Contemporary Art
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.
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Mixed Media
2010s Contemporary Art
Paper, Woodcut
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Resin, Vinyl
Early 2000s Contemporary Art
Archival Paper
2010s Contemporary Art
Bronze, Stainless Steel
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Gouache, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Color
2010s Contemporary Art
Lenticular
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Pigment
1970s Contemporary Art
Handmade Paper, Etching, Aquatint
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Pigment, Color
1990s Contemporary Art
Oil, Board
2010s Contemporary Art
Digital Pigment
1980s Contemporary Art
Photographic Paper
1990s Contemporary Art
Oil
1980s Contemporary Art
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Bronze
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Tempera, Archival Paper, Pencil
2010s Contemporary Art
Paper, Archival Paper, Rag Paper, Monotype, Photogram
2010s Contemporary Art
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Acrylic, Linen
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Steel
2010s Contemporary Art
Offset
2010s Contemporary Art
Metal
2010s Contemporary Art
Paper, Acrylic
1990s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Paint, Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Textile, Linen, Yarn, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Bronze
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Photographic Paper
2010s Contemporary Art
Mirror
2010s Contemporary Art
Paper, Oil Pastel, Ink, Pen, Pencil, Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Mixed Media, Archival Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil Pastel, Archival Ink, Acrylic, Gouache, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Platinum
1980s Contemporary Art
Paper, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Paper, Washi Paper
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Giclée
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
1990s Contemporary Art
Bronze
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid, Photographic Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Giclée
Artist Comments
A man in a suit holds a woman as she leans back. The limited palette helps the viewer to take in the scene quickly and emotionally. Her teal dress creates a nea...
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Giclée, Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Acrylic, Graphite, Charcoal
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid, Photographic Paper
2010s Contemporary Art
Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Acrylic





