022012 Grey (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap. Turnaround time 2-3 weeks...
Paper, C Print
Universals Foldouts 07022012 Pink (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Universals Foldouts 07022012 Pink (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap. Turnaround time 2-3 weeks...
Paper, C Print
Universals Foldouts 07022012 Blue (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Universals Foldouts 07022012 Blue (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 6 + 2Ap. Turnaround time 2-3 weeks...
Paper, C Print
Color Kinesthesia 6A4221 Pink (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Color Kinesthesia 6A4221 Pink (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 3 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks, pri...
Paper, C Print
Color Kinesthesia 5B27 Vert (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Color Kinesthesia 5B27 Vert (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed "Edition of 3 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks, print...
Paper, C Print
Color Kinesthesia 4A7 Blue (Abstract Photography)
By Anne Senstad
Located in London, GB
Color Kinesthesia 4A7 Blue (Abstract Photography) Photographic C Prints, printed on Canson Platinè fiber Rag 310g - Unframed - Signed Edition of 3 + 2Ap Turnaround time 2-3 weeks...
Paper, C Print
Breathe # 202202 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Breathe # 202202 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 3mm Matte Plexiglas - Unframed. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hanging system + keyhole option. Available...
Plexiglass, C Print
Mid Century Bar and Grill Neon Sign - Printed on Hahnemühle Fine Art paper
Located in Miami, FL
Vestiges of a bygone era, a funky old original neon sign acts as a beacon to the thirsty. Chromogenic archival print. Signed and dated on lower r...
Photographic Paper, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
No. 42499 (Abstract Photography)
Located in London, GB
No. 42499 (Abstract Photography) Archival ink print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag - Unframed. Artwork is exclusive to IdeelArt. Image size: 80 x 60 cm/31.4 x 23.6 inches Available on request - 2 weeks turnaround. Print can be mounted to 4mm Dibond, price on request. Larger sizes are available on request. The photographic artworks of Sebastiaan Knot...
Ink, Archival Pigment
No.38633 (Abstract Photography)
Located in London, GB
No.38633 (Abstract Photography) Archival ink print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag - Unframed. Artwork is exclusive to IdeelArt. Image size: 140x105 cm/ 55.1x41.3 inches Available on reques...
Ink, Archival Pigment
Lumina # 202211 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Lumina # 202211 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 4.5mm Matte Plexiglas Box - Unframed. Edition: 2/3 Available in 4-5 weeks turnaround. Backed with Dibond and C-...
Plexiglass, C Print
Untitled 153 (Abstract photography)
Located in London, GB
Untitled 153 (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...
C Print
Silver Silos and Station Wagon, Abstract Photography by Mitchell Funk
Located in Miami, FL
Abstract Landscape photography by Mitchell Funk with 1970's station wagon. Signature: Signed, Dated, Numbers 3/15 lower right recto, other sizes available. unframed, printed late...
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
Intersect # 201603 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Intersect # 201603 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 4.5mm Plexiglas - Unframed Available on request 5-6 week turnaround. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hangin...
Plexiglass, C Print
Intersect # 201603 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Intersect # 201603 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 4.5mm Plexiglas - Unframed Available on request 5-6 week turnaround. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hangin...
Plexiglass, C Print
Lumina # 202204 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Lumina # 202204 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 4.5mm Matte Plexiglas Box - Unframed. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hanging system + keyhole option. Editi...
Plexiglass, C Print
Chance/Fall (4) (Abstract Photography)
Located in London, GB
Chance/Fall (4) (Abstract Photography) C Print - Unframed As the title suggests, Chance/Fall emanates from Caldicott’s improvised method. This abstract composition with overlappin...
C Print
$3,613Sale Price|25% Off
"Supernova" - Pigment Print on Museum glass, Hand Gilded White Gold and Silver
By Valda Bailey
Located in London, GB
Supernova, 2017 Printed on museum glass, Hand gilded with White Gold and Silver leaf, Framed 61 x 61 cm (including frame) 45 x 45 cm (glass print) Edition of 5. - Although the prints...
Gold, Gold Leaf
$2,531Sale Price|20% Off
Cosmos I - Printed on Museum Glass and hand gilded with Pink and White Gold leaf
By Valda Bailey
Located in London, GB
Cosmos I, Pink and White Gold leaf on Glass, 2019 Archival Pigment Print on Museum Glass, Hand Gilded with Pink Gold and White Gold leaf 31 x 31 cm/ 12.2 x 12.2 in (Framed) From Edit...
Gold, Gold Leaf
Lumina # 202204 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Lumina # 202204 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 4.5mm Matte Plexiglas Box - Unframed. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hanging system + keyhole option. Editi...
Plexiglass, C Print
EM-26 Siddhartha (Abstract Photography)
By Bill Kane
Located in London, GB
EM-26 Siddhartha (Abstract Photography) Pigment on canvas - Unframed. Edition of 3. The Emanations series is an attempt to express the spiritual potential of the most essential aspect of photography: light. Each work in the series began its evolution as a scanned image of a Buddhist thangka—a spiritual painting...
Canvas, Pigment
Urban Landscapes - Serie Reglisse N° I, Abstract C Print, 2010+
Located in Miami, FL
Born 1959, Geneva, Switzerland Vanna Karamaounas aka Iseult Labote – Lives and works in Geneva and Berlin. Born in Geneva of mixed Greek and Swiss heritage, Labote studied art his...
C Print, Digital
Gravity Bulle d'air 01 (Abstract Photography)
By Seb Janiak
Located in London, GB
Gravity Bulle d'air 01 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic print. Edition 1/5 In his Gravity Bulles d'air series, Janiak creates visual representations of the idea that form cannot exist without an environment. There are the visible forms we see in the world, and then there are the conditions that allow those forms to exist. As a catalyst for his exploration of this topic, Janiak chose gravity, one of the most ubiquitous and easily observable forces, and the one that allows so many forms in the physical universe to exist. The photographs in these series show two types of matter—liquids and gasses—being manipulated by gravity. Form is frozen by the photographic process, but the process is ever changing depending on the shifting conditions of their environment. Seb Janiak is a photographic artist whose work explores conditions in which opposites can co-exist, revealing the visual characteristics of the hidden...
C Print
Untitled 110/3 (Abstract Photography)
Located in London, GB
Untitled 110/3 (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 p...
C Print
Bleed # 202124 (Abstract photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Bleed # 202124 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 3mm Matte Plexiglas - Unframed. Edition: 3/3. Paul Snell combines traditional and digital techniques to explor...
Plexiglass, C Print
Bleed # 202051 (Abstract photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Bleed # 202051 (Abstract photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 3mm Matte Plexiglas - Unframed. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hanging system + keyhole option. Edition: 1/...
Plexiglass, C Print
Bleed # 202198 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Bleed # 202198 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 3mm Matte Plexiglas - Unframed. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hanging system + keyhole option. Edition 1/3...
Plexiglass, C Print
X: Pleasant Dementia (Abstract Photography)
Located in London, GB
X: Pleasant Dementia (Abstract Photography) Archival Pigment Print on Ilford Smooth Pearl paper. Unframed. Hand-signed artist label included This abstract work is part of the seri...
Archival Pigment, Paper
EM-46 Ratnasambhava (Abstract Photography)
By Bill Kane
Located in London, GB
EM-46 Ratnasambhava (Abstract Photography) Pigment on canvas - Unframed. Edition of 3. The Emanations series is an attempt to express the spiritual potential of the most essential aspect of photography: light. Each work in the series began its evolution as a scanned image of a Buddhist thangka—a spiritual painting...
Canvas, Pigment
Flight 2 (Abstract photography)
Located in London, GB
Flight 2 (Abstract photography) Silver Gelatin Print - Unframed. Tenesh Webber is a Canadian artist who works in abstract black and white photography. She lives and works in the Ne...
Silver Gelatin
Unlock (Abstract photography)
Located in London, GB
Unlock (Abstract photography) Silver Gelatin Print - Unframed. Tenesh Webber is a Canadian artist who works in abstract black and white photography. She lives and works in the New ...
Silver Gelatin
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...
C Print
EM-36 Padmasambhara 2 (Abstract Photography)
By Bill Kane
Located in London, GB
EM-36 Padmasambhara 2 (Abstract Photography) Pigment on canvas - Unframed. Edition of 3. The Emanations series is an attempt to express the spiritual potential of the most essential aspect of photography: light. Each work in the series began its evolution as a scanned image of a Buddhist thangka—a spiritual painting of a Buddhist deity—which was then blurred and stretched until all that remained was a distilled image of color and form. These reduced images were then printed onto canvases, resulting in what Kane refers to as elemental “representations of the light bodies of the Buddhas.” Bill Kane...
Canvas, Pigment
Bleed # 202129 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Bleed # 202129 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 3mm Matte Plexiglas - Unframed. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hanging system + keyhole option. Edition 1/3...
Plexiglass, C Print
Bleed # 202172 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Bleed # 202172 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 3mm Matte Plexiglas - Unframed. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hanging system + keyhole option. Available on...
Plexiglass, C Print
Bleed # 202198 (Abstract Photography)
By Paul Snell
Located in London, GB
Bleed # 202198 (Abstract Photography) Chromogenic Print Face-mounted 3mm Matte Plexiglas - Unframed. Backed with Dibond and C-channel hanging system + keyhole option. Edition 1/3...
Plexiglass, C Print
Radius (Abstract photography)
Located in London, GB
Radius (Abstract photography) Silver Gelatin Print - Unframed. Tenesh Webber is a Canadian artist who works in abstract black and white photography. She lives and works in the New ...
Silver Gelatin