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
2010s Contemporary Art
Marble
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Resin, Vinyl
2010s Contemporary Art
Etching
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil, Board
2010s Contemporary Art
Wood, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Digital Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Photographic Paper, C Print, Digital, Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Giclée
1970s Contemporary Art
Offset
1980s Contemporary Art
Photographic Film, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Black and White, ...
Artist Comments
Afternoon light pours over a rural landscape, illuminating a house and surrounding greenery. Cool shade spreads across the lawn, adding depth to the scene and...
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Digital Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil
1990s Contemporary Art
Lithograph
2010s Contemporary Art
Mixed Media, Oil, Resin
2010s Contemporary Art
Encaustic, Archival Paper, Monotype
2010s Contemporary Art
Steel
2010s Contemporary Art
Bronze
2010s Contemporary Art
Giclée
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Digital Pigment
1970s Contemporary Art
Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Color, Archival Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Bronze
Early 2000s Contemporary Art
Woodcut
1990s Contemporary Art
Stone, Bronze
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Sumi Ink, Watercolor, Mulberry Paper
Early 2000s Contemporary Art
C Print
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil, Canvas
Early 2000s Contemporary Art
Photographic Paper
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil Crayon, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Tempera, Panel
2010s Contemporary Art
Paste, Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Contemporary Art
Bronze
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Bronze
1970s Contemporary Art
Photographic Paper
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil
1970s Contemporary Art
Screen
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Paper, Archival Pigment, Digital Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Paper, Giclée
2010s Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Oil, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Contemporary Art
Marble
2010s Contemporary Art
Digital Pigment
2010s Contemporary Art
Paper, Oil
1980s Contemporary Art
Lithograph
Romare BeardenTHE LAMP Signed Lithograph Black Mother and Child Reading Brown vs. Board of Ed., 1984
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Art
Bronze
2010s Contemporary Art
Photographic Paper, Archival Paper
2010s Contemporary Art
Archival Pigment





