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.
20th Century Abstract Art
Oil
20th Century Abstract Art
Monoprint
2010s Abstract Art
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel
1990s Abstract Art
Chalk, Offset, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Graphite, Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Oil, Cardboard
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Thread, Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic
1970s Abstract Art
Oil, Board
1970s Abstract Art
Screen
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
Late 20th Century Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
1990s Abstract Art
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Acrylic, Canvas, Ink
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Carbon Pencil, Color Pencil
1960s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
Artist Comments
Artist Onelio Marrero spends much of his summers happily gardening and caring for his pond. There are also several others within walking distance from his hom...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Onelio Marrero paints an emerald pool abundant with blooming water lilies. "I am fascinated by the three-fold nature of looking at the water's surface," says Onelio. He displays depth implied in the reflection of the sky, ripples, plants floating, and finally, the telltale signs of things just below the surface. Part of Onelio's ongoing series of paintings exploring bodies of water.
About the Artist
Artist Onelio Marrero paints impressionist city scenes of everyday life. He captures the romanticism of New York City, from the picturesque fountains in Central Park to a glistening city street on a rainy afternoon. He creates a sense of nostalgia and intimacy with his work, offering the feeling that you have visited this particular scene before. “Each play of light, each texture, and each movement of a figure can have a captivating effect on me,†says Onelio. He studied at The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art where he mastered discerning color and values, giving his work a more spontaneous appearance. Onelio’s work is an appreciation for beauty in all of its greatest forms; nature, art, and people.
Words that describe this painting: water lily, lilies, Monet, pond, lake, lily pads, reflection, forest, flower, impressionism, water, plants, oilpaint, nature, impressionism, nature, oil painting, green
Pink Water...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Resin, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel
2010s Abstract Art
Cotton Canvas, Spray Paint, Acrylic
1980s Abstract Art
Wood, Acrylic
1990s Abstract Art
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Linocut
Artist Comments
Artist Patricia Prendergast has spent many early mornings painting at this pond near her home, but this is a special piece inspired by the desire to depict th...
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Oil Pastel
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
1950s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
Late 20th Century Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Cotton Canvas
1970s Abstract Art
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Ceramic, Wood
Early 2000s Abstract Art
Bronze
2010s Abstract Art
Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Pastel, Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Metal, Bronze
Mid-20th Century Abstract Art
Oil
Early 2000s Abstract Art
Acrylic
1960s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
Mid-20th Century Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Oil, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Gold
1960s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
1990s Abstract Art
Lithograph
2010s Abstract Art
Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Abstract Art
Masonite, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
1960s Abstract Art
Mixed Media
1940s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art
Archival Ink, Giclée, Archival Pigment
1960s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
1950s Abstract Art
Paper, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Resin, Wax, Encaustic, Wood Panel
1960s Abstract Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Abstract Art
Paper, Ink
2010s Abstract Art
Oil, Paper
1970s Abstract Art
Screen
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Latex, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic
2010s Abstract Art
Canvas, Acrylic