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Conceptual Art

CONCEPTUAL STYLE

In 1967, artist Sol LeWitt wrote that in “Conceptual art the idea or concept is the most important aspect of the work.” He was giving a name to an art movement that had emerged in the 1960s in which artists were less focused on their medium being something traditionally “artistic” and instead engaged in using any object, movement, form, action or place to express an idea.

LeWitt’s work was featured alongside an assemblage of notes, drawings and outlines by other artists in “Working Drawings and Other Visible Things on Paper Not Necessarily Meant to Be Viewed as Art,” a groundbreaking show at New York City’s School of Visual Arts curated by Mel Bochner, another leading exponent of Conceptualism. Building on radical 20th-century statements, like Fountain (1917) by French artist Marcel Duchamp, Conceptual artists around Europe and North and South America were not interested in the commercial art scene and rather directly challenged its systems and values.

Stretching into the 1970s, this movement has also been called Post-Object art and Dematerialized art. Conceptual art reflected a larger era of social and political upheaval. Pieces associated with the style range from Roelof Louw’s Soul City (Pyramid of Oranges) (1967) — a work of installation art that sees fresh oranges stacked into a pyramid from which visitors are allowed to take one orange away — to On Kawara’s “Today” series, which saw the Japanese artist carefully painting a date in white acrylic on canvases consisting of a single color from 1966 to his death in 2014. Artists such as Ed Ruscha, who created the Twentysix Gasoline Stations book — a collection of photos of gas stations that is widely said to be the first modern artists’ book — made photography a major platform for Conceptual art, as did Bruce Nauman, who burned one of Ruscha's books and then photographed it for his own.

Conceptual art’s legacy of questioning artistic authorship, ownership and how to work with complex ideas of space and time had a significant influence on the decades of culture that followed, and it continues to inform art today.

The collection of Conceptual photography, paintings and sculptures on 1stDibs includes artworks by John Baldessari, Jenny Holzer, Lawrence Weiner, Joseph Kosuth and others.

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Style: Conceptual
Reinhard Görner 'Biblioteca del Senado, Madrid, Spain' (Library, Madrid)

Reinhard Görner 'Biblioteca del Senado, Madrid, Spain' (Library, Madrid)

By Reinhard Görner

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Reinhard Görner Biblioteca del Senado, Madrid 2017 59 x 50 inches ed. of 10 $6,000 71 x 60 inches ed. of 7 $9,000 83 x 70 inches ed. of 5 $11,000 signed and numbered on label, verso Paper is trimmed to the image: actual image size listed Internal Keywords: Reinhard Görner, Library series, Madrid, Spain, Large-Scale Photography, Large-scale German photography, Spanish Libraries, Spanish Monuments, Library Photography...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Lambda, C Print

Andra Samelson, Pemarom, 2013-2022, 1300 + cds, Edition of 5, Abstract Sculpture
Andra Samelson, Pemarom, 2013-2022, 1300 + cds, Edition of 5, Abstract Sculpture

Andra Samelson, Pemarom, 2013-2022, 1300 + cds, Edition of 5, Abstract Sculpture

By Andra Samelson

Located in Darien, CT

The word in Tibetan for lotus is “Pema.” In Buddhism the lotus is a symbol of purity. The lotus is planted and rooted in the mud, but grows up through the water and into the vast sky...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Mirror, Plastic, Acrylic Polymer, Found Objects, Other Medium

The Swan, With Leda (Limited Edition of 25)
The Swan, With Leda (Limited Edition of 25)

The Swan, With Leda (Limited Edition of 25)

By John Stoddart 1

Located in New York, NY

This 2009 photograph by legend photographer, John Stoddart depicts “The Swan with Leda.” It was inspired from the mythology of the Greek story of Leda and the Swan, when the God Zeus...

Category

Early 2000s Conceptual Art

Materials

Silver Gelatin

Christian Zeimert "Gentilly", 1972
Christian Zeimert "Gentilly", 1972

Christian Zeimert "Gentilly", 1972

Located in Washington, DC

Painting by French artist Christian Zeimert (b.1934 – 2020). Signed in lower right corner and titled on reverse "Gentilly". Zeimert's painted slow and meticulously. It took him se...

Category

1970s Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Fritz Horstman, Kannagawa Voices, 2015, Video
Fritz Horstman, Kannagawa Voices, 2015, Video

Fritz Horstman, Kannagawa Voices, 2015, Video

By Fritz Horstman

Located in Darien, CT

While working on a large building project several years ago the artist, Fritz Horstman was struck by the poetry in the unfinished state of the construction site. He was drawn specifically to the space between the plywood walls that were raised as formworks for the pouring of cement. That space could only exist for a few hours before the cement truck...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Video

Fingerprint 3
Fingerprint 3

Fingerprint 3

By Jozef Bajus

Located in Buffalo, NY

An original mixed media woven paper and staple wall sculpture by Jozef Bajus. This work can be acquired in a shadow box frame presentation for an additional $350.

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Manhole Cover, Photorealist Oil and Sand Painting by Josep Cisquella
Manhole Cover, Photorealist Oil and Sand Painting by Josep Cisquella

Manhole Cover, Photorealist Oil and Sand Painting by Josep Cisquella

By Josep Cisquella

Located in Long Island City, NY

Artist: Josep Cisquella, Spanish (1955 - ) Title: Manhole Cover (Manhattan DPW) Year: 1991 Medium: Mixed Media on Canvas, signed on verso Size: 38.25 in. x 57.5 in. (97.16 cm x 146....

Category

1990s Conceptual Art

Materials

Mixed Media, Oil

Jo Yarrington, Mute-Ability_Composition 6, 2019_acrylic, steel, player piano rol
Jo Yarrington, Mute-Ability_Composition 6, 2019_acrylic, steel, player piano rol

Jo Yarrington, Mute-Ability_Composition 6, 2019_acrylic, steel, player piano rol

By Jo Yarrington

Located in Darien, CT

Jo Yarrington’s photographs, prints, works on paper, glass sculptures and architecturally-based installations have been shown in exhibitions at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Yale University, Cornell University, the Museum of Glass, the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, Artists Space, St. John the Divine Cathedral, Grounds for Sculpture, the Museum of American Glass and ODETTA, among others. International exhibitions have included Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts Museum, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow Cathedral, Glasgow University, Galeria Sala Uno and Centro de las Artes de Guanajuato. She represented the United States at the Sharjah Biennial, United Arab Emirates and participated in the Berlin Biennial. in 2010 she received the Bronze Prize, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Skopje, Macedonia. Yarrington is a recipient of artist grants and Fellowships from the Pollock Krasner Foundation, the New York Foundation for the Arts, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism. She has received Residency Fellowships from the MacDowell Colony, the Museum of Glass, the Museum of American Glass, the Bridge Virtual Residency/ SciArt Center, the Lucile Walton Fellow/Mountain Lake Biological Station, the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, the Anderson Center and the Ucross Foundation, among others. International grants and fellowships have included the Banff Center for Arts and Creativity/Canada, SIMS Residency/ Iceland, Cill Rialaig Artists Residency/Ireland, the Burren College of Art Residency/Ireland and the American Scandinavian Foundation. She is a Professor of Visual and Performing Arts at Fairfield University and lives and works in New York City. STATEMENT In site-specific exhibitions, public art commissions, collaborative and individual projects Jo Yarrington has used varied combinations of glass, waxed surfaces, found artifacts and experimental analog photography to investigate the way we perceive – searching for, experimenting with and developing throughout a sensory-based vernacular. Her mostly translucent materials function as physical framework and symbolic membrane. Light, both natural and ambient, provides a kinetic or time-based element to her work. Scale and the integration of architecture are also pivotal components. In the 6-part installation for the two-person exhibition Illuminated, Yarrington continues her interest in the connections between vision, sound and language. In Mute-ability: Compositions 1 – 6, her title for this light-based comprehensive work, she combines the words mute and malleability. The work focuses on found piano rolls, a music storage medium, originally conceived as coded notations or ‘note control data’ for music produced in pneumatic player pianos...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Steel

Jo Yarrington, Mute-Ability_Composition 5, 2019_acrylic, steel, player piano rol
Jo Yarrington, Mute-Ability_Composition 5, 2019_acrylic, steel, player piano rol

Jo Yarrington, Mute-Ability_Composition 5, 2019_acrylic, steel, player piano rol

By Jo Yarrington

Located in Darien, CT

Jo Yarrington’s photographs, prints, works on paper, glass sculptures and architecturally-based installations have been shown in exhibitions at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Yale University, Cornell University, the Museum of Glass, the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, Artists Space, St. John the Divine Cathedral, Grounds for Sculpture, the Museum of American Glass and ODETTA, among others. International exhibitions have included Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts Museum, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow Cathedral, Glasgow University, Galeria Sala Uno and Centro de las Artes de Guanajuato. She represented the United States at the Sharjah Biennial, United Arab Emirates and participated in the Berlin Biennial. in 2010 she received the Bronze Prize, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Skopje, Macedonia. Yarrington is a recipient of artist grants and Fellowships from the Pollock Krasner Foundation, the New York Foundation for the Arts, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism. She has received Residency Fellowships from the MacDowell Colony, the Museum of Glass, the Museum of American Glass, the Bridge Virtual Residency/ SciArt Center, the Lucile Walton Fellow/Mountain Lake Biological Station, the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, the Anderson Center and the Ucross Foundation, among others. International grants and fellowships have included the Banff Center for Arts and Creativity/Canada, SIMS Residency/ Iceland, Cill Rialaig Artists Residency/Ireland, the Burren College of Art Residency/Ireland and the American Scandinavian Foundation. She is a Professor of Visual and Performing Arts at Fairfield University and lives and works in New York City. STATEMENT In site-specific exhibitions, public art commissions, collaborative and individual projects Jo Yarrington has used varied combinations of glass, waxed surfaces, found artifacts and experimental analog photography to investigate the way we perceive – searching for, experimenting with and developing throughout a sensory-based vernacular. Her mostly translucent materials function as physical framework and symbolic membrane. Light, both natural and ambient, provides a kinetic or time-based element to her work. Scale and the integration of architecture are also pivotal components. In the 6-part installation for the two-person exhibition Illuminated, Yarrington continues her interest in the connections between vision, sound and language. In Mute-ability: Compositions 1 – 6, her title for this light-based comprehensive work, she combines the words mute and malleability. The work focuses on found piano rolls, a music storage medium, originally conceived as coded notations or ‘note control data’ for music produced in pneumatic player pianos...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Steel

Russian Samizdat Art Conceptual Compass Sculpture Assemblage Gerlovin, Gerlovina
Russian Samizdat Art Conceptual Compass Sculpture Assemblage Gerlovin, Gerlovina

Russian Samizdat Art Conceptual Compass Sculpture Assemblage Gerlovin, Gerlovina

By Rimma Gerlovina & Valeriy Gerlovin

Located in Surfside, FL

Rimma Gerlovina and Valeriy Gerlovin Compass, 1988 Aluminum sculpture, mixed media and c-print photograph construction, c-print, felt tip marker 12.5 h × 12.5w × 4 d in (30 × 30 × 6...

Category

1980s Conceptual Art

Materials

Metal

Facade, Conceptual Lithograph by David Richard Smyth
Facade, Conceptual Lithograph by David Richard Smyth

Facade, Conceptual Lithograph by David Richard Smyth

Located in Long Island City, NY

David Richard Smyth, American (1943 - ) - Facade, Year: 1972, Medium: Lithograph, signed, dated and numbered in pencil, Edition: Bon a Tirer, Image Size: 36 x 26.5 inches, Size: ...

Category

1970s Conceptual Art

Materials

Lithograph

Russian Samizdat Art Conceptual Photo Sculpture Assemblage Gerlovin & Gerlovina
Russian Samizdat Art Conceptual Photo Sculpture Assemblage Gerlovin & Gerlovina

Russian Samizdat Art Conceptual Photo Sculpture Assemblage Gerlovin & Gerlovina

By Rimma Gerlovina & Valeriy Gerlovin

Located in Surfside, FL

Rimma Gerlovina and Valeriy Gerlovin Clock, 1987-94 Aluminum sculpture, mixed media and c-print photograph construction, c-print, felt tip marker 13 h × 13 w × 4 d in (30 × 30 × 6 c...

Category

1980s Conceptual Art

Materials

Metal

Katherine Jackson, Little Oil 19, 2020, Photograph on aluminum

Katherine Jackson, Little Oil 19, 2020, Photograph on aluminum

By Katherine Jackson

Located in Darien, CT

There are two Little Oil installations available with 6 sculptures each on top of LED light boxes. Little Oil 19 is a digital photographic print on aluminum for the flat files. Katherine Jackson has been working with glass and light together for many years, Recently, she's been making glass castings of vintage oil cans, and displaying them -- singly, in small groupings, or in vitrines -- on light boxes. So far she has created about 90, each one unique. The series is called Little Oil, alluding to Big Oil, and sometimes Small Oils, as in oil painting. But “oil” can mean many things. It has been a source of light (sometimes from unconscionable sources) since ancient times as well as a source of eternal light in many faith traditions. Set atop lightboxes, where each work glows from within, these pieces can simply seem like vessels of light itself. At times, they appear to me to transcend their relation to oil altogether, appearing anthropomorphic or creaturely, even biological. These days, I think of them as archeological artifacts, relics of a past, oil-based, civilization. Necropolis is a print of a painting inspired by a map of the necropolis where the terra cotta soldiers...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Glass, LED Light, Pigment

Isabelle Carbonell "The Land of Oz"  Iconic Wizard of Oz Set of  Four
Isabelle Carbonell "The Land of Oz"  Iconic Wizard of Oz Set of  Four

Isabelle Carbonell "The Land of Oz" Iconic Wizard of Oz Set of Four

Located in Detroit, MI

"The Land of Oz" is one of a set of four digital prints whose titles were inspired by the iconic film The Wizard of Oz starring Judy Garland. The other three are titled: Kansas, The ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Jeff, Becker, Privacy Policy animation, 2016, Other Medium
Jeff, Becker, Privacy Policy animation, 2016, Other Medium

Jeff, Becker, Privacy Policy animation, 2016, Other Medium

By Jeff Becker

Located in Darien, CT

Using his inkjet printer as a paintbrush, Jeff Becker creates watercolor-like imagery without Photoshop or filters. He refers to this process of dynamic chemical processes as The Slu...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Other Medium

Duke Humfrey's Library I, Oxford, England
Duke Humfrey's Library I, Oxford, England

Duke Humfrey's Library I, Oxford, England

By Reinhard Görner

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Duke Humfrey's Library I 54.2 x 50 inches ed. of 10 $6,000 65.1 x 60 inches ed. of 7 $9,000 75.9 x 70 inches ed. of 5 $11,000 signed and numbered on label, verso Paper is trimme...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

C Print, Lambda

Sala dei Fiumi I (Hall of Rivers), Ducal Palace of Mantua, Italy

Sala dei Fiumi I (Hall of Rivers), Ducal Palace of Mantua, Italy

By Reinhard Görner

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Embark on a visual journey into the heart of Italian architectural grandeur with Reinhard Görner's 2022 photograph, Sala dei Fiumi I. This breathtaking image captures the impressive "Hall of the Rivers" within the Ducal Palace of Mantua, a historic complex recognized as the sixth largest palace in Europe. Built between the 14th and the 17th century by the noble Gonzaga family, the Ducal Palace of Mantua serves as a testament to Italy's rich architectural heritage and royal history. The palace complex, featuring an impressive assortment of more than 500 rooms, corridors, galleries, inner courts, and extensive gardens, spans an area of approximately 34,000 m2. While the palace is widely recognized for Mantegna's frescos in the Camera degli Sposi (Wedding Room), the Sala dei Fiumi offers its unique allure. Created during the Habsburg rule in Mantua, this hall showcases distinctive wall paintings where the rivers of the Mantuan territory are anthropomorphized as giants. Reinhard Görner's photograph is more than a visual delight; it's a historical journey into Italy's cultural past. Ideal for art enthusiasts, history lovers, and those with a keen eye for architectural beauty, this piece promises to enhance any collection. Allow the grandeur of the Palazzo Ducale di Mantova and the majesty of the Sala dei Fiumi to resonate within your space with this stunning image. signed and numbered on label, verso Reinhard Görner records cultural and industrial heritage through his series of photographs depicting contemporary and historical architecture, landscapes, parks, and plants. Best known for his photographs of libraries and reading rooms from around the world—in works such as George Peabody Library II, Baltimore (2017) and Riggs Library I, Washington DC (2017)—Görner captures the atmosphere of absolute silence and concentration the spaces embody while also revealing their almost cathedral-like sense of grandeur. Görner’s images have a vivid sense of depth and dimension that convey an impression of intimacy, as in Isaac Newton, Cambridge (2017), or monumentality via his precise and skilful use of framing and perspective. Reinhard Görner, with his large format photographs orchestrates the monumentality of rooms. An active architecture photographer since 1985, is a master of perspectives and precise spatial compositions, and he thus considers classical sculpture, in all of its possible facets, a special challenge. "Görner’s photographs sometimes open the doors to another world and take the viewer with them on a journey through time. Here the palace is no longer a museum but both royal residence and a site steeped in history. The viewer does not have to share the halls with the masses of visitors; instead the images offer him exclusive impressions of the Galerie des Glaces (Hall of Mirrors) and the Galerie des Batailles (Hall of Battles) as even the king of France was probably never granted. The halls are empty of people, yet they seem to be able to unfurl their individual characters of their own accord. These places practically breathe history, and this aspect is also part of the essence captured in the photographs. King Wilhelm of Prussia was named German Emperor Wilhelm I in the Hall of Mirrors after France was defeated in 1870–1871 in the Franco-German War. The Treaty of Versailles following World War I was also signed there in 1919. In this sense, the architectural photographs of Versailles...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

C Print, Lambda

Jo Yarrington, Ghost Girls, Camel Hair Brush Display, 2018, Found Objects, Metal
Jo Yarrington, Ghost Girls, Camel Hair Brush Display, 2018, Found Objects, Metal

Jo Yarrington, Ghost Girls, Camel Hair Brush Display, 2018, Found Objects, Metal

By Jo Yarrington

Located in Darien, CT

Radioluminescence is the phenomenon by which light is produced in a material by bombardment with ionizing radiation and can be used as a low-level light source for night illumination of instruments or signage or other applications where light must be produced for long periods without external energy sources. Radioluminescent paint used to be used for clock hands and instrument dials...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Metal

Large blue and black painting, landscape cartography, clouds and mountains
Large blue and black painting, landscape cartography, clouds and mountains

Large blue and black painting, landscape cartography, clouds and mountains

By TUSET

Located in Carballo, ES

Blue and Black Post - Minimal Painting is an original artwork realized by TUSET in 2017. The work is unframed but has a rigid support on the back. The title of this works is "From...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Ink, Handmade Paper

Paintbrushes III
Paintbrushes III

Paintbrushes III

By Arman

Located in Long Island City, NY

Artist: Arman, French/American (1929 - 2005) Title: Paintbrushes III Year: 1991 Medium: Paintbrushes and Oil Paint in Epoxy Resin Sculpture, Signature and number inscribed Edition: 2...

Category

1990s Conceptual Art

Materials

Epoxy Resin, Oil

Giving Last Respect 2 - 21st Century Contemporary, Celebration of Life and Death
Giving Last Respect 2 - 21st Century Contemporary, Celebration of Life and Death

Giving Last Respect 2 - 21st Century Contemporary, Celebration of Life and Death

By Michael Adetula

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

The celebration of life and death in Yoruba land is deeply connected to the use of Aso Oke, a traditional and cultural wear of the Yorubas. The ones used in Ondo to celebrate the liv...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Charcoal, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Remarkable Day 1 -21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Couple Marriage Culture
Remarkable Day 1 -21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Couple Marriage Culture

Remarkable Day 1 -21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Couple Marriage Culture

By Michael Adetula

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist Mic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Charcoal, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Flora 27, 2015 - Goldenrod Flower Yarrow Achillea in Ice Color Print Photograph

Flora 27, 2015 - Goldenrod Flower Yarrow Achillea in Ice Color Print Photograph

By Marisa Culatto

Located in Brighton, GB

Flora 27, 2015 - Goldenrod Flower Yarrow Achillea in Ice Color Print Photograph Flora 27 is a Giclée print on Ultra Bright Hahnemuehle paper, available in this size only from a Limi...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Photographic Paper, Color, Giclée

Les Indestinés, Charcoal, Black & White Drawing, Wave, Sea
Les Indestinés, Charcoal, Black & White Drawing, Wave, Sea

Les Indestinés, Charcoal, Black & White Drawing, Wave, Sea

By Fabien Granet

Located in AIX-EN-PROVENCE, FR

Work : Original Drawing, Handmade Artwork, Unique Work. Medium : Charcoal and Graphite on Archival Watercolour paper 300Gsm. Artist : Fabien Granet Subject : Les Indestinés (series ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Charcoal, Archival Paper, Graphite

Conceptual art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Conceptual 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 Reinhard Görner, Kojun, Jose Sierra, and xulong zhang. Frequently made by artists working with Paper, and 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 Conceptual art, so small editions measuring 1 inches across are also available. Prices for art made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $45 and tops out at $500,000, while the average work sells for $2,465.