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.
$4,160Sale Price|20% Off
Starship
By Tim Yankosky
Located in Fairfield, CT
Materials are often the driving force and inspiration behind the works of art that I create. I have always been drawn to the functional wear and patina of vintage and found objects. Recently, vintage measuring tapes...
Other Medium
"Corrugation in Deep Blue"
Located in Toronto, ON
Encaustic painting is an ancient art form and was practiced by artists as far back as the 5th century B.C. The word encaustic comes from Greek and means “to burn in”, which refers to...
Encaustic, Cardboard
Mobile anti directionnel
Located in PARIS, FR
Several of his monumental works can be found in public spaces throughout France, commissioned as part of the 1% artistic program.
Wood, Acrylic
Gradient 0215.2522.03
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Lisa Bartleson is a Northern California - based mixed-media artist whose work is inspired by the Light and Space movement from the 1960’s and 1970’s. Her work has a luminous quality ...
Mixed Media, Panel
Large Ceramic Sculpture White Texture Freestanding
Located in Buffalo, NY
The material of choice for Neil Tetkowski's abstract sculptural work comes directly from the Earth. Most often he uses clay, which he believes is the perfect medium to express his re...
Ceramic
Wall Sculpture Large White Texture Surface Ceramic Porcelain
Located in Buffalo, NY
Neil Tetkowski creates art that communicates beyond cultural barriers. His material of choice comes directly from the Earth, and most often he uses clay, which he believes is the per...
Porcelain
$5,440Sale Price|20% Off
RED GODDESS - Ceramic Slip Cast Fine Art Sculpture 2018
Located in Chico, CA
Goddess Form. Fired to cone 01. Glaze fired to cone 07. Low fire glaze applications. Dimensions: 13"h x 10"w x 8"d ARTIST STATEMENT My work passionately reflects my Mexican cultural roots. The art forms appear and are created as stories in the round as I transform and mutate a magic fusion of colors, shapes and a way of life into them. I often use faces joined by zigzag or curved lines. Flower petals characteristically fashion the idea of dealing with one’s aura. Some of the vessel forms I use (the goddess series) are used to symbolically connect earth to women… a container used for nutrients of survival. My work also speaks of healing. Pieces are created to capture great depth of emotion, celebration, suffering, and cultural bonding. Slip cast...
Ceramic, Clay
Large Ceramic Sculpture Texture Spiral Wall
Located in Buffalo, NY
The material of choice for Neil Tetkowski's abstract sculptural work comes directly from the Earth. Most often he uses clay, which he believes is the perfect medium to express his re...
Ceramic, Porcelain
Natural Staghorn Coral Mounted on Coquina Stone
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Authentic branch coral specimen with its clean bleached white color and organic textural form. Presented on a custom coquina stand.
Stone
Prozor : contemporary modern abstract geometric sculpture
Located in New York, NY
Greg Chann creates contemporary modern abstract geometric sculptures. His constructions are complex interwoven systems of physical elements varying in size, material, and color. Thes...
Steel
Pair of Anglo Indian Obelisks
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Standout pair of Anglo Indian obelisks with classic form crafted in mahogany and with silver plate bases with floral designs and ball feet. Signed on the bottom S P 2001.
Wood
"Grey Gear" Abstract, Industrial Bronze Metal Sculpture by Joel Perlman
By Joel Perlman
Located in New York, NY
"Grey Gear" by Joel Perlman Abstract sculpture in bronze Joel Perlman has been creating complex sculptures out of steel, bronze, and aluminum since the early 1970's. While minimalis...
Metal, Bronze
$3,800
Rah-Rah
Located in Lincoln, RI
Rah-Rah is made by casting Hydrocal FGR95 (a very hard plaster) on top of an oil clay pattern. The oil clay is extruded to take on a "noodle form". The composition is laid out on pl...
Foil
$5,392
Humeur Vagabonde (Wandering Mood) a geometrical bronze sculpture by Lili Mirante
Located in PARIS, FR
Lili Mirante (born in Paris, 1966 - last picture in the gallery) is a woman artist who lives and works in Paris. Born into a family of artists (her father was a renowned watercoloris...
Bronze
Domenick Capobianco Painted Wood Sculptures, 2
Located in Astoria, NY
Domenick Capobianco (American, b. 1928) Two Abstract Polychrome Painted and Carved Wood Sculptures, wood carved into shapes and combined, the smaller signed "D. Capobianco, NYC" &nbs...
Wood, Acrylic
$21,490
Transformation, British Sculptor, Abstract, Marble, Italian Carrara, Philosophy
Located in Knowle Lane, Cranleigh
Transformation by British sculptor Ian Thomson. Thomson's travels have provided inspiration for his work. He holds degrees in Architecture and Philosophy &...
Marble
Ceramic Texture Wall Sculpture Abstract
Located in Buffalo, NY
The material of choice for Neil Tetkowski's abstract sculptural work comes directly from the Earth. Most often he uses clay, which he believes is the perfect medium to express his re...
Ceramic
Ceramic Texture Large Wall Sculpture
Located in Buffalo, NY
The material of choice for Neil Tetkowski's abstract sculptural work comes directly from the Earth. Most often he uses clay, which he believes is the perfect medium to express his re...
Ceramic, Porcelain
$6,400Sale Price|20% Off
The Conversation
By Tim Yankosky
Located in Fairfield, CT
Materials are often the driving force and inspiration behind the works of art that I create. I have always been drawn to the functional wear and patina of vintage and found objects. Recently, vintage measuring tapes...
Other Medium
Bucket
Located in New York, NY
Alan Shields Bucket, 1977-79 Metal wire wrapped in dyed paper 13 3/4 x 8 1/4 x 3 3/4 inches Unsigned
Wire
The Temple of Fire at the Event Horizon
By Mela M
Located in Fairfield, CT
Mela M’s sculptures are her interpretation of the seamless interconnectedness of light and material form and reference the pronounced uncertainty and unpredictability of our rapidly ...
Wood, Acrylic
$5,200
Focus
By Tim Yankosky
Located in Fairfield, CT
Materials are often the driving force and inspiration behind the works of art that I create. I have always been drawn to the functional wear and patina of vintage and found objects. Recently, vintage measuring tapes...
Other Medium
$1,800
Fenced
Located in Lincoln, RI
This piece is made by casting Hydrocal FGR95 (a very hard plaster) on top of an oil clay pattern. Once cured, the oil clay is removed, then paint and brass leaf are applied to the s...
Brass
$6,500
Sors
By Rosa Brun
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
Joseph Kosuth, father of conceptual art, once famously said: “Works of art that try to tell us something about the world are bound to fail (…)The absence of reality in art is exactly...
Wood, Mixed Media
$5,250
DYAD 8 - Square Sculptural Painting - Contemporary Oil & Acrylic on Linen
Located in Signal Mountain, TN
Linda King Ferguson describes her "Equivalence Series" as social bodies; a re-thinking of Modernist figurative abstraction. They are a discursive formal and reductive language. As fi...
Linen, Acrylic
$23,967
Bronze Black Sculpture 'O.T. VI' by Carola Eggeling, Patinated Bronze
Located in Paris, FR
Bronze Black Sculpture 'O.T. VI' by Carola Eggeling Abstract sculpture with beautiful curved lines. German bronze black sculpture Certificate of authenticity Numbered and signed art...
Bronze
Fat Stacks
Located in Lincoln, RI
This is a resin sculpture thats made up of twelve identical triangular pieces glued to wood frames and permanently assembled into the trapezoidal composition you see. The piece is ...
Resin, Acrylic
$36,000
Evolution
Located in Napa, CA
The sculptures of Damon Hyldreth appear both static and fluid, rigid and flexible, strong and smooth, effectively blurring the line between nature and structure. By crafting organic ...
Metal, Stainless Steel
Untitled XII : large-scale steel sculpture
Located in New York, NY
A large-scale steel sculpture by Naomi Press. Signed with initials. Naomi Press is a female abstract sculptor, who was one of the very few women working i...
Stainless Steel
$55,000
TILT
Located in Napa, CA
The sculptures of Damon Hyldreth appear both static and fluid, rigid and flexible, strong and smooth, effectively blurring the line between nature and structure. By crafting organic ...
Steel
$24,500
Knot #63CT 1/7
Located in Napa, CA
The sculptures of Damon Hyldreth appear both static and fluid, rigid and flexible, strong and smooth, effectively blurring the line between nature and structure. By crafting organic ...
Steel
Persephone (Dialect series)
Located in Ciudad de México, MX
“Over the last twenty years, I have put together an extensive amount of research towards the intersections and thresholds between painting, sculpture, and drawing. My aim is to produ...
Clay, Acrylic, Handmade Paper
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 ...
Bronze
Woman III
By Tom Nussbaum
Located in New Orleans, LA
Tom Nussbaum is known for a variety of work including drawings, paper cuts, prints, sculpture, children’s books, animations, functional design objects, and site-specific commissions....
Steel
Modernist Abstract Pottery Wall Sculpture
Located in Milford, NH
A colorful modernist abstract pottery polychrome wall sculpture, each piece with varying textures, colors, and shapes by American artist and professor Bruce Lenore (b. 1955). Lenore is not only an artist, but was an art teacher at Smithfield High School in Rhode Island, as well as a teen art instructor at RISD. Lenore is a member of the “Memphis” pottery...
Ceramic
$18,500
Knot #64R 1/12
Located in Napa, CA
The sculptures of Damon Hyldreth appear both static and fluid, rigid and flexible, strong and smooth, effectively blurring the line between nature and structure. By crafting organic ...
Stainless Steel
$38,348
Glacier
Located in PARIS, FR
"The Glacier" by Emile GILIOLI (1911-1977) "Perlino rosato" polished marble signed to underside "Gilioli" and dated "61" France 1961 height 27 cm width 29 cm depth 20 cm Provenance : World House Galleries, New York, 1962; Joseph H. Hirshhorn, New York, 1962-1966; Donation to the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington; Christie's, sold by order of the trustees of the Hirshhorn Museum, 1994. Biography : Émile Gilioli (1911-1977) was a French sculptor. He was one of the leaders of French post-war abstract sculpture, alongside Brancusi and Arp. Born into a family of Italian shoemakers living in Paris, they moved to Nice after the World War I. In 1932, Émile Gilioli took lessons at the School of Decorative Arts in Nice, notably with the future artist Marie Raymond...
Marble
Herringkel III
Located in Nottingham, GB
Original Aircraft Sculpture - Bronze- Deep Sea Green Patina Part of the Aerogenic series of bronze sculptures, a progression in the HERRINGKEL seri...
Bronze
Doble giro, estructuras variables (rosa)
By Rosa Brun
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
Joseph Kosuth, father of conceptual art, once famously said: “Works of art that try to tell us something about the world are bound to fail (…)The absence of reality in art is exactly...
Handmade Paper
Doble giro, con negro y azul
By Rosa Brun
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
Joseph Kosuth, father of conceptual art, once famously said: “Works of art that try to tell us something about the world are bound to fail (…)The absence of reality in art is exactly...
Handmade Paper, Linen
Arabesque (miniature) - 24 Karat Gold plated
Located in Napa, CA
A civil engineer for 30 years, Holmes has been exhibiting and selling his sculptures since 1975 in the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia. He is now very well-known for h...
Gold, Bronze
Doble giro, estructuras variables (amarillo)
By Rosa Brun
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
Joseph Kosuth, father of conceptual art, once famously said: “Works of art that try to tell us something about the world are bound to fail (…)The absence of reality in art is exactly...
Handmade Paper
$5,200
Oro
By Rosa Brun
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
Joseph Kosuth, father of conceptual art, once famously said: “Works of art that try to tell us something about the world are bound to fail (…)The absence of reality in art is exactly...
Brass
Reverse (miniature) - 24 Karat Gold plated
Located in Napa, CA
A civil engineer for 30 years, Holmes has been exhibiting and selling his sculptures since 1975 in the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia. He is now very well-known for h...
Gold, Bronze
From OJ to Merlot
By Zammy Migdal
Located in Miami, FL
This interactive work can fit in any format the collector desires and can contain as many elements, both big and small, that the space requires. From the artist's Levitation series...
Steel
$3,000
Untitled
Located in Palm Desert, CA
"Untitled" is a cast metal sculpture made by Italian/American architect and urban planner, Paolo Soleri. The total size is 9 1/2 x 6 x 3 inches. The work is stamped by the artist. S...
Metal
Code Breaker (Dialect series)
Located in Ciudad de México, MX
“Over the last twenty years, I have put together an extensive amount of research towards the intersections and thresholds between painting, sculpture, and drawing. My aim is to produ...
Sandstone
$1,500
Ballet Pink Folds (hard fabric, textile wall sculpture, contemporary art design)
By Chloe Hedden
Located in Quebec, Quebec
“Ballet Pink Folds” is a light pink/flesh colored wall sculpture made with burlap on linen. The folds are carefully arranged from a single piece of burlap. This creates a dynamic art...
Fabric, Linen, Mixed Media, Vinyl
Untitled
Located in Barcelona, CT
Upcycled metal Unique work Includes a Certificate of Authenticity
Metal
Untitled
Located in Barcelona, CT
The sculpture is being offered with a work and authenticity certificate
Metal
Untitled
Located in Barcelona, CT
The sculpture is being offered with a work and authenticity certificate
Metal
Envelope No. 1
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
Richard Smith (British 1931-2016) Envelope No.1 1968 Aluminum Wall Sculpture 16 x 16 x 16-inch, triangle shape, by 2 ½ inches wide Signed and dated ‘68 Numbered edition 10/30 Abo...
Metal
$5,500
Blind Date
By Matt Gil
Located in Napa, CA
Made of aluminum California born and educated sculptor Matt Gil graduated from San Jose State University, and his work has been widely exhibited throughout California since 1977. H...
Metal
Untitled
Located in Barcelona, CT
The sculpture is being offered with a work and authenticity certificate
Metal
Aluminum Wall Sculpture 'Wandobjekt 02/21' by Carola Eggeling, Aluminum Brushed
Located in Paris, FR
Aluminum Wall Sculpture 'Wandobjekt 02/21' by Carola Eggeling Abstract sculpture with beautiful curved lines. German aluminum sculpture Aluminum brushed Numbered and signed artwork ...
Steel
White Night : large-scale steel sculpture
Located in New York, NY
A large-scale steel sculpture by Naomi Press. Signed with initials. Naomi Press is a female abstract sculptor, who was one of the very few women working in large scale with steel in...
Stainless Steel
Figure with Hat
Located in Milford, NH
A fine abstract polychromed plaster bust of a figure with hat by American artist Varujan Boghosian (1926-2020). Boghosian was born in New Britain, CT and after serving in the United ...
Metal
Wall Stack VI : contemporary modern geometric sculpture
Located in New York, NY
Greg Chann creates contemporary modern abstract geometric sculptures. His constructions are complex interwoven systems of physical elements varying in size, material, and color. Thes...
Acrylic
Untitled
Located in Barcelona, CT
Upcycled metal Unique work Includes a Certificate of Authenticity
Metal
$5,200Sale Price|20% Off
Ok, Ok
Located in Palm Desert, CA
Spray painted Street banner vinyl Wall Sculpture/ tapestry One of a kind
Mixed Media