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.
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic Polymer, Ink, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic Polymer, Ink, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Gold
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Art
Screen
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Gesso, Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
1990s Abstract Art
Paper, Mixed Media
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Mixed Media
Artist Comments
Green, blue, and orange with black accents create a dynamic abstract composition. Scratches and marks add texture and energy. Artist Dorothy Gaziano used oil pa...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Emulsion, Watercolor, Monotype, Paper
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
Late 20th Century Abstract Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Gesso, Canvas, Varnish, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Engraving
1950s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Giclée, Gesso, Oil, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Art
Screen
1950s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Gesso, Archival Ink, Acrylic, Archival Paper, Giclée, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Metal, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
1960s Abstract Art
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, C Print, Giclée, Archival Pigment
1950s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Ink, Rag Paper, Monotype, Gouache
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Stainless Steel
Artist Comments
Layers of colors and gestures define this abstract piece. Soft green, orange, and blue contrast with touches of black. Expressive scratches and marks bring text...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Giclée
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Ink, Acrylic
1950s Abstract Art
Lithograph
1960s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Acrylic
1990s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Clay, Acrylic
Artist Comments
This painting evokes a sense of calm and expansiveness, depicting a vast landscape beneath a cloudy sky. Soft, blended brushstrokes create a harmonious mix of...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, India Ink, Color
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic, Watercolor
2010s Abstract Art
Steel




