Abstract Art
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.
2010s Abstract Art
Screen
1990s Abstract Art
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Acrylic
1960s Abstract Art
Paper, Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Ink
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic, Wood Panel, Paint
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Inkjet, Pigment, Archival Pigment
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Inkjet, Pigment, Archival Pigment
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Inkjet, Pigment, Archival Pigment
2010s Abstract Art
Linen, Oil
1940s Abstract Art
Ink, Rag Paper
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Inkjet, Pigment, Archival Pigment
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Inkjet, Archival Pigment
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Resin, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Ink
1980s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Silver Gelatin
2010s Abstract Art
Plexiglass, C Print
1960s Abstract Art
Ink
Early 2000s Abstract Art
Paper, Ink
20th Century Abstract Art
Oil, Canvas
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Ink, Pen
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Pastel, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Art
Pencil
Late 20th Century Abstract Art
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Copper
1970s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Encaustic, Board
2010s Abstract Art
Plexiglass, C Print
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic, Graphite
2010s Abstract Art
Oil, Canvas
2010s Abstract Art
Archival Pigment, Archival Ink, Archival Paper
1970s Abstract Art
Etching
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Digital
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Ink, Spray Paint, Watercolor, Pencil
2010s Abstract Art
Oil, Panel
1970s Abstract Art
Screen
1970s Abstract Art
Screen
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic, Spray Paint
Artist Comments
In this painting, artist Candice Eisenfeld portrays two separate visions of a verdant forest. She delves below the surface of perceived reality and what lies beneath that perception. Although produced on a single wooden panel, the ethereal landscape is joined with a segment of green, aqueous color fields which act as a chaotic emotional commentary to the scene. "The crisp, hard edges separating the landscape from the color fields command a sense of order in an otherwise fluid jungle of green washes."
About the Artist
As an American exploring issues of identity, artist Candice Eisenfeld paints through the lens of the first American art movement, the Hudson River School. Rather than depicting a specific locale, Candice’s artwork evokes a sense of place. These "inner landscapes" are invented, and often reference photographs taken during travels in southern Appalachia and the Blue Ridge and Smokey Mountains. Whether real or imagined, her paintings are influenced by the Dutch Masters, Tonalists, and Chinese painting. Produced on a single wooden panel, the ethereal landscapes are often joined with segments of aqueous color fields which act as commentary for the landscapes, like the chorus in a Greek play. The crisp, hard edges separating the landscapes from the color fields command a sense of order in an otherwise fluid and painterly surface. With two or three sections of the panel competing for attention, the painting creates multiple focal points. Candice's art has been displayed in embassies in Namibia and Belarus, held in the collections of Norwest Bank and Northwest Airlines...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Acrylic
1960s Abstract Art
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Cotton Canvas, Giclée
1970s Abstract Art
Screen
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
1980s Abstract Art
Tempera, Cardboard
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Art
Ink
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
1930s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Oil Pastel, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Gouache