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.
Reclining Figure Alabaster - smooth, stone, figurative, tabletop sculpture
By Jeremy Guy
Located in Bloomfield, ON
From a single piece of silver cloud alabaster, the artist has carved a poetic and modern depiction of a reclining figure. The composition of negative and positive spaces changes as t...
Alabaster
$20,000
Temps Zero Red 7/10 - red, geometric, contemporary, outdoor steel sculpture
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This red, geometric, contemporary, outdoor steel sculpture is by French-Canadian artist Phillipe Pallafray. Available on commission, please allow 4-6 weeks for completion. Four sta...
Stainless Steel
Cream String - Porcelain Vase Sculpture
By Mary Jaffe
Located in East Quogue, NY
"Cream String" round porcelain vase sculpture with cream and white satin glaze. Size: 7 x 8 x 8 inches Porcelain, ceramic, ceramic sculpture, functional sculpture, functional vessel...
Porcelain, Glaze
Squeeze by Peter Brooke-Ball - Abstract Marble Sculpture
Located in Paris, FR
Squeeze is a sculpture by the contemporary British artist Peter Brooke-Ball, made of carved marble wrapped in string and rope. The smooth, rounded stone appears to be tightly compres...
Marble
Diane Englander, White Form on Red Wood, 2018, scrapwood and acrylic, 12 x 13 in
Located in Darien, CT
Diane Englander uses formal means to create a place between discord and tranquility, a zone with a charged harmony that energizes as it also provides refuge. That often requires that the prettiness of an initial surface is made ugly, or there’s a conscious choice to avoid balance in the composition. Hers is a largely intuitive process, the materials entice her. Inspiration from the world that we don't call “art” is where she finds her muse: a wall, a landscape, a window shade transfused with light, a stretch of sand and shadow. Most influential are predecessors like Burri, Vicente, Tapies, Motherwell, Rauschenberg, medieval cloisonné, Vermeer, Breughel, and many, many more. A native New Yorker, Diane had an earlier career including 17 years as a management consultant to local nonprofits concerned with poverty or disenfranchisement; work in NYC government; and several years as a lawyer at a large NYC law firm. “I was brought up going to galleries and museums, a sometimes reluctant attendant to my parents’ passion for looking and for collecting. My own expressive energy must have simmered internally for years, occasionally emerging in photography, in quilt-making, in other tentative explorations, and certainly in providing opportunity and materials for my children to create. Not until those children were nearly grown did I come unequivocally to the need to make art myself.” In late 2006 Diane began making collages that started her on her current path; in late 2007 she left her consulting job to focus on her artwork full-time. She has studied with Bruce Dorfman at the Art Students League in New York, and has had solo exhibits at the Alexey von Schlippe...
Acrylic, Wood
High Schwerelos by Kuno Vollet - Tall Contemporary Black bronze sculpture
By Kuno Vollet
Located in DE
Artist: Kuno Vollet Title: High Schwerelos Materials: Bronze sculpture with a dark patina on black granite base Size: 90 cm height, base, 6 x 17 x 14 cm Edition of 15
Granite, Bronze
"Layers of Sweetness" Abstract Painting
Located in Westport, CT
This textured abstract painting by Teodora Guererra features a warm orange and red palette with subtle white accents. The artist applies paint in thick layers and wide, energetic str...
Canvas, Oil
$18,945
Arnaldo Pomodoro (1926–2025) – Ruota I – Gilded bronze sculpture – 1983
Located in Varese, IT
Gilded bronze sculpture created using the lost-wax casting technique, dated 1983. Exclusive edition for Alfa Romeo SpA. Limited edition of 300 copies, numbered as 96/300 on the base....
Bronze
Pair, Red Woven Abstract Tapestry of Figures, Textile Sculpture
By Lilla Kulka
Located in Wilton, CT
Pair, sisal, wool, stilon, 125" x 77", 1989. This large figurative, abstract tapestry was done by textile artist, Lilla Kulka (b. 1946, Krakow, Poland). Artist Statement: "I creat...
Fabric, Textile, Tapestry, Wool, Thread
$7,578
Aspiring Upwards by Kuno Vollet - Contemporary Red Steel sculpture for Outdoors
By Kuno Vollet
Located in DE
Artist: Kuno Vollet Title: Aspiring Path Contemporary steel sculpture for inside or garden outdoor spaces. Stunning large artwork. Possible to put on a pedestal or directly on to ...
Steel
$7,000
Flight, Abstract Expressionist Bronze Sculpture by Leonardo Nierman
Located in Long Island City, NY
Leonardo Nierman, Mexican (1932 - 2023) - Flight, Year: 1973, Medium: Bronze Sculpture, signed and numbered, Edition: I/VI, Size: 10.6 x 23.6 x 9.6 in. (26.92 x 59.94 x 24.38 cm)
Bronze
$500Sale Price|23% Off
Colorful portrait, mid 20th Century original lithograph signed and numbered.
Located in Belgrade, MT
This lithograph is a piece of my private collection from artists of the 20th Century. It is original, signed by artist and numbered 217/220. It is vibrant in color and in very good...
Plate Glass, Oil, Lithograph, Watercolor
1974 Ugo La Pietra Ad Arte Red Bronze Abstract Sculpture
Located in Brescia, IT
This artwork is a multiples limited not numbered specimens created by the Italian artist Ugo La Pietra, a well known Internationally artist. Ugo La Pietra was born in Bussi Sul Tir...
Bronze
$3,200Sale Price|20% Off
Art in motion n°6 by Gilbert Pauli - Concrete sculpture 64x96 cm
Located in Geneva, CH
"Art in motion" is a series that offers artworks working with matter; concrete, cement, plaster, mortar, and natural pigments. These works are intended to be exhibited in several way...
Concrete
"Casas Grandes Pottery, " a Ceramic Pot signed with Benito Morass
By Benito Morass
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Casas Grandes Pottery" is a signed hand-built ceramic vessel with slip glaze created by Benito Morass. It features an abstract geometric design ...
Ceramic, Slip, Glaze
$3,200Sale Price|20% Off
Art in motion n°16 by Gilbert Pauli - Sculpture concrete 64x96 cm
Located in Geneva, CH
"Art in motion" is a series that offers artworks working with matter; concrete, cement, plaster, mortar, and natural pigments. These works are intended to be exhibited in several way...
Concrete
$3,136Sale Price|21% Off
Art in motion n°7 by Gilbert Pauli - Concrete sculpture 96x64 cm
Located in Geneva, CH
"Art in motion" is a series that offers artworks working with matter; concrete, cement, plaster, mortar, and natural pigments. These works are intended to be exhibited in several way...
Concrete
$10,333
Steel Orbit by Kuno Vollet -Contemporary brushed steel sculpture for In/Outdoors
By Kuno Vollet
Located in DE
Contemporary brushed steel sculpture for inside or garden outdoor spaces. Beautiful circle - sign for infinity. Stunning large artwork. Possible to put on a pedestal or directly on ...
Steel
$3,500
Abstract 3D wall sculpture "Wood Work" #1275, layered collage aesthetic w/ green
By Paul Cava
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
This is an abstract 3D wall sculpture in wood, acrylic, rope, and ink. it is from artist Paul Cava's "Wood Work" series, which applies the collage aesthetic he has incorporated into ...
Wood, Archival Ink, Acrylic, Jute
$13,778
1970 Italy Modular Kinetic Stainless Steel Abstract Wall Panel by Maldonado
Located in Brescia, IT
The mirrored surfaces of the stainless steel Maldonado work of art, reflect the world around. Maldonado's artistic research has an ethological matrix: a sign as a kind of pre-Incan g...
Stainless Steel
Zig Zag / ceramic wall sculpture - cream, white, neutral 36 x 36 in
Located in Burlingame, CA
Minimal Abstract Ceramic 36 x 36 inch wall sculpture in glossy and matte white ceramic tiles that create a zig-zag motif. Tiles are mounted to a white wood panel. A neutral work of a...
Ceramic, Wood, Paint
CC 102 - Blue green abstract geometric 3D wall circular sculpture
Located in New York, NY
Anna Kruhelska is a visual artist and architect working across fields of art and design. She creates abstract, three-dimensional paper wall reliefs that startle in their intricacy an...
Plywood, Acrylic
$1,722
Abstract Calligraphic Sculpture Vault I. Black Metal Contemporary Alicia Gimeno
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
At Escat Gallery we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of trust and professionalism for our collectors. Every artwork in our collection comes with a Certificate of Au...
Metal
Happy Wave by Kuno Vollet - Contemporary Rigid Foam sculpture
By Kuno Vollet
Located in DE
Artist: Kuno Vollet Title: Happy Wave Born in 1951 in Petersaurach, located in Upper Franconia, artist Kuno Vollet attended the University of Kassel from 1969 to 1973, where he st...
Steel
$12,515
Steel Orbit by Kuno Vollet - Contemporary Rusted Steel sculpture for Outdoors
By Kuno Vollet
Located in DE
Artist: Kuno Vollet Title: Orbit Contemporary rusted steel sculpture for inside or garden outdoor spaces. Beautiful circle - sign for infinity. Stunning large artwork. Possible to...
Steel
"Plum Neutral I & II " A Pair of Textured Abstract Paintings
Located in Westport, CT
This pair of textured abstract paintings by Teodora Guererra features a light, greyscale palette with subtle warm accents throughout the composition. The artist layers thick strokes ...
Acrylic, Board
Balancing Block Votive Sculpture, 2020
Located in Jersey City, NJ
Hydrocal, concrete, paint and polyurethane Hand-signed by artist Frame: Not included This work includes a certificate of authenticity.
Concrete
1978 One on the other one by G.Roland 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. One of a kind piece and it is signet by the Author.
Metal
letsgoawayforawhile - playful, blue, abstract, elongated, ceramic wall sculpture
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This intriguing large blue clay piece by Canadian artist Steven Heinemann bridges the divide between sculpture and ceramics. The teardrop-shaped vessel appears deflated and gently cu...
Ceramic
Abstract Sculpture, Mixed Media on Paper, 2010s, Unframed
Located in BARCELONA, ES
Ukrainian conceptual artist Dunja Jankovic focuses her work on screen printing, which serves as her primary method of production. She begins with paper that has been treated with wax...
Paper, Mixed Media
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
Ugo La Pietra Black Bronze Abstract Ad Arte
Located in Brescia, IT
This artwork is a multiples limited not numbered specimens created by the Italian artist Ugo La Pietra, a well known Internationally artist. Ugo La Pietra was born in Bussi Sul Tiri...
Bronze
Seule Italy 1985 Post-Modern Bronze Abstract Sculpture by Annie Lambert
Located in Brescia, IT
This is an interesting and deep multiple artwork by Annie Lambert, a talented artist of 1980’ in Italy. This is a multiple of a numbered edition of 1.00...
Bronze
Santiago Medina - INFINITY (OUTDOOR MONUMENTAL), Sculpture 2022
Located in Greenwich, CT
This sculpture is made out of Outdoor Marine Italian Stainless Steel. This sculpture will be shipped directly from the artist's studio.
Stainless Steel
Untitled
Located in Miami, FL
Untitled, 1975 Bronze ED. 1 of 6 20 x 6 x 4 in Literature: Le Minotaure. Cardenas 1925-2001. May 15 - June 15, 2003. Illustrated on page 9 of the catalog.
Bronze
$3,200Sale Price|20% Off
Art in motion n°4 by Gilbert Pauli - Concrete sculpture 64x96 cm
Located in Geneva, CH
"Art in motion" is a series that offers artworks working with matter; concrete, cement, plaster, mortar, and natural pigments. These works are intended to be exhibited in several way...
Concrete
Man Smoking Cigar, Indoor/Outdoor Marble Sculpture
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Ellen Brenner-Sorensen, American Title: Man Smoking Cigar Medium: White Marble Sculpture Size: 46 in. x 21 in. x 12 in. (116.84 cm x 53.34 cm...
Marble
$7,578
Aspiring Upwards by Kuno Vollet - Contemporary Red Steel sculpture for Outdoors
By Kuno Vollet
Located in DE
Artist: Kuno Vollet Title: Aspiring Path Contemporary steel sculpture for inside or garden outdoor spaces. Stunning large artwork. Possible to put on a pedestal or directly on to ...
Steel
Madame Butterfly Sculpture, Abstract Wood and Polystyrene
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The act of painting becomes a form of meditation. Marino explains that the time and process of creating work are at the core of what the painting wants to mean, declaring: that is ho...
Polystyrene, Wood
Santiago Medina - ETERNITY (OUTDOOR MONUMENTAL), Sculpture 2021
Located in Greenwich, CT
Italian stainless steel. Medina summarizes his artistic passion as “I bring inert stainless steel to life by creating sculptures full of light and movement”. Since studying at Harva...
Stainless Steel
Abstract Geometric Modern Metal Etching
By Dick Wray
Located in Houston, TX
Modern geometric etching on a metal sheet in an abstract style. The piece is not framed. Artist Biography: Dick Wray, a native Houstonian, born in Heights Hospital in 1933 was prima...
Metal
$4,400Sale Price|20% Off
1763 Study #1, Matt Devine, Steel/Powdercoat/Concrete Base (Indoors/Outdoors)
By Matt Devine
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
Matt Devine 1763 Study #1 Steel w/ Powdercoat on Concrete Base (Indoors/Outdoors) 18" x 9.5" x 9" Matt Devine is a self-taught sculptor working with steel, aluminum and bronze. Bor...
Concrete, Steel, Stainless Steel
$6,000
"Leaf" Abstract Sculpture in Walnut Wood and Bronze, 2000s One -of -a - kind
Located in Zofingen, AG
Sculpture LEAF is made of wallnut tree and combined with bronze. An abstract form with organic aesthetic. Interior sculpture, that may looks your place fancy and original. One of a...
Bronze
Encased by Isabel Ritter - Contemporary wood carved sculpture
Located in DE
Hand carved sculpture by artist Isabel Ritter. Beautiful encased female sculpture. Stunning on a plinth or a shelf. About the Gallery: Folly & Muse was established in 2015 in London...
Wood, Acrylic
"Ancestral" - wall sculpture, paddle, copper, tree
Located in Atlanta, GA
Corrina is inspired by the work of Louise Bourgeois, Louise Nevelson, Albert Paley, Lee Bontecou. Corrina Sephora is an Atlanta-based mixed-media Artist specializing in sculpture, p...
Bronze, Copper
$7,500
Estate of David Hayes_Form Study_carved plaster of paris_1970_abstract sculpture
By David Hayes
Located in Darien, CT
ODETTA is pleased to offer this important sculpture from the Estate of David Hayes. David Vincent Hayes (March 15, 1931 – April 9, 2013) was an American sculptor.. Hayes received a...
Plaster
Transition (White) Abstract Wood Sculpture, 21st Century, Hand Carved
By Greg Joubert
Located in Santa Fe, NM
Hand carved aspen wood sculpture torched burnished and painted Greg Joubert was born in 1977 and raised in the seaside New England town of Hingham, Massachusetts. Joubert gained hi...
Wood, Acrylic
$2,100
Winter Venice The Keeper of Dreams, Original Ceramic Sculpture 53cm x 28cm x 20c
Located in Zofingen, AG
Winter Venice The Keeper of Dreams sculpture vase, ceramic, glaze. 1046 grad. 53cm x 28cm x 20cm, 21" x 11" x 8" The Keeper of Dreams is a one-of-a-kind sculptural ceramic vessel ...
Granite
$4,700
"Abstract Arrangement - Cement, Resin, Plastic, Zip-ties, Industrial Strapping
By Duane Paul
Located in West Hollywood, CA
Duane Paul's work can best be characterized as innovative, dynamic and intimate. His sculptures each employ colorful organic shapes, which act as a personal language. The playful and...
Resin, Plastic, Wood, Pigment
$140,000
Rope Trap /// Abstract Expressionist Female Nancy Graves Huge Metal Sculpture NY
By Nancy Graves
Located in Saint Augustine, FL
Artist: Nancy Graves (American, 1939-1995) Title: "Rope Trap" *Titled, signed, and dated by Graves (inscribed into the metal) on red cylinder lower right Year: 1985 Medium: Original ...
Bronze, Metal
Abstract Clay Sculpture of Urban Row Home with Black History Themes
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
Rather than being literal reproductions of buildings, Leroy Johnson’s iconic, signature house sculptures are alive with texture and symbolism, celebrating the resilience of communiti...
Ceramic, Clay, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$2,240Sale Price|20% Off
Untitled
Located in Buffalo, NY
An original clay wall sculpture by American artist Neil Tetkowski.
Clay
$18,000
Duality R - dynamic, translucent, red, glass, steel, abstract wall sculpture
Located in Bloomfield, ON
Elegantly curved deep red glass pieces in twos are suspended on fine black steel cables in this dramatic new wall sculpture by Canadian artist John Paul Robinson. His glass work is i...
Metal
$2,560Sale Price|20% Off
Ultra Violet Crystals (wood, contemporary design, geometric, purple, sculpture)
By Chloe Hedden
Located in Quebec, Quebec
Ultra Violet Crystals (2018) by Chloe Hedden is a striking wall sculpture crafted from solid wood, meticulously hand-carved into geometric crystalline f...
Wood, Spray Paint
Close to Nature Cacti by Isabel Ritter - Contemporary wood carved sculpture
Located in DE
Hand carved sculpture by artist Isabel Ritter. Beautiful blue wings are carved perfectly. Stunning on a plinth or a shelf. About the Gallery: Folly & Muse was established in 2015 in...
Wood, Acrylic
Sage Wisp Mesa Abstract Sculpture in Powder Coated Steel, 2010+
Located in Santa Fe, NM
It was the tumult of the sixties that compelled me to drop out of Swarthmore College, move “back to the land” and become an intuitive artist. I believed that if we were to survive a...
Steel
Light-Glyph (Royal Blue)
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Brindle’s Light Glyph’s, are luminescent and mercurial sculptures, constantly shifting in hue as the viewer moves around them. Absorbing and reflecting light, they have a meditative ...
Acrylic Polymer, Automotive Paint, Acrylic
$3,971
Relic
Located in Belgravia, London, London
"Relic" by Michael Thacker British, 21st Century Mandale Fossil Limestone with Gold Leaf Sculpture size (HxWxD): 13.5 x 9 x 5 inches
Limestone, Gold Leaf
Vesuvius Hand Fabricated Steel Sculpture with Patina, 22x15x14 Inches
By Sally Hepler
Located in Santa Fe, NM
Vesuvius 19.5 x 15 x 14" hand fabricated steel with patina, 4 inch tall powder coated steel base, shown in picture There are two sides to any circle: the inside and the outside. In ...
Steel
$20,667
Lucio Fontana (1899-1968) - Lucio Fontana's metal sculpture commissioned in 1964
Located in Varese, IT
Lucio Fontana's metal sculpture commissioned in 1964 by Alfa Romeo, a machined and pierced steel disk, with an affixed smaller disk engraved 'Alfa Romeo Milano a Maria Teresa Meneghe...
Steel