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Abstract Art

ABSTRACT STYLE

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.

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Style: Abstract
This Week's Listings Only
Untitled Abstract Composition, Abstract Expressionist Oil Painting
Untitled Abstract Composition, Abstract Expressionist Oil Painting

Untitled Abstract Composition, Abstract Expressionist Oil Painting

By Jay Milder

Located in Surfside, FL

This is being sold unframed. Jay Milder (born 1934) is an American artist and a figurative expressionist painter of the second generation New York School. Old Testament themes such ...

Category

20th Century Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Abstract 2562

Abstract 2562

Located in Zofingen, AG

In this piece, I let emotions flow freely through sweeping layers of soft blues and warm beiges, blending impressionistic textures with abstract forms. The contrasts evoke a serene y...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Oil, Acrylic

Forever Hope - Abstract Painting, Acrylic on Canvas, Framed, 1980s
Forever Hope - Abstract Painting, Acrylic on Canvas, Framed, 1980s

Forever Hope - Abstract Painting, Acrylic on Canvas, Framed, 1980s

Located in Bloomfield, ON

This modern abstract is a Harold Feist 'spoke' painting. Early in his career, Canadian artist Harold Feist was mentored by the famed New York Art critic, Clement Greenberg and the f...

Category

1980s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Jasper Johns, Untitled, from Screenprints, 1977
Jasper Johns, Untitled, from Screenprints, 1977

Jasper Johns, Untitled, from Screenprints, 1977

By Jasper Johns

Located in Southampton, NY

This exquisite silkscreen by Jasper Johns (born 1930), titled Untitled, from the album Jasper Johns, Screenprints, 1977, originates from the 1977 edition published by Brooke Alexande...

Category

1970s Abstract Art

Materials

Screen

Reclining Figure (woman)
Reclining Figure (woman)

Reclining Figure (woman)

By William King (b.1925)

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

William King (1925-2015). Reclining figure, ca. 1965. Cast and welded bronze, 7 x 9.5 x 5 inches. Unsigned. William King, a sculptor in a variety of materials whose human figures traced social attitudes through the last half of the 20th century, often poking sly and poignant fun at human follies and foibles, died on March 4 at his home in East Hampton, N.Y. He was 90. His death was confirmed by Scott Chaskey, who is married to Mr. King's stepdaughter, Megan Chaskey. Mr. King worked in clay, wood, bronze, vinyl, burlap and aluminum. He worked both big and small, from busts and toylike figures to large public art pieces depicting familiar human poses -- a seated, cross-legged man reading; a Western couple (he in a cowboy hat, she in a long dress) holding hands; a tall man reaching down to tug along a recalcitrant little boy; a crowd of robotic-looking men walking in lock step. But for all its variation, what unified his work was a wry observer's arched eyebrow, the pointed humor and witty rue of a fatalist. His figurative sculptures, often with long, spidery legs and an outlandishly skewed ratio of torso to appendages, use gestures and posture to suggest attitude and illustrate his own amusement with the unwieldiness of human physical equipment. His subjects included tennis players and gymnasts, dancers and musicians, and he managed to show appreciation of their physical gifts and comic delight at their contortions and costumery. His suit-wearing businessmen often appeared haughty or pompous; his other men could seem timid or perplexed or awkward. Oddly, or perhaps tellingly, he tended to depict women more reverentially, though in his portrayals of couples the fragility and tender comedy inherent in couplehood settled equally on both partners. Mr. King's work is in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, among other places, and he had dozens of solo gallery shows in New York and elsewhere. But the comic element of his work probably caused his reputation to suffer. Reviews of his exhibitions frequently began with the caveat that even though the work was funny, it was also serious, displaying superior technical skills, imaginative vision and the bolstering weight of a range of influences, from the ancient Etruscans to American folk art to 20th-century artists including Giacometti, Calder. and Elie Nadelman. The critic Hilton Kramer, one of Mr. King's most ardent advocates, wrote in a 1970 essay accompanying a New York gallery exhibit that he was, "among other things, an amusing artist, and nowadays this can, at times, be almost as much a liability as an asset." A "preoccupation with gesture is the focus of King's sculptural imagination," Mr. Kramer wrote. "Everything that one admires in his work - the virtuoso carving, the deft handling of a wide variety of materials, the shrewd observation and resourceful invention - all this is secondary to the concentration on gesture. The physical stance of the human animal as it negotiates the social arena, the unconscious gait that the body assumes in making its way in the social medium, the emotion traced by the course of a limb, a torso, a head, the features of a face, a coiffure or a costume - from a keen observation of these materials King has garnered a large stock of sculptural images notable for their wit, empathy, simplicity and psychological precision." William Dickey King...

Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Art

Materials

Bronze

Lucio Fontana Untitled (Gold Concetto Spaziale)
Lucio Fontana Untitled (Gold Concetto Spaziale)

Lucio Fontana Untitled (Gold Concetto Spaziale)

By Lucio Fontana

Located in Washington , DC, DC

Exceptional gold foil Concetto Spaziale produced in 1962 for a rare official Lucio Fontana artist monograph during his lifetime, published by famed art book publisher Harry N. Abrams...

Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Art

Materials

Foil

"Doves for the Dorians I" (pink, green, white, Greek warrior. sword, painting)
"Doves for the Dorians I" (pink, green, white, Greek warrior. sword, painting)

"Doves for the Dorians I" (pink, green, white, Greek warrior. sword, painting)

By Nicholas Evans

Located in Paris, IDF

The Dorians played a significant role in the development of the Greek city-states during the Bronze Age -- and Doves are widely recognized as symbols of peace, primarily in the bibli...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Dye, Oil, Acrylic

Holy Split I Mixed Media Original Painting on Canvas, Abstract Landscape, 2026
Holy Split I Mixed Media Original Painting on Canvas, Abstract Landscape, 2026

Holy Split I Mixed Media Original Painting on Canvas, Abstract Landscape, 2026

By Nicholas Evans

Located in Paris, IDF

HOLY SPLIT I 2026 Paris, France HOLY SPLIT I is an ethereal mixed medium painting on canvas depicting a surreal dreamlike rift in a serene landscape. Abstract fuchsia forms suggesti...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil, Acrylic, Pencil

Caribbean Sandy Shore Triptych, Blue Tones Seascape, Sunny Waves Cyanotype Print
Caribbean Sandy Shore Triptych, Blue Tones Seascape, Sunny Waves Cyanotype Print

Caribbean Sandy Shore Triptych, Blue Tones Seascape, Sunny Waves Cyanotype Print

By Kind of Cyan

Located in Barcelona, ES

This series of cyanotype triptychs showcases the beauty of nature scenes, including stunning beaches and oceans, as well as the intricate textures of water, forests, and skies. These triptychs are large pieces that feature lush blues, making them an impressive addition to any beautifully designed space. Each triptych is printed by hand and carefully crafted to capture the unique essence of these natural environments, with a focus on the interplay of light and shadows, and the subtle nuances of tone and texture. The beach and ocean scenes depict the dynamic beauty of waves crashing against the shore, with the cyanotype process lending a dreamy, ethereal quality to the images. Similarly, the forest and wood scenes offer a glimpse into the hidden depths of nature, with the cyanotype process lending a sense of mystery and wonder to the images, while the lush blues of cyanotypes imitate the sky and clouds perfectly. These triptychs are perfect for anyone who loves to surround themselves with the beauty of nature, and they make an excellent centerpiece for any beautifully designed space. Details: + Title: Pleasant Waters in Tulum Beach...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Monotype, Paper, Lithograph

The Hush of Winter, Abstract Oil Painting
The Hush of Winter, Abstract Oil Painting

The Hush of Winter, Abstract Oil Painting

By Jenn Williamson

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
A quiet, enveloping atmosphere emerges. The abstract scene evokes the stillness of winter days when hushed sound and landscape rest within a veil of calm. Subtl...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

New England Winter
New England Winter

New England Winter

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Gordon Ham (20th century) New England Winter, ca. 1940. Oil on unstretched canvas panel, 14 x 17 inches. Measuring 17 x 20 inches framed. Signed lower right. Vertical cracking ...

Category

1940s Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

Ruz . 2961 original abstract acrylic canvas painting
Ruz . 2961 original abstract acrylic canvas painting

Ruz . 2961 original abstract acrylic canvas painting

By Rafael Ruz

Located in CORAL GABLES - MIAMI, FL

"black" original abstract acrylic canvas painting Original work by the Spanish painter Rafael RUZ. Acrylic on canvas . Perfect condition. RUZ, Rafael (Barcelona 1956) While contempla...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

ECHO
ECHO

ECHO

Located in Zofingen, AG

This painting resonates with silence dissolved in shades of blue. Gentle layers of color, from the lightest to the deepest, unfold into an invisible vibration—an echo that seems to...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

French Floral Abstract, Signed Oil Painting
French Floral Abstract, Signed Oil Painting

French Floral Abstract, Signed Oil Painting

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

French Floral Abstract, Signed Oil Painting French School, 20th Century Signed by the artist on the lower right hand corner Oil painting on the...

Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

'Abstract, Ebony & Rust', San Francisco Bay Area Abstraction, Large Oil
'Abstract, Ebony & Rust', San Francisco Bay Area Abstraction, Large Oil

'Abstract, Ebony & Rust', San Francisco Bay Area Abstraction, Large Oil

By Eral Leek

Located in Santa Cruz, CA

Signed lower right, "Eral" for Eral Leek (American, 20th century) and dated 1962. A substantial, mid-century oil abstract comprising bold, overlapping rectangular compositional elem...

Category

1960s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Noteworthy - Original Contemporary Expressive Geometric Abstract Metal Sculpture
Noteworthy - Original Contemporary Expressive Geometric Abstract Metal Sculpture

Noteworthy - Original Contemporary Expressive Geometric Abstract Metal Sculpture

By Granville Beals

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Inspired by dance and weightlessness, Granville Beals' industrial metal sculptures are primarily about relationships. Concerned with form and abstraction, he does not merely manipula...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Metal, Steel

Abstract Geometric Painting by Dave Braden
Abstract Geometric Painting by Dave Braden

Abstract Geometric Painting by Dave Braden

Located in San Francisco, CA

No two shapes are alike. Yet they work together as a harmonious whole. Painter David Braden has described his vision overall in abstract terms. Inspired by individuality, he especial...

Category

1990s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Ocean's Jewels, Abstract Oil Painting
Ocean's Jewels, Abstract Oil Painting

Ocean's Jewels, Abstract Oil Painting

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
A layer of emerald green rests atop a base of purple, pale blue, and white, creating a striking contrast of light and dark. Scratches and marks added while the ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

Abraham Walkowitz (1878-1965) Signed Antique Modernist Abstract Framed Painting
Abraham Walkowitz (1878-1965) Signed Antique Modernist Abstract Framed Painting

Abraham Walkowitz (1878-1965) Signed Antique Modernist Abstract Framed Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Vintage American modernist cityscape painting by Abraham Walkowitz (1878 - 1965). Mixed media on paper. Signed. Framed. Provenance from a Sag Harbor, NY collection. Measuring: 20 by...

Category

1910s Abstract Art

Materials

Ink, Watercolor, Archival Paper

Magical Mycorrhiza - Original Art - Vibrant Exploration of Nature and Connection
Magical Mycorrhiza - Original Art - Vibrant Exploration of Nature and Connection

Magical Mycorrhiza - Original Art - Vibrant Exploration of Nature and Connection

By Jonas Fisch

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Swedish artist Jonas Fisch’s imagery is vibrantly buzzing with colorful commentary on society - past and present - morphed into figures, words, and shapes. His heavily layered canvas...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Fabric

Mid Century French Geometric Abstract in Black White and Navy Signed SG
Mid Century French Geometric Abstract in Black White and Navy Signed SG

Mid Century French Geometric Abstract in Black White and Navy Signed SG

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Title: Mid Century French Geometric Abstract in Black White and Navy Signed SG by Serge Guerin (b. 1916), French signed lower right “SG”, name stamped verso Acrylic and gouache on ar...

Category

20th Century Abstract Art

Materials

Ink, Acrylic, Gouache

Black fish on a gold background.
Black fish on a gold background.

Black fish on a gold background.

Located in Zofingen, AG

The work is executed in stencil technique using black paint on a gold acrylic background. The metallic gold surface creates a soft shimmer and enhances the contrast with the graphic ...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Deep Blue, Abstract Oil Painting
Deep Blue, Abstract Oil Painting

Deep Blue, Abstract Oil Painting

By Heidi Hybl

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
Deep blues sit below the composition, while soft cream tones rest above. The colors illustrate the sky and water along the Big Sur Coast, where artist Heidi Hyb...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

Turquoise turtle in gold
Turquoise turtle in gold

Turquoise turtle in gold

Located in Zofingen, AG

The painting is created in a mixed media technique using gold leaf. The central image of the composition is a sea turtle — a symbol of harmony, wisdom, and tranquility. The turtle’s...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic, Mixed Media

Zig Zag 16-3-1 - Original Colorful Oil Painting Patterned Stripes with Texture
Zig Zag 16-3-1 - Original Colorful Oil Painting Patterned Stripes with Texture

Zig Zag 16-3-1 - Original Colorful Oil Painting Patterned Stripes with Texture

By Petra Rös-Nickel

Located in Los Angeles, CA

In Petra Rös-Nickel’s oil paintings playful, free forms along with compositional constructions develop into textures, referencing popular European design of the fifties and sixties, ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil

Fantastic Zoology I.
Fantastic Zoology I.

Fantastic Zoology I.

Located in Slovak Republic, SK

Lovely etching, framed, with fine art glass. Signed, E/A.

Category

20th Century Abstract Art

Materials

Etching

Abstract art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Abstract art available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add art created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, purple, orange, red and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Sumit Mehndiratta, Giorgio Lo Fermo, Francisco Nicolás, and Dadodu . Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Synthetic Resin Paint and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Abstract art, so small editions measuring 0.02 inches across are also available.