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Abstract Sculptures

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
Period: 1970s
Sculpture A16 Projection and vibration - Medaglini
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Sculpture A16 Projection and vibration - Medaglini (1939-2011) Drawn iron and cast iron base H90xW62xD17 Signed on the base Circa 1975 490€
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Steel

Summer and Winter, Mid-Century Tapestry, Woven Hanging, Textile Wall Sculpture
Located in Wilton, CT
Adela Akers (b. 1933, Santiago de Compostela, Spain) is a Spanish-born textile and fiber artist. She is Professor Emeritus (1972 to 1995) at the Tyler Scho...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Textile, Linen, Thread, Yarn, Fabric, Tapestry

Karel Appel Colorful Expressionist Hand Painted Wood Cobra Sculpture Pop Art
Located in Surfside, FL
This is an original wooden sculpture with hand painting on both sides. it does not appear to be signed or numbered and does not currently have any label. I believe this might be the proof, There was an edition of these and this is a unique variant. All done by hand. It is on a base and revolves and rotates easily as there are ball bearings. It is very well made. Christiaan Karel Appel (1921-2006) was a Dutch artist, painter, sculptor, and poet. Born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, he died in Zurich, Switzerland. He started painting at the age of fourteen and studied at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam in the 1940s. He was one of the founders of the avant-garde movement Cobra in 1948. He was also an avid sculptor and has had works featured in MoMA, the Stedelijk and other museums worldwide. At fourteen, Appel produced his first real painting on canvas, a still life of a fruit basket. For his fifteenth birthday, his wealthy uncle Karel Chevalier gave him a paint set and an easel. An avid amateur painter himself, Chevalier gave his namesake some lessons in painting. From 1940 to 1943, during the German occupation, Appel studied at the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam, and it was there he met the young painter Guillaume Corneille and, some years later, Constant; they became close friends for years. Appel had his first show in Groningen in 1946. In 1949 he participated with the other CoBrA artists in the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam; this generated a huge scandal and many objections in the press and public. He was influenced by Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and the French brute-art artist Jean Dubuffet. In 1947 he started sculpting with all kinds of used materials (in the technique of assemblage) and painted them in bright colors: white, red, yellow, blue, and black. He joined the Experimentele Groep in Holland together with the young Dutch painters Anton Rooskens...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Wood, Paint

Exotica Series, Abstract Woven Tapestry by Ritzi Jacobi and Peter Jacobi
Located in Wilton, CT
Exotica Series, Abstract Woven Tapestry, Textile Sculpture. Cotton, goat hair and sisal, 114" x 60" x 6", 1975. Ritzi Jacobi (1941 - 2022) and Peter Jacob...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Fabric, Textile, Cotton, Thread

Abstract culpture by Dorothy Thorpe
Located in Pasadena, CA
Dorothy Thorpe This wonderful piece was designed by Dorothy Thorpe in America during the 1960s Born in Salt Lake City in 1901, Dorothy Thorpe was a mid-century American artist who de...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Lucite

Large 1970's Israeli Abstract Sculpture Steel Menashe Kadishman Tel Aviv Uprise
Located in Surfside, FL
Hitromemut (Uprise) Beautiful large sculpture by renowned Israeli sculptor Menashe Kadishman. Super quality, and visually stunning. There is a large monumental version of this in front of the Habima Theater, Israel's National Theatre in the heart of Tel Aviv. this is from the small edition of 10. The elements of this work, are balanced on top, in opposition to its construction. Menashe Kadishman was born in Tel-Aviv in 1932. He is a Graduate of St. Martin's School of Art, University of London. From 1947 to 1950, Kadishman studied with the Israeli sculptor Moshe Sternschuss at the Avni Institute of Art and Design in Tel Aviv, and in 1954 with the Israeli sculptor Rudi Lehmann in Jerusalem. In 1959, he moved to London, where he remained until 1972. He had his first one-man show there in 1965 at the Grosvenor Gallery. His sculptures of the 1960s were Minimalist in style and so designed as to appear to defy gravity. This was achieved either through careful balance and construction, as in Suspense (1966), or by using glass and metal so that the metal appeared unsupported, as in Segments (1968). In 1995, he began painting portraits of sheep. These instantly-recognizable sheep portraits...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stainless Steel

Without Name, Mid-Century Abstract Woven Tapestry, Textile Wall Sculpture
Located in Wilton, CT
Without Name, Mid-Century Abstract Woven Tapestry, Textile Wall Sculpture, Hand dyed wool, 52" x 38" (1973) by Czech textile artist, Jan Jladik...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Wool, Dye

Wave
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Wave" 1975 is a metal and glass sculpture multiple by noted Israeli artist Menashe Kadishman 1932-2015. It is signed, numbered 1/7 and dated under the main metal...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Deity Red Modern Sculpture
Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL
Deidad (Deity) edition 17/20, 1988, signed with certificate. Edgard Negret studied at the School of Fine Arts in Cali between 1938 and 1943. The followi...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Geminis Yellow Sculpture
Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL
Geminis 2/6 edition, signed with certificate. Edgard Negret studied at the School of Fine Arts in Cali between 1938 and 1943. The following year, he met...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal

"Traces" Mid Century Woven Polish Tapestry, Figurative Textile Wall Sculpture
Located in Wilton, CT
Traces, sisal and hand spun wool, 108" x 42", 1979. This large, figurative, mid-century modern tapestry was done by Polish textile artist, Lilla Kulka...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Wool, Thread

"Man", Large Abstract Welded Steel Sculpture, Figurative, Metal, Outdoor
Located in New York, NY
"Man" by Isobel Folb Sokolow Welded steel, found metal, automotive metal, welding rod Sokolow directly welds found metals creating both purely abstract and abstract figurative indoo...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal, Steel

Modernist Ceramic Platinum-Plated Crouching Man Sculpture by Jaru, circa 1970
By Jaru
Located in New York, NY
This Modernist ceramic sculptures depicts an abstracted and cubist human form sitting cross legged with his back bent forward and arms outstretched. The sculpture, realized by Jaru o...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

"Ripple Corner" Corner Wall Sculpture
Located in Houston, TX
Orange, pink, and blue geometric abstract painting/ wall sculpture by Gary Jurysta titled "Ripple Corner". Meant to be hung in the corner of a room. Acrylic on stretched canvas, cir...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Acrylic

Mountain
Located in London, GB
IGAEL TUMARKIN (b. 1933) Title: Mountain, 1972 Technique: Original Stainless Steel Sculpture size: 162.5 x 86 x 86 cm / 64 x 33 x 33 in Additional Information: This artwork was r...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stainless Steel

Fractured Series Red Sculpture
Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL
Red aluminum, metal sculpture black base, from the Fractured Series 1978, signed and dated. Paul Sisko has over thirty years of experience as a contemporary sculptor and furniture ma...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Rosenthal Ceramic, Limited Edition Porcelain Plate
Located in Long Island City, NY
A Rosenthal decorative plate created in collaboration with German artist Gunter Fruhtrunk dating from 1974. A modern design in Fruhtrunk's c...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic, Porcelain

Salvador Dali, Limited Edition Daum "Triomphale" Plate
Located in Paonia, CO
Molten Glass Plate....Triomphale ..... Blue & Gold by Salvador Dali Limited Edition Daum plate made of blue Pate-de-Verre textured glass with gilt highli...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Glass

Spray
Located in Miami, FL
TECHNICAL INFORMATION Harry Bertoia Spray 1979 (year completed) Steel wire, bronze 37 h x 13 dia in. Sold with a certificate of authenticity from the Harry Bertoia Foundation and a...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Bronze, Steel

1972 Italy Bronze Abstract Sculpture Nickeled Finish by Carmelo Cappello
Located in Brescia, IT
This is an artwork created by the well known Italian artist Carmelo Cappello. This Carmelo Cappello Abstract Sculpture is a very interesting example of the approach of the artist to...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Monolyth
By Luis Ortiz Monasterio
Located in Guadalajara, Jalisco
Monolyth Luis Ortíz Monasterio Lost Wax Bronze 70 x 21 x 10 cm 1971, MX Wood Base Luis Ortiz Monasterio (Mexico City, 1906-1990) was a Mexican sculptor noted for his monumental work...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

1978 Italy Stainless Steel Abstract Sculpture by Carmelo Cappello
Located in Brescia, IT
This is an artwork created by the well known Italian artist Carmelo Cappello. It is a multiple, an Abstract Sculpture one of the identical 99 specimen edited in 1978. This piece is ...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stainless Steel

"Rising Currents" Two Part Wall Sculpture
Located in Houston, TX
Purple, blue, magenta, black, and white geometric abstract painting/ wall sculpture by Gary Jurysta titled "Rising Currents". Acrylic on stretched canvas, circa 1972. Signed, dated,...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Acrylic

Paul Wunderlich - Leaf - Signed Bronze Sculpture
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Paul Wunderlich Leaf Bronze Sculpture Signed, Numbered 248/350 Dated 1979 Paul Wunderlich, (1927 - 2010) Born in Eberswalde on 10 March 1927. The German painter studied at the K...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

One on the other one by G.Roland 1978 Abstract Sculpture Polished Aluminum
By G. Roland
Located in Brescia, IT
This artwork is composed by two single cubes simply juxtaposed, as the original artist project present in our Gallery Archive. Unique signed piece.
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal

1978 Italy Abstract Bronze Nickeled Finish Sculpture by Carmelo Cappello
Located in Brescia, IT
This is an artwork created by the well known Italian artist Carmelo Cappello. It is a multiple, an Abstract Sculpture one of the identical 99 specimen edited in 1978. This piece is ...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Leda and the Swan (small)
Located in Greenwich, CT
Abstract sculpture depicting the Greek myth of Leda and the swan. Edition 2 of 7.
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Abstraction
Located in Greenwich, CT
Abstract terracotta sculpture
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Terracotta

"Portal", Brushed and Polished Steel Wall Hanging by Preston Abernathy
Located in Long Island City, NY
A unique wall-hanging steel sculpture by Preston Abernathy (American XXth). The work is a solid panel of brushed, polished and etched stainless steel in a geometric pattern with gre...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stainless Steel

Abstraction
Located in Greenwich, CT
Abstract terracotta sculpture
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Terracotta

Spiral
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Paul von Ringelheim, Austrian/American (1933 - 2003) Title: Spiral 1 Medium: Painted Flame-Cut Steel Sculpture Size: 47 x 52 x 8 in. (119.38 x 132.08 x 20.32 cm)
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Steel

Stainless Steel Sculpture -- The Sun, the Moon and the Wedge
By Martin Rubio
Located in Troy, NY
This elegant stainless steel sculpture relies on forms that change according to the angles at which the piece is observed. It rests on three points that change as the piece is moved....
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stainless Steel

Untitled III, Unique White Marble Modern Sculpture 1972
Located in Long Island City, NY
A white marble sculpture by Domenico Casasanta from 1972. A pristine, minimalist object of modernist, architectural features. Artist: Domenico Casasanta, Italian (1935 - ) Titl...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Marble

Leda and the Swan, Ed. 1/9
Located in Greenwich, CT
Classical mythology is fraught with stories of sexual misdeeds by Zeus, King of the Gods. Often Zeus would fall in love with a mortal woman and then transform himself into an animal ...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Two Open Rectangles Excentric
Located in Greenwich, CT
Kinetic sculpture by George Rickey. Incised with the artist's signature, date 1975 and number 1/3 (on the base). Dimensions: minimum: 79 by 21 ⅜ by 10 in. maximum: 79 by 80 by 10 in...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stainless Steel

Untitled
Located in Austin, TX
Abstract Sculpture by American Artist Jack Youngerman, from the Atlantic Ritchfield art collection. Abstract Form rotating on marble base. Initialed JY (Jack Youngerman, American, b....
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Fiberglass

Volumen VPC-038
Located in Miami, FL
Volumen VPC-038, 1970 Unique Piece Direct carving on Cumarebo stone 40 x 32 x 20 cm 15.7 x 12.5 x 7.8 in ABOUT THE ARTIST Narváez was born in Porlamar, Venezuela, in 1905; he was the fifth son of eleven siblings; his parents were Jose Lorenzo Narváez and Vicenta Rivera. Don José Lorenzo, a multifaceted and creative man, sowed the seed of creativity in his son. “My father did not fit in with his fantasies of cabinetmaker, bricklayer, master builder, and self-taught architect.”1 From an early age, Francis was led to the artistic activity, he traced, carved, made replicas of the furniture and the saints restored by his father. In 1920 he obtained his first professional assignment, a San Rafael for the Church of Carupano, and, in 1922, his father authorized him to travel to Caracas to pursue his studies as an artist. He studied at the atelier of Marcos Castillo, at of the Angel Cabre y Magriña and at the Academy of Fine Arts in Caracas, where he was introduced to the painters and intellectuals of the time. In 1928 he presented his first solo exhibition at the Club Venezuela. With the money raised from the sale of the works and the support of Monsignor Sosa, and the Ministers Centeno Grau and Arcaya, he studied in Paris on a scholarship. Once there, he enrolled at the Académie Julian, where Tito Salas, Cristóbal Rojas and Arturo Michelena had also studied. It was in Paris where, unable to work in wood, he turned to stone carving. “In Paris, I didn’t have wood, so I carved a lot in stone (…), when there were demolitions I purchased chunks of stone, I would take them to the workshop and carve them.”2 His first attempts at volumetric sculptures and painting in plain colours, linked to the thematic of American miscegenation and Creole reality, can be traced back to that first trip to Paris. During his stay in the French city, Arturo Uslar Pietri, Alfredo Boulton, and Finita Vallenilla supported the artist both financially and logistically, and in February of 1930, the trio of friends arranged another exhibition for him at the Club Venezuela. Narváez describes his exhibition as follows: “(…) in it I feel that the sculptural work is more my own, done with more assurance, a response to my pursuit of large planes, stylisation and synthesis.”3 By then, as Boulton himself noted in his book about the artist, Narvaez departed from most of the artistic traditions that prevailed by that time in Venezuela. In 1931 he returned to Caracas and established his atelier at the Barrio Obrero in Catia. The atelier became the hub of the intellectual life of the time. “In those years, the atelier of Francisco Narváez was the hub of the greatest Venezuelan hope. Nothing comparable to it can be found either before or since.”4 From that year onwards, exhibitions, projects, trips, and awards we multiplied. He was awarded the President of the Republic of Venezuela Prize, the National Sculpture Prize of the 1st Official Venezuelan Art Salon, and the John Boulton Prize of the 3rd Annual Venezuelan Art Salon; for the Military Academy, he produced a spectacular relief entitled La Patria. In 1945, commissioned by the architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva, he produced two groups of sculptures known as Las Toninas, both located in the O’Leary Square. There, as he himself states, he incorporates some baroque patterns into the figures to the source itself: “It is a work of balance between the decorative requirements and the sculpture of planes and angles.”5 In 1948 he was awarded the National Painting Prize. In the same year, he was called upon by the architect Carlos Raul Villanueva to participate in the project for the arts integration in the Universidad Central de Venezuela. Francisco Narváez’s public output continued with works such as the statue of Fermín Toro, La Educación, La Ciencia, three murals (produced by María Luisa Tovar) for the Instituto de Medicina Experimental, El Cristo; el Atleta, the equestrian statue of General Rafael Urdaneta. In 1953 he was appointed Director of the School of Plastic and Applied Arts, and in July of the same year, he exhibited “Francisco Narváez, Maderas, Piedras y Bronces” (Francisco Narváez, Woods, Stones and Bronzes) at the Museum of Fine Arts. Narváez is, unquestionably, one of the great Venezuelan sculptors, his work goes through various stages and interests; as the art world evolves, the artist does not remain in his initial scopes of work. His creations are not imposed by the prevailing trends or fashion but do evolve by experimenting with new materials and interests. When one peruses the artist’s lengthy list of exhibitions, commissions, and awards, it is worth remembering the Narvaez who embark on his career as a child and who, overcoming obstacles, knew how to make the most of his curiosity. He did not settle for living off his successes. He did not remain stagnant as many creators of his environment did. Narvaez managed to understand the changes in the history of art around him. We must not overlook the fact that Francisco Narvaez is an artist amid all the changes occurring in the art world. He moves from the classics to the great transformations in the art world. It is the Europe of Picasso, Braque, Arp. He observes, he is aware of what is happening in the centres of the world of art, but between his craft and his sensitivity, the result is NARVAEZ, his stamp, and his identity. Francisco Narváez comes from tradition, and his first stage is linked to the classics, to the exploration of his heritage, but always with his very own language. Throughout his prolific career, he knew how to remain true to himself, without disregarding the influences of his surroundings or his artistic interests: his ability as a sculptor, his selection of materials, whether they were wood, stone or bronze; his choice of the subject of his work…His mastery and great craftsmanship are a constant that over time have made him a leading player in the history of contemporary Venezuelan and world art. From his beginnings, no subject was foreign to him. His paintings, drawings, aquarelles, and sketches are testimony to his prolific output. Among his themes are portraits, our traditions, still lifes, and landscapes. Narváez is an artist who represents his time. Later, he evolved towards purer and simpler forms, abandoning figurative art for short periods. In 1956 he declared to the newspaper El Nacional: “Every day I am freeing myself, it is a soul that frees itself from the ephemeral wrappings of the circumstantial always, as well as from the inevitable weight of the anecdote. This second stage of my work is remarkably close to abstractionism, even if there are still certain figures or figurations in the sculptures that I will shortly be showing. However, pure, and absolute abstractionism, it will treat the form itself as the sole reason for its existence on the plane of artistic excellence.”6 The artistic development was his professional life. Each period of his life as an artist, he went one step further, searching, solving, seeing plenty of things and understanding how diverse expressions were transforming themselves. His hands followed his gaze and his mind, always inquisitive. He added movement to the volumes. Arturo Uslar Pietri, “Formas Nuevas”, Cromotip editions, 1956 “Francisco Narváez is a path: the path that Venezuelan sculpture...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stone

Volumen VPC-062
Located in Miami, FL
Volumen VPC-062, 1972 Unique Piece Direct carving on Cumarebo stone 67 x 38 x 20 cm 26.3 x 14.9 x 7.8 in. ABOUT THE ARTIST Narváez was born in Porlamar, Venezuela, in 1905; he was the fifth son of eleven siblings; his parents were Jose Lorenzo Narváez and Vicenta Rivera. Don José Lorenzo, a multifaceted and creative man, sowed the seed of creativity in his son. “My father did not fit in with his fantasies of cabinetmaker, bricklayer, master builder, and self-taught architect.”1 From an early age, Francis was led to the artistic activity, he traced, carved, made replicas of the furniture and the saints restored by his father. In 1920 he obtained his first professional assignment, a San Rafael for the Church of Carupano, and, in 1922, his father authorized him to travel to Caracas to pursue his studies as an artist. He studied at the atelier of Marcos Castillo, at of the Angel Cabre y Magriña and at the Academy of Fine Arts in Caracas, where he was introduced to the painters and intellectuals of the time. In 1928 he presented his first solo exhibition at the Club Venezuela. With the money raised from the sale of the works and the support of Monsignor Sosa, and the Ministers Centeno Grau and Arcaya, he studied in Paris on a scholarship. Once there, he enrolled at the Académie Julian, where Tito Salas, Cristóbal Rojas and Arturo Michelena had also studied. It was in Paris where, unable to work in wood, he turned to stone carving. “In Paris, I didn’t have wood, so I carved a lot in stone (…), when there were demolitions I purchased chunks of stone, I would take them to the workshop and carve them.”2 His first attempts at volumetric sculptures and painting in plain colours, linked to the thematic of American miscegenation and Creole reality, can be traced back to that first trip to Paris. During his stay in the French city, Arturo Uslar Pietri, Alfredo Boulton, and Finita Vallenilla supported the artist both financially and logistically, and in February of 1930, the trio of friends arranged another exhibition for him at the Club Venezuela. Narváez describes his exhibition as follows: “(…) in it I feel that the sculptural work is more my own, done with more assurance, a response to my pursuit of large planes, stylisation and synthesis.”3 By then, as Boulton himself noted in his book about the artist, Narvaez departed from most of the artistic traditions that prevailed by that time in Venezuela. In 1931 he returned to Caracas and established his atelier at the Barrio Obrero in Catia. The atelier became the hub of the intellectual life of the time. “In those years, the atelier of Francisco Narváez was the hub of the greatest Venezuelan hope. Nothing comparable to it can be found either before or since.”4 From that year onwards, exhibitions, projects, trips, and awards we multiplied. He was awarded the President of the Republic of Venezuela Prize, the National Sculpture Prize of the 1st Official Venezuelan Art Salon, and the John Boulton Prize of the 3rd Annual Venezuelan Art Salon; for the Military Academy, he produced a spectacular relief entitled La Patria. In 1945, commissioned by the architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva, he produced two groups of sculptures known as Las Toninas, both located in the O’Leary Square. There, as he himself states, he incorporates some baroque patterns into the figures to the source itself: “It is a work of balance between the decorative requirements and the sculpture of planes and angles.”5 In 1948 he was awarded the National Painting Prize. In the same year, he was called upon by the architect Carlos Raul Villanueva to participate in the project for the arts integration in the Universidad Central de Venezuela. Francisco Narváez’s public output continued with works such as the statue of Fermín Toro, La Educación, La Ciencia, three murals (produced by María Luisa Tovar) for the Instituto de Medicina Experimental, El Cristo; el Atleta, the equestrian statue of General Rafael Urdaneta. In 1953 he was appointed Director of the School of Plastic and Applied Arts, and in July of the same year, he exhibited “Francisco Narváez, Maderas, Piedras y Bronces” (Francisco Narváez, Woods, Stones and Bronzes) at the Museum of Fine Arts. Narváez is, unquestionably, one of the great Venezuelan sculptors, his work goes through various stages and interests; as the art world evolves, the artist does not remain in his initial scopes of work. His creations are not imposed by the prevailing trends or fashion but do evolve by experimenting with new materials and interests. When one peruses the artist’s lengthy list of exhibitions, commissions, and awards, it is worth remembering the Narvaez who embark on his career as a child and who, overcoming obstacles, knew how to make the most of his curiosity. He did not settle for living off his successes. He did not remain stagnant as many creators of his environment did. Narvaez managed to understand the changes in the history of art around him. We must not overlook the fact that Francisco Narvaez is an artist amid all the changes occurring in the art world. He moves from the classics to the great transformations in the art world. It is the Europe of Picasso, Braque, Arp. He observes, he is aware of what is happening in the centres of the world of art, but between his craft and his sensitivity, the result is NARVAEZ, his stamp, and his identity. Francisco Narváez comes from tradition, and his first stage is linked to the classics, to the exploration of his heritage, but always with his very own language. Throughout his prolific career, he knew how to remain true to himself, without disregarding the influences of his surroundings or his artistic interests: his ability as a sculptor, his selection of materials, whether they were wood, stone or bronze; his choice of the subject of his work…His mastery and great craftsmanship are a constant that over time have made him a leading player in the history of contemporary Venezuelan and world art. From his beginnings, no subject was foreign to him. His paintings, drawings, aquarelles, and sketches are testimony to his prolific output. Among his themes are portraits, our traditions, still lifes, and landscapes. Narváez is an artist who represents his time. Later, he evolved towards purer and simpler forms, abandoning figurative art for short periods. In 1956 he declared to the newspaper El Nacional: “Every day I am freeing myself, it is a soul that frees itself from the ephemeral wrappings of the circumstantial always, as well as from the inevitable weight of the anecdote. This second stage of my work is remarkably close to abstractionism, even if there are still certain figures or figurations in the sculptures that I will shortly be showing. However, pure, and absolute abstractionism, it will treat the form itself as the sole reason for its existence on the plane of artistic excellence.”6 The artistic development was his professional life. Each period of his life as an artist, he went one step further, searching, solving, seeing plenty of things and understanding how diverse expressions were transforming themselves. His hands followed his gaze and his mind, always inquisitive. He added movement to the volumes. Arturo Uslar Pietri, “Formas Nuevas”, Cromotip editions, 1956 “Francisco Narváez is a path: the path that Venezuelan sculpture...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stone

Star of Peace
Located in Missouri, MO
Yaacov Agam "Star of Peace" c. 1970s Metal Ed. 2/300 approx. 9 x 2 x 2 inches Born in Israel on May 11, 1928. His father was a rabbi, a Talmudic scholar and a Kabbalist. The famil...
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal

V (Mid-Scale)
Located in New York, NY
RONALD BLADEN V (Mid Scale), 1973 Painted aluminum 60 1/2 x 106 x 8 inches Edition 1 of 3
Category

1970s Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Abstract sculptures for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Abstract sculptures 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 sculptures created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, red, purple, green and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Scott Troxel, John Van Alstine, Marty Mackenzie, and Stephen Walling. Frequently made by artists working with Wood, and Paint 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 sculptures, so small editions measuring 0.38 inches across are also available. Prices for sculptures 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 $11 and tops out at $1,400,000, while the average work sells for $4,500.

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