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.
1960s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
1930s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
1970s Abstract Art
Paper, Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Pigment
1950s Abstract Art
Lithograph
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Epoxy Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Plexiglass, Wood, Paper
Artist Comments
A thickly textured palette knife painting of an old saguaro cactus standing against a blooming spring desert backdrop. "This painting was inspired by the incredible Joshua Tree National Park in Southern California," shares artist Lisa Elley. "It's where the Colorado and Mojave Deserts collide with amazing vistas and dazzling flowers."
About the Artist
Working almost exclusively with a palette knife, Lisa Elley maneuvers her artistic blade with an uncanny fluidity. Why paint only with the knife? She says, "when I paint with a brush, which I do occasionally, I tend to focus on the detail. With a palette knife I can't focus on the detail too much, so my paintings are looser, and more gestural, with bigger sweeps and strokes." This technique is called wet-on-wet. And it seems to be quite popular, as she has been bestowed the title "Knife Queen" by her facebook fans. Fun fact: Lisa's high school art teacher told her to study harder at math, as a career in art was "impossible."
Words that describe this painting: desert, Mojave, flowers, floral, spring, cactus, sun, mountains, sky, landscape, California, Joshua Tree, impressionism, landscape, western, representational, oil painting, purple
Desert Bloom...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Gesso, Canvas, Oil, Acrylic, Wood Panel
Early 2000s Abstract Art
Lithograph, Offset
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Wood, Found Objects, Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Linen, Oil, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Art
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Metal
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Oil, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Bold, energetic brushwork shapes an abstract interpretation of a flower. Thick layers of paint convey spontaneity and life, while soft touches of blue add surpr...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
Late 20th Century Abstract Art
Canvas, Paper, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Dorothy Gaziano builds layers of orange and cream over deep blues and black using oil paint and cold wax. The interplay of light and dark draws the viewer in,...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Pigment
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
1980s Abstract Art
Paper, Ink
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Resin, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Plexiglass, C Print
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Ceramic, Clay
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic Polymer, Ink, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Artist Nicole Lamothe says her focus in this soft, warm still life was the glowing sunlight streaming through her studio window. "I arranged the pair of yello...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Gold Leaf
2010s Abstract Art
Giclée
Late 20th Century Abstract Art
Screen
2010s Abstract Art
Wood, Textile
20th Century Abstract Art
Paper, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Art
Gesso, Charcoal
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Gold Leaf
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Archival Pigment
1950s Abstract Art
Oil
1960s Abstract Art
Screen
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Mixed Media, Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Art
Paper
2010s Abstract Art
Textile
2010s Abstract Art
Stainless Steel
1970s Abstract Art
Ink
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Wax Crayon
1950s Abstract Art
Lithograph, Stencil
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil