Marilyn By Bruno Bernard
1960s Contemporary Photography
Archival Pigment
1940s Figurative Photography
Silver Gelatin
People Also Browsed
1980s Pop Art Black and White Photography
Silver Gelatin
1880s Victorian Portrait Paintings
Oil, Wood Panel
Early 2000s American Hollywood Regency Books
Paper
Mid-20th Century Photorealist Black and White Photography
Photographic Paper
Early 19th Century Victorian Landscape Paintings
Oil
20th Century Unknown Hollywood Regency Screens and Room Dividers
Brass
19th Century Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Mid-20th Century Post-War Black and White Photography
Silver Gelatin
1950s Color Photography
Archival Pigment
2010s American Photography
Paper
Vintage 1960s Photography
Paper
1950s Contemporary Portrait Photography
Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin
1960s Portrait Photography
Paper
Late 20th Century Italian Books
Acrylic, Paper
1940s Modern Portrait Photography
Photographic Paper
20th Century Other Art Style Nude Photography
Silver Gelatin
Recent Sales
Mid-20th Century Contemporary Portrait Photography
Silver Gelatin
Mid-20th Century Contemporary Portrait Prints
Photographic Paper
Mid-20th Century Contemporary Portrait Prints
Silver Gelatin
Mid-20th Century Contemporary Portrait Photography
Photographic Paper
A Close Look at 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.