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Contemporary Art

CONTEMPORARY STYLE

Used to refer to a time rather than an aesthetic, Contemporary art generally describes pieces created after 1970 or being made by living artists anywhere in the world. This immediacy means it encompasses art responding to the present moment through diverse subjects, media and themes. Contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, performance, digital art, video and more frequently includes work that is attempting to reshape current ideas about what art can be, from Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s use of candy to memorialize a lover he lost to AIDS-related complications to Jenny Holzer’s ongoing “Truisms,” a Conceptual series that sees provocative messages printed on billboards, T-shirts, benches and other public places that exist outside of formal exhibitions and the conventional “white cube” of galleries.

Contemporary art has been pushing the boundaries of creative expression for years. Its disruption of the traditional concepts of art are often aiming to engage viewers in complex questions about identity, society and culture. In the latter part of the 20th century, contemporary movements included Land art, in which artists like Robert Smithson and Michael Heizer create large-scale, site-specific sculptures, installations and other works in soil and bodies of water; Sound art, with artists such as Christian Marclay and Susan Philipsz centering art on sonic experiences; and New Media art, in which mass media and digital culture inform the work of artists such as Nam June Paik and Rafaël Rozendaal.

The first decades of the 21st century have seen the growth of Contemporary African art, the revival of figurative painting, the emergence of street art and the rise of NFTs, unique digital artworks that are powered by blockchain technology.

Major Contemporary artists practicing now include Ai Weiwei, Cecily Brown, David Hockney, Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami and Kara Walker.

Find a collection of Contemporary prints, photography, paintings, sculptures and other art on 1stDibs.

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Style: Contemporary
Marfa ( Texas ) - large format photograph of dramatic clouds over endless fields
Marfa ( Texas ) - large format photograph of dramatic clouds over endless fields

Marfa ( Texas ) - large format photograph of dramatic clouds over endless fields

By Frank Schott

Located in San Francisco, CA

Marfa ( Texas ) by Frank Schott country road view in West Texas, from a series of impressions captured in Marfa, Texas, longtime residence of minimalist artist Donald Judd 48 x 72 i...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Giclée

Quiet Companion No. 1
Quiet Companion No. 1

Quiet Companion No. 1

Located in Zofingen, AG

Series: Quiet Companions A quiet, grounded image of a dog composed of soft color segments in a restrained neutral palette. The warm ivory background and muted antique gold create a s...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Acrylic, Canvas

Five Stamps in the Lake, Minimalist Black and White Photograph – Limited Edition
Five Stamps in the Lake, Minimalist Black and White Photograph – Limited Edition

Five Stamps in the Lake, Minimalist Black and White Photograph – Limited Edition

By Gerald Berghammer

Located in Vienna, Vienna

Archival pigment ink print, produced in a limited edition of 7 // Gallery ID: 21200 Fine art prints are produced to order on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta. Each print is stamped on the...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Proximity 2 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Modern, Africa

Proximity 2 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Modern, Africa

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

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

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Acrylic

Politeness
Politeness

Politeness

By Damien Hirst

Located in Manchester, GB

By Damien Hirst 2021 Hand signed by the artist on reverse Laminated giclee print on aluminium composite panel 120 x 96 cm Edition of 1549 From the series 'The Virtues'

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Metal

Muscle Boy Photograph, Limited Edition 11/15, Harlem, New York City 1963, Signed
Muscle Boy Photograph, Limited Edition 11/15, Harlem, New York City 1963, Signed

Muscle Boy Photograph, Limited Edition 11/15, Harlem, New York City 1963, Signed

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

Muscle Boy is an iconic image by Leonard Freed who was a pioneer in documentary photography. In this photo a boy flexes his muscles for the camera perhaps making a statement about...

Category

1960s Contemporary Art

Materials

Photographic Film, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Digital, Archival Pigme...

Drifting Between Light and Love - Contemporary Pool House Oil Painting
Drifting Between Light and Love - Contemporary Pool House Oil Painting

Drifting Between Light and Love - Contemporary Pool House Oil Painting

Located in DE

Lilly Muth's architectural paintings transport viewers on a visual journey to a different world, where imagination knows no bounds and the boundaries between reality and fantasy blur...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Waiting II (Sidewinder) - Polaroid, Contemporary, Nude, 21st Century

Waiting II (Sidewinder) - Polaroid, Contemporary, Nude, 21st Century

By Stefanie Schneider

Located in Morongo Valley, CA

'Waiting II' (Sidewinder) - 2004 80x80cm, Edition of 5, analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist, based on the Polaroid, Certificate and Signature label. artist Inventory # 303...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Art

Materials

Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid

Attracted by the Sea, Kannesteinen, Norway - Minimalist Black and White Seascape
Attracted by the Sea, Kannesteinen, Norway - Minimalist Black and White Seascape

Attracted by the Sea, Kannesteinen, Norway - Minimalist Black and White Seascape

By Gerald Berghammer

Located in Vienna, Vienna

Archival pigment ink print, produced in a limited edition of 9 // Gallery ID: xxxx Fine art prints are produced to order on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta. Each print is stamped on the ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Three Pink Lotus Flowers, Mekong Delta, Vietnam — Large-Scale Panorama Photo
Three Pink Lotus Flowers, Mekong Delta, Vietnam — Large-Scale Panorama Photo

Three Pink Lotus Flowers, Mekong Delta, Vietnam — Large-Scale Panorama Photo

By Gerald Berghammer

Located in Vienna, Vienna

Archival pigment ink print, produced in a limited edition of 7 // Gallery ID: 21378 Fine art prints are produced to order on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta. Each print is stamped on the...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Enjoying The Moment
Enjoying The Moment

Enjoying The Moment

Located in Zofingen, AG

The painting "Enjoying The Moment" serves as a bright visual reminder of the necessity to live mindfully and appreciate every moment. In this work, a woman is depicted completely abs...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Afrocentric Radiance
Afrocentric Radiance

Afrocentric Radiance

By Bakare Abubakri-sideeq Babatunde

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

In a vibrant celebration of African heritage and beauty, our protagonist, a stunning black African woman, graces the scene with her majestic presence. Crowned with a voluminous afro ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Fabric, Canvas, Oil, Mixed Media

Small Rock Island with Trees
Small Rock Island with Trees

Small Rock Island with Trees

By Gerald Berghammer

Located in Vienna, Vienna

Gerald Berghammer - Color Photography. A small rocky island with tall pine trees surrounded by a calm lake under a cloudy sky and mountains behind. Archival pigment ink print as par...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Woman Protestor, 1960s, Washington, Signed Gelatin Silver Photograph, 14x11
Woman Protestor, 1960s, Washington, Signed Gelatin Silver Photograph, 14x11

Woman Protestor, 1960s, Washington, Signed Gelatin Silver Photograph, 14x11

By Leonard Freed

Located in New york, NY

American photographer Leonard Freed enjoyed documentary storytelling and as a "concerned photographer" his photography demonstrated humanitarian concerns. Woman Protestor, March on Washington, 1963 by Leonard Freed, is a 14" x 11" gelatin silver photograph, signed and stamped on verso (back of photo) by the estate, Brigitte Freed (wife of the photographer). The photo is in Leonard Freed's book “This Is the Day: The March on Washington'' (p. 50). The photographer travelled to New York, Washington, D.C., and throughout the South, capturing the daily lives of African-Americans. Documenting the 1960s Civil Rights Movement from the East Coast to the Deep South, Freed’s photo essay culminated in the book Black in White America, which contributed to Freed's becoming a well-known documentary photographer of 20th Century America. After Freed’s death in 2006 his widow, Brigitte Freed was inspired to compile a book on the March on Washington from her late husband’s archive because she heard then-Senator former President Barack Obama remark to an audience of civil rights activists, “I stand here because you walked.” The March on Washington series is a powerful visual testimony, capturing protests that culminated in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream'' speech, delivered at the base of the Lincoln Memorial. Provenance: Freed estate *** Artist’s Bio: Leonard Freed (1929-2006) was an American photographer from Brooklyn, New York. His "Black in White America" series made him known as a documentarian, a social documentary photographer. Freed worked as a freelance photographer from 1961 onwards and as a Magnum photographer Freed traveled widely abroad and, in the US, photographing African Americans (1964-65), events in Israel (1967-68, 1973), and the New York City police department (1972-79). Freed's coverage of the American civil rights...

Category

1960s Contemporary Art

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Scattered - acrylic and oil on canvas
Scattered - acrylic and oil on canvas

Scattered - acrylic and oil on canvas

By Wencke Uhl

Located in West Hollywood, CA

Wencke Uhl is a contemporary figurative paintress living and working in Germany. She draws inspiration from human beauty and the female form. As a teenager Uhl wanted to become a fas...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

"Erik" Contemporary Abstract Blue Toned Western Cowboy Portrait Painting
"Erik" Contemporary Abstract Blue Toned Western Cowboy Portrait Painting

"Erik" Contemporary Abstract Blue Toned Western Cowboy Portrait Painting

Located in Houston, TX

Colorful abstract cowboy portrait painting by contemporary artist Ian Francis. The work features a western inspired figure with a shadowed face dressed in a blue shirt and cowboy hat...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Jubilee, Contemporary Abstract Painting
Jubilee, Contemporary Abstract Painting

Jubilee, Contemporary Abstract Painting

Located in Philadelphia, PA

This piece is an abstract acrylic painting created on a wood panel. It features a bold, energetic composition built from large, block-like shapes and expressive strokes of saturated ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Acrylic, Wood Panel

My Rampage is Over (Artist Proof)
My Rampage is Over (Artist Proof)

My Rampage is Over (Artist Proof)

By David Shrigley

Located in Manchester, GB

David Shrigley, My Rampage is Over, 2019 21 Colour Screenprint with Varnish Overlay on Somerset Satin Tub Sized 410gsm Paper 29 1/2 × 22 in (76 × 56 cm) Edition of 125 / This bein...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Screen

Pavillon de Flore, Louvre Paris – Monochrome Limited Edition Fine Art Photograph
Pavillon de Flore, Louvre Paris – Monochrome Limited Edition Fine Art Photograph

Pavillon de Flore, Louvre Paris – Monochrome Limited Edition Fine Art Photograph

By Gerald Berghammer

Located in Vienna, Vienna

Archival pigment ink print, produced in a limited edition of 9 // Gallery ID: 11851 Fine art prints are produced to order on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta. Each print is stamped on the...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Monte Amiata I, Milan - Color Blocking Architecture Photograph
Monte Amiata I, Milan - Color Blocking Architecture Photograph

Monte Amiata I, Milan - Color Blocking Architecture Photograph

By Richard Heeps

Located in Cambridge, GB

'Monte Amiata I', photographed in February 2020 for his ongoing series 'A Short History of Milan'. There is a reoccurring linear, structural theme throughout the series, capturing t...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Silver Gelatin

Dreamers - Original Feminine Figurative Abstract Acrylic Painting on Canvas
Dreamers - Original Feminine Figurative Abstract Acrylic Painting on Canvas

Dreamers - Original Feminine Figurative Abstract Acrylic Painting on Canvas

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Rooted in introspection and emotional nuance, Xenia Gray’s figurative mixed media works capture the quiet tension between solitude and connection. Her paintings often depict the huma...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

"Pinky" Small Pac-Man Ghost Glass Sculpture
"Pinky" Small Pac-Man Ghost Glass Sculpture

"Pinky" Small Pac-Man Ghost Glass Sculpture

By Dylan Martinez

Located in East Quogue, NY

"Pinky" - Small Glass Pac-Man Ghost Sculpture by Dylan Martinez. Size: 5" h x 4.5" w. Signed on the base by the artist. Each sculpture is unique. These whimsical Pac-Man Ghost scu...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Blown Glass

Thirteen - immersive dimensional perceptual ambient color light wall sculpture
Thirteen - immersive dimensional perceptual ambient color light wall sculpture

Thirteen - immersive dimensional perceptual ambient color light wall sculpture

By Raymond Graber

Located in San Francisco, CA

Raymond Graber's celestial light sculptures transform the sense of perception, challenging the human eye’s sense for scale and time with a transcendenta...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Fiberglass, Plaster, Plywood, LED Light, Neon Light

Corner Desk, Oil Painting
Corner Desk, Oil Painting

Corner Desk, Oil Painting

By David Thelen

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
A small desk and chair rest against a blue grey wall. Sunlight filters through a tall window, casting warm light across the room. This modern painting finds mov...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Oil

Hummingbird (260306)

Hummingbird (260306)

Located in Atlanta, GA

Gwen Wong's work is both painterly and allegorical, caught somewhere in the middle between the representational painter and the narrator. "I am inspired by the idea of a childhood re...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Gold Leaf

North Shore Motel Steps, Salton Sea, California - Architectural color photo
North Shore Motel Steps, Salton Sea, California - Architectural color photo

North Shore Motel Steps, Salton Sea, California - Architectural color photo

By Richard Heeps

Located in Cambridge, GB

North Shore Motel Steps, mid-century architecture photography captured by Richard Heeps as part of his Salton Sea series. This artwork is a limited edition of 25 gloss photographic ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art

Materials

Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Silver Gelatin

Trois Plantes, by Francois Houtin
Trois Plantes, by Francois Houtin

Trois Plantes, by Francois Houtin

By François Houtin

Located in Palm Springs, CA

In Trois Plants, François Houtin envisions a fantastical botanical specimen rising like an ornate tower of intertwined foliage and blossoms. Each element—stem, leaf, and tendril—is r...

Category

1970s Contemporary Art

Materials

Etching

Sensory Experience original large nude art Paula Craioveanu 39x27.5in in Florida
Sensory Experience original large nude art Paula Craioveanu 39x27.5in in Florida

Sensory Experience original large nude art Paula Craioveanu 39x27.5in in Florida

By Paula Craioveanu

Located in Forest Hills, NY

"Sensory Experience", pencil and ultramarine tempera on paper, inspired by Matisse. Part of Nude in Interior series. Large drawing. Shipped rolled in a tube, from Florida, US. This particular piece is in my studio in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Other pieces are in my other studios in Europe, or in NY. Artist Statement "I started by painting interiors, being interested in space and perspective through my studies. These scenes evolved, when I added the human figure. I focused more on the human figure and its relation to the background. The human figure is more present than ever in my paintings now. As a woman artist I’ve been preoccupied with the female form and its imagery. One of my goals was to capture the solitary moments and the nude’s relation to the surrounding space. My interest turned from depicting the space to rendering the atmosphere and the scene as a whole, the feeling a woman adds to the environment: warmth, desire, joy, a feeling of power and control, or the opposite – sadness, despair. Here is a collection of figurative paintings, exploring the nudes in interior spaces, seeing the nudes from my perspective, as a woman artist, considering the physical and spiritual realities of a woman’s body, in a new level of intimacy. My paintings are the opposite of objectifying a woman’s or a man’s anatomy. Painted works, featuring female nudes and a also men nudes...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Pencil, Paper, Tempera

Breathe Slowly/17
Breathe Slowly/17

Breathe Slowly/17

Located in Zofingen, AG

“Breathe Slowly/17” - This work is part of a series that encourages the observer to reflect and slow down in the fast pace of modern life. The lightness and spaciousness of the lands...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Acrylic

Red Sea Sunset, Giclée Print Diptych, Pink and Purple Calm Cave Waters, Serene
Red Sea Sunset, Giclée Print Diptych, Pink and Purple Calm Cave Waters, Serene

Red Sea Sunset, Giclée Print Diptych, Pink and Purple Calm Cave Waters, Serene

By Ryan Rivadeneyra

Located in Barcelona, ES

Cyd Fontaine (Lausanne, 1992) is a contemporary artist renowned for her captivating use of dreamy atmospheric gradients, which has helped her carve a distinctive niche in the world o...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Photographic Film, Archival Ink, Photographic Paper, C Print, Digital, G...

Here is the Sea, by Jos Sances
Here is the Sea, by Jos Sances

Here is the Sea, by Jos Sances

Located in Palm Springs, CA

One print from Jos Sances cycle concerning Moby Dick. A vast sperm whale drifts below the surface, scarred by harpoons, while above floats a lone survivor on a coffin raft—a haunting...

Category

2010s Contemporary Art

Materials

Screen

Contemporary art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Contemporary 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 Stefanie Schneider, Tyler Shields, Kirsten Thys van den Audenaerde, and Richard Heeps. Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Paper and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Contemporary art, so small editions measuring 0.02 inches across are also available.