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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
Red Abstract OiI Compostion by Lee Reynolds
Red Abstract OiI Compostion by Lee Reynolds

Red Abstract OiI Compostion by Lee Reynolds

By Lee Reynolds

Located in Pasadena, CA

Modern Abstract Year: 1960-1970 Medium: Oil on Canvas, signed lower right Size: Abstract oil on canvas by Lee Reynolds was a popular artist in the 1960s known for oversized, color...

Category

1960s Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

Stalling and Waiting, Oil Painting
Stalling and Waiting, Oil Painting

Stalling and Waiting, Oil Painting

By Onelio Marrero

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
The title of this painting expresses artist Onelio Marrero's observations of people sitting alone in restaurants and cafes. In this case, a woman waits agains...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

Whispers in Blue - Abstract Figurative Landscape Textured Impasto Oil Painting
Whispers in Blue - Abstract Figurative Landscape Textured Impasto Oil Painting

Whispers in Blue - Abstract Figurative Landscape Textured Impasto Oil Painting

By Ekaterina Ermilkina

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Ekaterina Ermilkina’s original, abstract fine art paintings are created using a skillful combination of applying and removing oil paint with a palette knife on canvas. Her inspiratio...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

The Green

The Green

By Sonia Delaunay

Located in Paris, FR

Lithograph, 1970 Edition : 32/75 65.00 cm. x 50.00 cm. 25.59 in. x 19.69 in. (paper) 54.00 cm. x 39.00 cm. 21.26 in. x 15.35 in. (image) Handsigned by the artist in pencil Certific...

Category

1970s Abstract Art

Materials

Lithograph

The Painted Lady - Large Impasto Thick Paint Colorful Abstract Painting
The Painted Lady - Large Impasto Thick Paint Colorful Abstract Painting

The Painted Lady - Large Impasto Thick Paint Colorful Abstract Painting

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Impasto-painted strokes of bright colors are the framework of artist Shiri Phillips’ abstract artworks. Her paintings are flooded with texture through the layering of acrylic paint a...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Glitter, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Untitled (3)
Untitled (3)

Untitled (3)

By John von Wicht

Located in Columbia, MO

Signed recto. John von Wicht (German-American, 1888 - 1970) was a painter and printmaker whose abstract works evolved from Euro...

Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Art

Materials

Paper, Oil

This is Up - Impasto Thick Paint Colorful Abstract Painting
This is Up - Impasto Thick Paint Colorful Abstract Painting

This is Up - Impasto Thick Paint Colorful Abstract Painting

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Impasto-painted strokes of bright colors are the framework of artist Shiri Phillips’ abstract artworks. Her paintings are flooded with texture through the layering of acrylic paint a...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Glitter, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Stout No Doubt  - Abstract Modern Organic Shape Mixed Media Artwork on Canvas
Stout No Doubt  - Abstract Modern Organic Shape Mixed Media Artwork on Canvas

Stout No Doubt - Abstract Modern Organic Shape Mixed Media Artwork on Canvas

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Rue Bootay, a New York-born artist now rooted in the vibrant artistic landscape of Los Angeles, navigates the avant-garde realm of nonrepresentational surrealism with a style uniquel...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Charcoal, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Whisper In A Hurricane
Whisper In A Hurricane

Whisper In A Hurricane

Located in Jönköping, SE

This painting is part of a series titled Wander, Wonder and Recall. The series is about movement. The movement of wind and water in nature. Have you ever just stopped and listened t...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Landscape, Woodstock painting, contemporary art.
Landscape, Woodstock painting, contemporary art.

Landscape, Woodstock painting, contemporary art.

By Arthur Pinajian

Located in La Canada Flintridge, CA

Untitled Landscape, Woodstock, 1969 Oil on canvas, signed by Arthur Pinajian on the lower right. Includes a certificate of authenticity from the Estate of Arthur Pinajian. Arthur Pin...

Category

1950s Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

Gold in magenta. Abstraction
Gold in magenta. Abstraction

Gold in magenta. Abstraction

Located in Zofingen, AG

The work is created in the fluid art technique using acrylic on canvas. The composition is built on the intense interaction of saturated pink, coral, and crimson tones, complemented ...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Orchestra
Orchestra

Orchestra

By Lee Reynolds

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Figurative abstract oil on canvas of a performing orchestra. Great colors and brushstrokes. Signed lower right.

Category

1980s Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

No title

No title

By Bram Van Velde

Located in Paris, FR

Lithograph, 1966 Handsigned by the artist in pencil and numbered 31/80 Printer : Fratelli Pozzo Catalog : Mason-Putman 36 94.00 cm. x 62.50 cm. 37.01 in. x 24.61 in. (paper) 66.50 c...

Category

1960s Abstract Art

Materials

Lithograph

"Textures" (2025) by Dan McCaw, Abstracted, Figural Oil Painting
"Textures" (2025) by Dan McCaw, Abstracted, Figural Oil Painting

"Textures" (2025) by Dan McCaw, Abstracted, Figural Oil Painting

Located in Denver, CO

Dan McCaw's (US based) "Textures" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts an abstracted figure in a moody interior setting. Artist Statement: Born: 1942 A solid founda...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Oil, Board

210125
210125

210125

Located in Badung, ID

Alicia Gimeno approaches painting as a form of writing—one that exists beyond language, meaning, or legibility. From an early fascination with Eastern calligraphy, her practice evolv...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

"Symbiotic" (2025) by Dan McCaw, Abstracted, Figural Oil Painting
"Symbiotic" (2025) by Dan McCaw, Abstracted, Figural Oil Painting

"Symbiotic" (2025) by Dan McCaw, Abstracted, Figural Oil Painting

Located in Denver, CO

Dan McCaw's (US based) "Symbiotic" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts three abstracted figures in an interior setting. Artist Statement: Born: 1942 A solid founda...

Category

2010s Abstract Art

Materials

Oil, Board

Untitled #SP-206, Mixed Media on Paper by Murray Duncan - Abstract Geometric
Untitled #SP-206, Mixed Media on Paper by Murray Duncan - Abstract Geometric

Untitled #SP-206, Mixed Media on Paper by Murray Duncan - Abstract Geometric

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Untitled #SP-206 by Murray Duncan Mixed media on paper Size: 32" x 40” Unframed, signed A bold mixed-media work with dynamic lines and textures. This captivating piece by Murray D...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Paper, Oil Crayon, Acrylic

Untitled
Untitled

Untitled

By Donald Judd

Located in New York, NY

Created by Donald Judd as an aquatint on wove paper, Untitled, 1978-79 is hand-signed and numbered "28/175" in pencil, measuring 40 x 29 ½ (101.6 x 74.9 cm.), unframed, and is from t...

Category

20th Century Abstract Art

Materials

Aquatint

'Darnaud Abstract' by Maxime Darnaud, Oil on Canvas
'Darnaud Abstract' by Maxime Darnaud, Oil on Canvas

'Darnaud Abstract' by Maxime Darnaud, Oil on Canvas

Located in Oklahoma City, OK

This 26" x 34.5" oil on canvas painting was done in 1958 by French Postwar & Contemporary artist, Maxime Darnaud. Darnaud was born in 1931 and died in 2015. This painting is a modern...

Category

1950s Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Untitled
Untitled

Roland AyersUntitled, 1982

$960Sale Price|20% Off

Untitled

By Roland Ayers

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Roland Ayers (1932-2017). Untitled, 1983. Ink on paper, measures 17 x 23 inches. Unframed and unmounted. Signed and dated lower left. Ayers holds the distinction of having participated in the first important survey of African-Americans, Contemporary Black Artists in America, a 1971 show at The Whitney. Biography: Artist and art educator, Roland Ayers was born on July 2, 1932, the only child of Alice and Lorenzo Ayers, and grew up in the Germantown district of Philadelphia. Ayers served in the US Army (stationed in Germany) before studying at the Philadelphia College of Art (currently University of the Arts). He graduated with a BFA in Art Education, 1954. He traveled Europe 1966-67, spending time in Amsterdam and Greece in particular. During this period, he drifted away from painting to focus on linear figurative drawings of a surreal nature. His return home inaugurated the artist’s most prolific and inspired period (1968-1975). Shorty before his second major trip abroad in 1971-72 to West Africa, Ayers began to focus on African themes, and African American figures populated his work almost exclusively. In spite of Ayers’ travel and exploration of the world, he gravitated back to his beloved Germantown, a place he endowed with mythological qualities in his work and literature. His auto-biographical writing focuses on the importance of place during his childhood. Ayers’ journals meticulously document the ethnic and cultural make-up of Germantown, and tell a compelling story of class marginalization that brought together poor families despite racial differences. The distinctive look and design of Germantown inform Ayers’ visual vocabulary. It is a setting with distinctive Gothic Revival architecture and haunting natural beauty. These characteristics are translated and recur in the artist’s imagery. During his childhood, one of the only books in the Ayers household was an illustrated Bible. The images within had a profound effect on the themes and subjects that would appear in his adult work. Figures in an Ayers’ drawing often seem trapped in a narrative of loss and redemption. Powerful women loom large in the drawings: they suggest the female role models his journals record in early life. The drawings can sometimes convey a strong sense of conflict, and at other times, harmony. Nature and architecture seem to have an antagonistic relationship that is, ironically, symbiotic. A critical turning point in the artist’s career came in 1971 when he was included in the extremely controversial Whitney Museum show, Contemporary Black Artists in America. The exhibition gave Ayers an international audience and served as a calling card for introductions he would soon make in Europe. Ayers is a particularly compelling figure in a period when black artists struggled with the idea of authenticity. A questioned often asked was “Is your work too black, or not black enough?” Abstractionists were considered by some peers to be sell-outs, frauds or worse. Figurative* work was accused of being either sentimental or politically radical depending on the critical source. Ayers made the choice early on to be a figurative artist, but considered his work devoid of political content. Organizations such as Chicago’ s Afri-Cobra in the late 1960‘s asserted that the only true black art of any relevance must depict the black man and woman...

Category

1980s Abstract Art

Materials

Paper, Ink

Sunset VW Van - Colorful California Beach Still Life Acrylic Painting on Canvas
Sunset VW Van - Colorful California Beach Still Life Acrylic Painting on Canvas

Sunset VW Van - Colorful California Beach Still Life Acrylic Painting on Canvas

By Kathleen Keifer

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Kathleen Keifer's original artworks represent one of the most significant expressions of New California Realism. Keifer brings a fresh perspective to her colorful scenes of everyday ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Miro  original  painting.
Miro  original  painting.

Miro original painting.

By Joan Miró

Located in CORAL GABLES - MIAMI, FL

Original drawing painted in wax by Joan Miro. Certified by Jacques Dupin, official certifier of the artist's work. The work is a wax painted on two continuous pages of a book publish...

Category

1960s Abstract Art

Materials

Crayon

Paris, River Seine, Oil Painting
Paris, River Seine, Oil Painting

Paris, River Seine, Oil Painting

By Suren Nersisyan

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
"The artwork is from my cityscapes of Paris," shares artist Suren Nersisyan. "I love the bridges of this city connecting the banks of the Seine river. The sof...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Art

Materials

Oil

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.