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Forming currents of abstract art and its most important artists

Joachim Rodriguez y Romero
Joachim Rodriguez y Romero
Tue., May 20, 2025, 20:06 CEST

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In our article "Abstract Art - everything about the non -opposite art movement" we examined abstract art as a concept, influential art direction and dealing with it. We have learned that "objectless art" or "non -object art" is a collective drawing for artificial movements of the 20th century that appeared after 1900.

The most important common denominator in abstract works is the departure of nature and real objects as a motive template and the break with the academically soaked traditional principles of classical realism.

Forming currents of abstract art and its most important artists
Colorful abstract artwork
by Steve Johnson @steve_j, via Unsplash.com

Summarized in a short sentence: The principles of abstract artists are based on the rejection of any representation. Your awareness and creative drive should be driven purely from aesthetics for your own sake.

The roots of the abstraction in the case of pictorial design even go back to ancient Greece, where Plato already expressed the urge to non-objective design using geometric shapes and patterns.

  • Abstract painting in the Stone Age
  • Classical realism until the late 19th century
    • Significant representatives of romance with influence on abstract art:
  • Trend towards abstraction in impressionism
    • Significant representatives of (post-) impressionism with influence on abstract art:
  • Art Nouveau movement / Art Nouveau
  • About German Expressionism to the cornerstone of painting
    • Fauvism
  • Cubism and the dissolution of image depth and perspective
    • Significant representatives of cubism with influence on abstract art:
    • Orphism
    • The previousism
    • Futurism
    • Tubism
  • With Russian suprematism to new geometric shapes
    • Constructivism & rayonism
  • The influences of de Stijl
    • Neo-Plasticism & Elementarism
  • Surrealism & organic abstraction
  • Less geometry, more color - abstract expressionism
    • Action painting, color field painting & Co.
  • Informal art, tachism and the group Cobra
  • Optical art through optical deception-op art was born
  • The last chapter for the time being - the postmodernity
    • Other important representatives of minimalism:
    • Neo-Expressionism as the latest iteration level
  • Contemporary abstract artists
  • And what comes afterwards?
  • Abstract art from our online gallery

Of course, this type of creative arts have not remained unchangeable in its original form, but went through a natural evolution and development. This can be illuminated like the ramifications on an old tree with a proud trunk and deep -reaching root work.

Numerous sub -forms, modifications, parallel movements and counter -trends have been created over the decades and centuries, all of which are related to each other and have often fertilized each other.

Therefore, we would like to make a little journey through time with you through the most important and most formative phases of abstract, concrete and modern art . Wherever possible, we strive to highlight significant nodes, links and causal relationships so that you can develop a coherent picture.

If you were missing one or the other piece of the puzzle on our last post on this topic, you may find it here.

Let's start at the very beginning ...

Abstract painting in the Stone Age

There is a consensus among art historians that abstract art was used about 70,000 years ago in the form of prehistoric engravings.

Parietal art in the El Castillo, Cantabria, Spain. Paläolithic
Parietal art in the El Castillo, Cantabria, Spain. Young Paleolithic
Image Source: Gobierno de Cantabria, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

This is demonstrated, for example, two boulders engraved with abstract geometric patterns, which were found in the Blombos cave in South Africa. Then there were tens of thousands of years later the abstract reddish dots and hand stencils, which in the paintings of the El Castillo cave from the years 39,000–34,000 BC. Were discovered.

Abstract symbols were also the prevailing form of paleolithic cave art and were found about twice as often during excavations as figurative paintings.

Classical realism until the late 19th century

Almost up to the foothills of the 19th century, the principles and the approach of artists in painting and sculpture were strongly shaped by academic standards and teachings.

A departure from the traditional guiding model of classical realism was frowned upon and was sanctioned with non -observance. The large art academies of Europe were committed to the sovereignty of interpretation and chanted that it was the top duty of art to provide a recognizable scene or a recognizable object.

Significant representatives of romance with influence on abstract art:

  • Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851): English painter, watercolorist and draftsman. Probably the most important of England in the era of romance. His avant -garde Expressionism developed for abstraction.
Keelmen Billowing in Coals at Night by William Turner
Keelmen Billowing in Coals At Night by William Turner
Multiple Artists [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

Trend towards abstraction in impressionism

In the last quarter of the 19th century, the wind gradually turned and the conservative corset showed cracks. impressionistic art showed that the strict academic style of naturalistic painting is no longer the only authentic way of creating significant art.

The technology palette of the Impressionists was usually not very naturalistic, although art of impressionism was generally firmly and clearly derived from the real world. The inner impressionistic currents of neo -impressionist pointillism and post -importism impressively draw attention to the power of color.

If you look at the use of bright yellow in works by Vincent van Gogh , it almost seems as if the artist captivates the light himself.

Flowering orchard (1888) by Vincent van Gogh
Flowering orchard (1888) by Vincent van Gogh

If you look Claude Monet's last work of his water lilies, it can be clearly seen that even within the impressionist era there was an increasing trend towards abstract.

Claude Monet - water lilies (1915)
Claude Monet - water lilies (1915)

Later, in the first decades of the 20th century, other techniques - such as the stylistic use of color, should fuel the task of a three -dimensional representation and the use of simple geometric forms - the pursuit of abstraction and their artists give new tools.

Significant representatives of (post-) impressionism with influence on abstract art:

  • James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)-was a painter and print graphic artist from the United States. He was particularly known for his half-abstract color painting.
  • Claude Monet - significant French painter, moved between naturalism and abstraction in his pictures after 1890
  • Vincent van Gogh - Dutch painter and draftsman; He is considered one of the founders of modern painting.
  • Paul Gauguin - influential French painter. His post -impressionist work strongly influenced the Nabis and symbolism; He was a co -founder of synthism and became a pioneer of Expressionism .
  • Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec -French painter and graphic artist of post-impressionism
  • Paul Cézanne (1839-1906)-French painter, whose work is assigned to different styles. He always strived for a renewal of traditional design methods based on impressionistic principles. His still lifes and landscapes are considered important starting points for abstraction.
  • Paul Serusier (1864-1927)-French painter of post-impressionism. Founder of the symbolic group of artists Nabis and strongly influenced by Gauguin.

Art Nouveau movement / Art Nouveau

The emergence of abstract art was also influenced by the Art Nouveau movement (around 1890-1914). Flow to n parting to the Art Nouveau are the reform style (after the reform movement) and the second style (after the Viennese section).

The Art Nouveau expression was attributed by an illustrated cultural magazine founded by Georg Hirth at the end of 1895 in Munich, which was called "Jugend". This art movement is to be understood as a counter -reaction in particular young artists and artisans on the backwards historicism. The industrialization of the early 20th century, which is understood as soulless, should also be criticized.

However, it was the French expression Art Nouveau that prevailed internationally. This went back to the La Maison de L'Art Nouveau gallery, which the Hamburg art dealer Siegfried Bing opened in Paris at the end of the 19th century.

Typical features of Art Nouveau are long, curved lines that take the organic forms of plants as a model, but also flat-linear geometric ornaments with a tendency towards asymmetrical.

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The most important representative of the Art Nouveau movement is the Viennese gold boy Gustav Klimt .

Gustav Klimt - Italian garden landscape (1913)
Gustav Klimt - Italian garden landscape (1913)
In "The Girls" from the Art Nouveau representative Gustav Klimt, strong symbolic tendencies can be seen
In “The Girls” from the Art Nouveau representative Gustav Klimt, strong symbolic tendencies can be seen
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About German Expressionism to the cornerstone of painting

The use of color and shape was of great importance for the development of abstract art. Impressionism paved the way for stronger use of color as a stylistic device, but only German Expressionism made it a cornerstone that could no longer be removed.

Wassily Kandinsky's book "About the Spiritual in Art" (1911) became the basic work of abstract painting. Kandinsky "suffered" synesthesia, which explains its unusual sensitivity to colors. He not only saw the colors, but also heard them (perception with two senses). He lived, so to speak, a combination of visual art and music .

No wonder that the emotional effect of shape, line and, above all, color in painting was so overly fascinated and should shape his entire oeuvre.

Like many other abstract artists, Kandinsky believed that music embodied abstract art in the purest sense, with their ability to be expressive without portraying the real world. Kandinsky would describe his works as "compositions".

At the same time, however, he repeatedly warned that the desire to abstraction should not be carried out for mere decoration - without endangering the seriousness of art.

Abstract painting is the most difficult of all arts. It requires that you can draw well that you have a pronounced sense of composition and colors and that you are a real poet. The latter is essential. "

Kandinsky was cited.

Wassily Kandinsky: abstract picture "yellow - red - blue" (1925)
Wassily Kandinsky: abstract picture "yellow - red - blue" (1925)
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Abstract painting "Composition VIII" (1923) by Wassily Kandinsky, limited reproduction, Giclée on canvas
Abstract painting "Composition VIII" (1923) by Wassily Kandinsky, limited reproduction, Giclée on canvas
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Abstract picture "Heavy Red" (1924) by Wassily Kandinsky, Giclée on canvas

Abstract picture "Heavy Red" (1924) by Wassily Kandinsky, Giclée on canvas
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German Expressionism is characterized by its saturated color palette and the coloring of the color to human emotions. In general, experimenting with colors and causing emotions was a main interest of abstract artists.

Most German Expressionists, such as Ernst Kirchner, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Max Ernst, Alexei Jawlensky, Oskar Kokoschka, Franz Marc, August Macke and Max Beckmann were not abstract painters in the narrower sense.

Her lively palette - together with Kandinsky's theoretical writings - alarmed and encouraged other artists with a rather abstract tendency to pursue them with full force.

August - Macke Zoological Garden I. 1912
August Macke - Zoological Garden I. 1912

It is believed that artists like Piet Mondrian, Wassily Kandinsky or Kasimir Malewitsch have launched the abstract art significantly. However, some of the earliest known works come from the groundbreaking artist Hilma AF Klint . At first she created traditional figurative work, but her radical paintings were created from her interest in spiritualism.

Spiritualism was an extremely popular movement in artistic and literary circles at that time, which was convinced that communication with the ghosts of the deceased was possible. Together with a group of four other women, who later became known as "the five" , Klint carried out Ségases and meditated. In this way, she was convinced that a spirit called Amaliel had given her the order to create paintings to decorate a temple.

The artist reported that Amaliel headed her hand and worked with immense devotion, so that she created a total of 193 paintings for this project until 1915. Since she was aware of the radicality of her works, Klint wrapped her in secrecy and determined that she should only be made public 20 years after her death.

Despite this regulation, her work only received attention in 1986 and is now finally appropriately recognized: The Klint exhibition in 2019 in the Guggenheim Museum in New York was the most frequently visited exhibition in the history of the house.

The ten largest, No. 7, adulthood, group IV, 1907 by Hilma AF Klint
The ten largest, No. 7, adulthood, group IV, 1907 by Hilma AF Klint
Artwork as reproduction
Buddha's point of view in earthly life, No. 3a by Hilma AF Klint
Buddha's point of view in earthly life, No. 3a by Hilma AF Klint
Artwork as reproduction

Fauvism

The parallel of Parisian avant-garde style of Fauvism (1905-08) underlined the effect of the color only marginally-for example with work like "Red Studio" (1911, Moma, NY) by Henri Matisse .

Here, too, the rejection of the three -dimensional perspective can be found as a decisive characteristic. Fauvism shows objects with intensive, arbitrary color.

Henri Matisse was probably the most famous fauvist and works like his "The Green Stripe" (1905) are still listed as a prime example of the characteristic style of this art movement. The work is a portrait of his wife with green and yellow skin on a multicolored background. Famous Orphism painters are Robert Delaunay , whose "Simultaneous Windows on the City" (1912) and "The First Disk" (1912-1913) consist of several patches or segments of different colors. Georgia O'keeffe is known for her colorful, tightly cut abstract flower pictures.

In addition to Matisse, Marlow Moss an artist who was clearly in line with the abstraction during this time. The critic Charles Darwent comments in the Guardian and describes them as the "loyal supporter" by Mondrian. Although some consider her as a imitator of the father of neoplasticism, one could also say that the influence was mutually. Her work from the time after the discovery of Mondrian showed his influence, but it was Moss who for the first time integrated double lines into her rastery works in 1931.

A year later, Mondrian followed this approach and created "composition with double line and yellow" . In the history of the abstract art largely, Moss is rightly experiencing a kind of revival in recent years.

Cubism and the dissolution of image depth and perspective

The birth of Cubism (1908-14) can be seen as a direct reaction to the decorative beauty and aesthetics of Impressionism. Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) and Georges Braque (1882-1963) developed this new style in this awareness in several steps.

Picasso's semi-abstract work "Les demoiselles d'Avignon" from 1907 (now in the MoMA, NY) was still part of the first phase of the prototype of Cubism.

Les demoiselles d'Avignon by Pablo Picasso
Les demoiselles d'Avignon by Pablo Picasso
Dario Mastromattei [CC BY-SA], via Wikimedia Commons

This was followed by analytical cubism (see "Act with" Akt with Stair Leaving No. 2 " from 1912 by Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968)).

The final phase of synthetic cubism was then significantly more collage -oriented. Her basic concept was based on continuing to develop from the nicely, but trivial art of impressionism into a more intellectual art form. The representatives of Cubism primarily were concerned with researching new methods to represent reality.

Characteristic of Cubist works was the dissolution of the academic method of representing reality by using a linear perspective (depth) in order to achieve the usual three -dimensional effect of a painting.

Cubists held everything on a two -dimensional, flat level on which they interpreted different "views" of the same object.

Although most of the cubist works still come from objects or scenes with a real cover and therefore cannot be considered completely abstract, the rejection of the traditional perspective has completely undermined natural realism in art and thus opened the door for pure abstraction.

Significant representatives of cubism with influence on abstract art:

  • Francis Picabia (1879-1953)-French painter with influence in Cubism, Dadaism and Surrealism.
  • Carlo Carra (1881-1966)-known for his early cubist and futuristic painting.
  • Albert Gleizes (1881-1953)-Cubist painter, co-author of du Cubisme, the first bound document about Cubism.
  • Jean Metzinger (1883-1957)-was inspired by analytical cubism; Published "du Cubisme" together with Albert Gleizes.
  • Roger de la Fresnaye (1885-1925)-uses the geometric simplicity of cubism to make concrete, politically motivated statements
  • Juan Gris (1887-1927)-Spanish painter and leading theorist of Cubism
  • Constantin Brancusi (1876-1957)-Cubist-inspired abstract sculptor, was also influenced by African and oriental art.
  • Raymond Duchamp-Villon (1876-1918)-Used cubist instruments for displaying movement
  • Jacques Lipchitz (1891-1973)-significant French-American sculptor of the 20th century.

Orphism

This abstract painting style of the early 20th century was also orhic cubism and sought to combine cubist composition with color and music.

The term was derived from the mythical singer and liver player Orpheus and sustainably characterized by Guillaume Apollinaire in 1912 after color -intensive works by Robert Delaunay .

Robert Delaunay - Rythme, Joie de Vivre
Robert Delaunay - Rythme, Joie de Vivre

, orphism is characterized by bright color spots than by figurative objects. Especially circular structures in bright colors are the highlighting features of this art direction.

Significant representatives of preliminaryism:

  • Robert Delaunay - French painter of the avant -garde, who also wrote art -theoretical writings
  • Franz Kupka - Czech painter. The color always played an important role for Kupka.

The previousism

Previousism 1913-14 ) was a British art movement of the pre-war period, which was also strongly influenced by the Cubist language. The term is derived from the Latin word "Vortex", which means something like "storm" or "vertebrae".

It was founded by Percy Wyndham Lewis (1882-1957) and explicitly understood as a specific English contribution to modernity. Similarly to Cubism, he understood as a counter -concept for realistic representations in art. preliminaryism denied their moral mission and insisted on the autonomy of the artwork.

Significant representatives of preliminaryism:

  • Richard Aldington - English writer and editor of the avant -garde magazine "The Egoist".
  • Malcolm Arbuthnot - is considered the inventor of "Vorttography"
  • Lawrence Atkinson - English artist, musician and poet
  • Jessica Dismorr - English painter and one of only two women active in the pre -movement
  • Henri Gaudier-Brzeska -French sculptor
  • Cuthbert Hamilton - British artist
  • Wyndham Lewis - British writer and painter, co -founder of pre -indicism and editor of the magazine Blast.
  • Ezra Pound -American poet is considered one of the outstanding representatives of literary modernism.
  • William Roberts - British painter of Cubism and co -founder of preliminaryism
  • Helen Saunders - English painter
  • Edward Wadsworth - British painter, who was based on futurism and cubism to develop geometric art until abstraction

Futurism

The Italian futurism movement (1909-13) was significantly justified by Marinetti (1876-1944) and in the artistic work of Gino Severini (1883-1966) and Giacomo Balla (1871-1958).

This current was also influenced by cubism and in turn delighted numerous painters with their emphasis on movement and technology. In the sculpture, futurism had the strongest impact on the development of kinetic art and influenced abstract sculptors such as Naum Gabo (1890-1977) and Alexander Calder (1898-1976).

Tubism

Another related art direction was constituted almost at the same time. In connection with the art of Fernand Léger (1881-1955), this could no longer be talked about by Cubism, but by tubism (tube art) .

Here, cylindrical and spherical parts were used instead of the flat overlapping elements of Cubism. This created numerous pictures with machine -like motifs that Légers Futuristic faith in the technology against mirrors ten.

With Russian suprematism to new geometric shapes

The Russian movement for abstract art is known as suprematism . In 1915 she was named and justified by her leadership figure Kasimir Malewitsch (1878-1935) as an expression of the superiority of feelings and sensations in art.

Undoubtedly influenced by Kandinsky, Malewitsch created a number of outstanding abstract avant-garde paintings with rectangular, single-colored blocks on a white background. He also emphasized the flatness in artistic works. He was likely to have been ahead of his time.

"The Black Quadrat" (1915) by Kazimir Malevich, flat pressure on paper
"The black square" (1915) by Kazimir Malevich, flat pressure on paper
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"Black Cross" (1923) by Kazimir Malevich, screen print on paper
"Black Cross" (1923) by Kazimir Malevich, screen print on paper
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He viewed suprematism as the successor to the traditional icon images of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Byzantine style of antiquity. In 1927, his suprematis theory was officially declared in the book entitled "The Non-Objective World" Schwarz on white.

Constructivism & rayonism

Vladimir Tatlin (1885-1953) is considered the most important driving force behind the establishment of the related Russian style of constructivism . Lyubov Popova (1889-1924) together with Alexander Rodchenko (1891-1956) were also co-founders. This school essentially dealt with space, new materials, three -dimensional forms and the linking of science and art. At the same time, Lyubov Popova was also an important member of the Suprematism movement.

Another interesting Russian art movement that created a new kind of pictures was rayonism (or Luchism). This stretched over the years 1912-14 and was launched Mikhail Larionov (1881-1964) and Natalya Goncharova

Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889-1943) and Naum Gabo (1890-1977) were among the abstract sculptures that were strongly influenced by suprematis/constructivist ideas

The influences of de Stijl

De Stijl was originally a Dutch group of painters, architects and designers. The name quickly reached a distribution through the establishment of an artist association and a Dutch design and aesthetic magazine.

This quickly developed an avant -garde art movement that primarily devoted itself to geometric abstraction. Theo van Doesburg is the founding father of de Stijl , who also took over the management.

However, the clear protagonist of the movement was Piet Mondrian (1872-1944), who is known for his series of simple rectangular grids, which contained only black, white and basic colors. With his flat grids, he tried to physically create the concept of infinity.

Piet Mondrian - Boom A
Piet Mondrian - Boom A

The concepts of de Stijls worked not only in visual art and architecture, but also in the design of furniture and other everyday objects.

Neo-Plasticism & Elementarism

He called this style neo-plasticism (Nieuwe Beelding). As one of the most influential pioneers of concrete art in 1920-1944, he developed his precise geometric style as a conscious counterpoint to emotional chaos and general uncertainty during the first half of the 20th century.

Together with the abstract group Cercle et Carre (1929-31) and the Abstraction Creation Group, he switched to New York in 1938.

To the delight of his contemporaries, van Doesburg was little dogmatic and introduced a more relaxed form of neo-plasticism , elementaryism .

In 1930 he also shaped the term " concrete art " . Unfortunately, he died in 1931, but his ideas were continued not only by students from the Bauhaus design school, but also by the abstraction creation group under the direction of the Belgian artist Georges Vantongerloo , the French painter Jean Helion and Auguste Herbin .

Other members of the group were European abstractionists such as Jean Arp (1886-1966), Naum Gabo (1890-1977), El Lissitzky (1890-1941), Antoine Pevsner (1886-1962) and Barbara Hepworth (1903-1975) and Ben Nicholson (1894-1982).

The Swiss ex-construction house architect, sculptor and designer Max Bill (1908-94) was another follower who contributed significantly to the promotion of the genre in Switzerland, Italy, Argentina and Brazil.

Surrealism & organic abstraction

Organic abstraction is a further subordination of abstract art. Surrealism, which was created in parallel to geometric concreteism, is also a close relative of abstraction with its quasi-naturalistic images.

The great role models of these styles of biomorphic / organic abstraction were Jean Arp and Joan Miró , none of which was based on the technology of automatism.

Her surrealistic compatriot Salvador Dali (1904-89) also created some extraordinary paintings such as "The Persistence of Memory" (1931, Moma, NY) and "Soft Construction with Boiled Bean" (1936, Philadelphia Museum of Art).

Jean Arp was also an extremely busy sculptor who specialized in organic abstraction. The English sculptor Henry Moore (1898-1986) and Barbara Hepworth (1903-1975) did it in this regard.

A number of abstract artists from Europe later searched for refuge in America, where they came across a new generation of local abstract painters and influenced them.

These influential emigrants included painters such as Hans Hofmann (1880-1966), Max Ernst (1891-1976), Andre Masson (1896-1987), Arshile Gorky (1904-48), Yves Tangy (1900-55) and others.

Despite the controversy around the New York weapons show in 1913, the American metropolis developed a strong interest in abstraction. The world -famous Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) was founded in 1929 and the Museum of Obstate Painting (later renamed Samuel R. Guggenheim Museum).

Less geometry, more color - abstract expressionism

Although the European artists of the post -war period preserved their interest in abstract art through the “Salon des Realités Nouvelles” in Paris, the center of modern art had shifted to New York from 1945.

From then on, the avant -garde was represented by the New York School of Abstract Expressionism . This movement emerged from the global economic crisis and the Second World War.

Abstract expressionist painting remains vague and there was never a coherent, postulated program. Therefore, the term is often misleading and confusing on artists who were neither really abstract nor expressionist .

It generally describes a form of abstract painting (not figurative, not naturalistic), in which color has priority over shape. And the latter is no longer geometric.

Early work in this style typically filled large -format canvases, the size of which overwhelm the viewers and should move them into another world. Dealing with abstract expressionists with visual effects, especially the effect of colors, was a Mirrors picture of her main goal - the inclusion and research of basic human emotions.

Her icons included without a doubt the artist sizes Jackson Pollock (1912-56), Mark Rothko (1903-70), Willem de Kooning (1904-97), Clyfford Still (1904-80), Barnett Newman (1905-70) and Adolph Gottlieb (1903-74).

Pollock revolutionized painting with his completely abstract works in the early 1940s by pouring screens on the floor and pouring and wiping color. This technology led to dense compositions without central focus and questioned traditional art concepts. His works mirrors not only his personal touch through foot and handprints, but also the dynamic nature of his creative process, which staged him as a performer.

Pollock's approach emphasized the immediacy of the artistic gesture, which made him a key figure of abstract expressionism. Inspired by the surrealistic movement and young psychoanalysis, his pictures gave a deep insight into his emotions and reflected modern life.

"Number Iia" (1948) by Jackson Pollock, Editions Pierre d'Arville (licensed by J. Pollock/Sofam Belgique)
"Number Iia" (1948) by Jackson Pollock, Editions Pierre d'Arville (licensed by J. Pollock/Sofam Belgique)
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Jackson Pollock "Beyond the Edge, The Studio Set 1", limited Giclée print
Jackson Pollock "Beyond the Edge, The Studio Set 1", limited Giclée print
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Mark Rothko also sought to express deep human emotions through innovative color and shape design. In his early works, he combined recognizable forms with mythological and biological inspiration sources before replacing them with intensive layers of color. These thin layers of color create a pulsating movement and create an atmosphere that envelops the viewer.

Rothko's works position the viewer at an interface between the physical and the transcendent world, although he deliberately chose figures as titles to avoid personal associations. His goal was to enable timeless and mental experiences and to promote an intimate dialogue between the work of art and the viewer. Rothko's focus on color as an expression has made a lasting contribution to the development of abstract art.

Reproduction of the "Green Red on Orange" painting by Mark Rothko in the frame
Reproduction of the "Green Red on Orange" painting by Mark Rothko in the frame
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Abstract painting "Untitled" (1968) by Mark Rothko, Giclée on paper
Abstract painting "Untitled" (1968) by Mark Rothko, Giclée on paper
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Abstract color field painting "Untitled (Violet, Black, Orange, Yellow on White and Red)" (1949)
Abstract color field painting "Untitled (Violet, Black, Orange, Yellow on White and Red)" (1949) by Mark Rothko
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The next generation then included painters like Robert Motherwell . The name of the movement was consolidated by Robert Coates, who worked as an art critic at New York.

The branches of abstract expressionism include Pollock's "Action Painting" and Rothko's "Color Field Painting" as well as the somewhat strange "Abstract Impressionism" by Philip Guston (1913-80).

Action painting, color field painting & Co.

Later, the abstract expressionism under the roof of the postal painting abstraction produced a series of individual styles as a kind of anti-gesture trend. These included: hard-edge painting , color stainless painting , Washington color movement , American lyrical abstraction and shaped canvas .

The abstract expressionism also provoked avant-garde reactions from several other artists, including Cy Twombly (1928-2011), whose calligraphic sketch is partly graffiti . Another example is the Californian abstract sculptor Mark di Suvero , which is known for its large-format iron/steel sculptures.

Informal art, tachism and the group Cobra

While in the post -war period on the other side of the great pond of abstract expressionism, the tone stated, a new art movement called Art Informel or informal art was created on the old continent at the end of the 1940s.

Regarded as a European version of abstract expressionism, it was actually an umbrella movement with a number of sub -variants.

This included tachism , a style of abstract painting, which is characterized by stains and color blobs. Precoked as a French answer to the American art movements, the avant-garde American artist Mark Tobey (1890-1976) gave awareness and recognition in particular. His calligraphic painting style even anticipated that of Pollock.

Important members of Tachism were Jean Fautrier (1898-1964), Georges Mathieu (1921-2012), Pierre Soulages (born 1919) and the Portuguese artist Maria Helena Vieira da Silva (1908-92) and the American abstract Expressionist Sam Francis (1923-94).

The avant-garde group Cobra, also practiced the gestures or "action painting" style of the American abstract expressionism. Cobra was founded by painters, sculptors and graphic artists from the Danish group "Host", the Dutch group "Reflex" and the "Belgian Revolutionary Surrealist Group".

Among their artists mingled with the forefront of Asger Jorn (1914-73), the Belgian writer Christian Dotremont (1922-79), Pierre Alechinsky , Karel Appel (1921-2006) and Pol Bury (1922-2005), who later gave up painting in favor of researching kinetic sculptures.

Optical art through optical deception-op art was born

One of the most pronounced and perhaps visually memorable styles of the geometric abstract painting of modernity was the OP art movement .

Their license plate was the employment of the eye with complex, often single -colored, geometric shapes and patterns to stimulate it, to perceive colors and forms that are actually not there. One can speak of cleverly arranged images here that specifically produced optical illusions.

The leading members of this movement were the Hungarian painter and graphic artist Victor Vasarely (1908-97) and the English painter Bridget Riley . In the early 1970s, the movement disappeared again after a short flower phase.

The last chapter for the time being - the postmodernity

The postmodernity, including contemporary art , or new German contemporary art , is located in time from the beginning of the 1960s.
From this turning point, contemporary art tends to fragment into numerous smaller, more regional or even more local schools.

According to the argumentation of art historians, this may be due to the fact that the prevalent attitude of contemporary art movements was to counter the great styles of the early 20th century.

An exception to this trend is the minimalism school , which was able to establish a fundamentally new style of geometric abstraction.

It is particularly illustrated by postmodern artists such as the sculptors Donald Judd (1928-94), Sol Lewitt (1928-2007), Robert Morris and Walter de Maria . Another important minimalist sculptor is Richard Serra .

Donald Judd - Concrete Blocks
Donald Judd - Concrete Blocks

The well-known abstract painters associated minimalism ad Reinhardt (1913-67), Frank Stella and the Irish-American painter Sean Scully, whose rectangular color forms seem to imitate the monumental forms of prehistoric structures.

Other important representatives of minimalism:

  • Morris Louis (1912-62)-American minimalist, researched the Soak-Stain Technik with Helen Frankenthaler
  • Agnes Martin (1912-2004)-minimalist painter, known for her pencil grid on a single-colored background
  • Kenneth Noland - minimalist painter with a close bond with Hard Edge Painting
  • Cy Twombly (1928-2011)-Minimalist painter, known for his calligraphic work
  • Helen Frankenthaler -minimalist painter, developed the Soak-Stain Technik
  • Robert Ryman - American minimalist painter, known for his white single -colored compositions
  • Jo Baer -American painter and graphic artist. She is considered a major representative of minimalism.
  • Ellsworth Kelly -American painter and sculptor. Kelly overcame the concept of the right -angled picture with its compositions. He was a main representative of color field painting and Hard Edge.
  • Robert Mangold -American painter
  • Brice Marden -American artist, who can be assigned to minimalism, among other things

In addition to sculpture and painting, the school of minimalism also found its way into architecture and design - with sustainable success .

Neo-Expressionism as the latest iteration level

The latest developments in modern art is finally neo-expressionism. This was partly a reaction against the rigor of minimalism and, above all, a figurative movement from the early 1980s.

However, some outstanding abstract painters were also represented among the followers, including the Englishman Howard Hodgkin and the German artists Georg Baselitz and Anselm Kiefer .

Among the internationally recognized abstract artists of this time, the British sculptor and gymnast winner Anish Kapoor , who is known for his large-format work made of raw stone, metal casting and stainless steel, can also be found.

Anselm Kiefer - Ave Maria (2007)
Anselm Kiefer-Ave Maria (2007)
Anselm Kiefer [CC BY-SA], via Wikimedia Commons

Contemporary abstract artists

Numerous contemporary painters and sculptors can be found, for example, in the middle of the art and cultural metropolis of Dresden. In 2005, the producer gallery “Abstract Moments” in Dresden created a hotspot for abstract art in Germany in 2005.

paintings from oil and acrylic, the art maker's website also includes sculptures .

The artists of the gallery currently include:

  • André Mimor
  • Andy Larrett
  • Alejandro Rojo
  • Annette Freymuth
  • Andreas Garbe
  • Bozena Ossowski
  • C. David Schwartz
  • Christiane Middendorf
  • Dirk Hille
  • Frank Lorenz
  • Frank-Ole Haake
  • Gia hung
  • Hans-Jürgen Gorenflo
  • Holger Mühlbauer-Gardemin
  • Ilona Schmidt
  • Jean-Jacques Piezanowski
  • Jo tip
  • Julio Fernandez
  • Klaus Boekhoff
  • Koroush Namazi
  • Lina Roth
  • Maciej Cieśla
  • Manuela Rathje
  • Maja Kühne
  • Martina Rick
  • Maya
  • Raphael König
  • Stefan Petrunov
  • Torsten Peter
  • Uwe Fehrmann

And what comes afterwards?

The future has already started, as the saying goes. In this sense, the world of modern art will continue to develop and produce new, significant movements, styles and art movements. We look forward to you with an open mind.

Abstract art from our online gallery

In our virtual art gallery, of course, you also have the opportunity to acquire unique and colorful abstract works of art - directly from the artist or gallery partner.

Each one of these paintings was created with passion and outstanding skills by a talented artist. Explore the diversity of the most artistic forms in your most abstract form and be inspired by pictures that tell your personal story.

Dive deeply into a world full of creative inspiration with our extensive range of exquisite abstract masterpieces.

Abstract mixed media painting "Love II" by Xiaoyang Galas

Abstract mixed media painting "Love II" by Xiaoyang Galas

Abstract painting "Lifeblood" by Paola Minekov, digital art on paper

Abstract painting "Lifeblood" by Paola Minekov, digital art on paper

Abstract acrylic painting "Grounding" by Inez Froehlich, acrylic with textures on canvas

Abstract acrylic painting "Grounding" by Inez Froehlich, acrylic with textures on canvas

Abstract acrylic painting "Prosperity" (2020) from Kspersee

Abstract acrylic painting "Prosperity" (2020) from Kspersee

Abstract acrylic painting "The Calm Way #4" (2025) from Ruzica Sola

Abstract acrylic painting "The Calm Way #4" (2025) from Ruzica Sola

Far-intensive abstraction "Fruitful" (2020) by Damien Hirst, limited Giclée-Print

Far-intensive abstraction "Fruitful" (2020) by Damien Hirst, limited Giclée-Print

"1025 colors" (1974) by Gerhard Richter, reproduction on paper

"1025 colors" (1974) by Gerhard Richter, reproduction on paper

Abstract oil painting "Endless Hope" (2024) by Jonesy

Abstract oil painting "Endless Hope" (2024) by Jonesy

Abstract acrylic image "Artefacts" by Inez Froehlich, textured on canvas

Abstract acrylic image "Artefacts" by Inez Froehlich, textured on canvas

Large -format oil painting "A Beautiful World" (2021) by Dini Christoforou

Large -format oil painting "A Beautiful World" (2021) by Dini Christoforou

Abstract painting "Summer in Mountain View, CA" by Paola Minekov, acrylic on paper, summer topic

Abstract painting "Summer in Mountain View, CA" by Paola Minekov, acrylic on paper, summer topic

Abstract acrylic image "Senza Titolo" (2024) of non -functional art

Abstract acrylic image "Senza Titolo" (2024) by Paola Landolfi

Small -format oil painting "Different Seasons" (2021) by Dini Christoforou

Small -format oil painting "Different Seasons" (2021) by Dini Christoforou

Abstract painting "Composition VIII" (1923) by Wassily Kandinsky, limited reproduction, Giclée on canvas

Abstract painting "Composition VIII" (1923) by Wassily Kandinsky, limited reproduction, Giclée on canvas

Abstract mosaic "Kissing Elephants" by Ukata Arua, limited reproduction on canvas

Abstract mosaic "Kissing Elephants" by Ukata Arua, limited reproduction on canvas

Abstract acrylic painting "Vibration of the Couleurs" (2021) from Kspersee

Abstract acrylic painting "Vibration of the Couleurs" (2021) from Kspersee

"One Step Closer" (2023) - Abstract oil painting by Beata Belanszky Demko

"One Step Closer" (2023) - Abstract oil painting by Beata Belanszky Demko

"Still Waters of the Lake" (2022) - Abstract landscape painting by Oleksii Vylusk

"Still Waters of the Lake" (2022) - Abstract landscape painting by Oleksii Vylusk

"The Black Quadrat" (1915) by Kazimir Malevich, flat pressure on paper

"The black square" (1915) by Kazimir Malevich, flat pressure on paper

Abstract acrylic painting "Ease of Flows" (2021) by Alexandra Dobreikin

Abstract acrylic painting "Ease of Flows" (2021) by Alexandra Dobreikin

Abstract painting "Abstract Bloom" by Paola Minekov, acrylic on paper, floral motif

Abstract painting "Abstract Bloom" by Paola Minekov, acrylic on paper, floral motif

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Sources, professional support and further information

Literature:

  1. Ingo F. Walther. Karl Ruhrberg : Art of the 20th Century: Painting , ISBN-13: 978-3836541145
  2. Charles Harrison, Francis Frascina, Gill Perry : Primitivism, Cubism, Abstraction: The Early Twentieth Century , ISBN-13: 978-030005160
  3. Peter Gay: Modernism: The Lure of Heresy, ISBN-13: 978-0393052053
  4. Ellen G. Landau : Reading Abstract Expressionism: Context and Critique, ISBN-13: 978-0300106138
  5. Margit Rowell : Joan Miro: Selected Writings and Interviews, ISBN-13: 978-0306804854
  6. James E. Breslin : Mark Rothko: A Biography, ISBN-13: 978-0226074061
  7. Hans Werner Holzwarth: Modern Art. From impressionism to the present , ISBN-13: 978-383655364
  8. Barbara Hess: Abstract Expressionism: Small series-Genres , ISBN-13: 978-3822829677
  9. Lance Esplund : The Art of Looking: How to Read Modern and Contemporary Art , ISBN-13: 978-0465094660
  10. Wassily Kandinsky: Concerning the Spiritual in Art , ISBN-13: 978-1721770373
  11. Alfred J. Barr, Jr.: Cubism and abstract art (New York 1936). 248 pages. 223 illustrations. Was written by the Museum of Modern Art as a guide and catalog for the exhibition in spring 1936.

Internet:

  1. Tate Gallery : A letter History of Abstract Art with Turner, Mondrian and More , https://www.tete.org.uk/art/brief-history-abstract-art-turner-and-More
  2. Daniel Birnbaum / Artforum: Universal Pictures - The Art of Hilma AF Klint, https://www.artforum.com/features/universal-pictures-the-art-of-hilma-af-klint-214627/
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Owner and managing director of Kunstplaza . Publicist, editor and passionate blogger in the field of art, design and creativity since 2011.
Joachim Rodriguez y Romero

Owner and managing director of Kunstplaza . Publicist, editor and passionate blogger in the field of art, design and creativity since 2011. Successful conclusion in web design as part of a university degree (2008). Further development of creativity techniques through courses in free drawing, expression painting and theatre/acting. Profound knowledge of the art market through many years of journalistic research and numerous collaborations with actors/institutions from art and culture.

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Art lexicon and glossary

Like every topic, art a wealth of subject -specific terms, expressions, abbreviations and foreign words.

In this section we would like to bring you closer to a few of the most important and common terms.

able to get to know and deepen a number of information, definitions, definitions, liturgical terms, common specialist expressions and their abbreviations as well as terms of the concepts of art theory, art history

In our continuously expanding category "Kunstlexikon" we provide you with answers to questions such as "What is art brood , tape art , macrame , performance type or concept art ?"

Art Periods And Movements

In art, artists and works of art are classified in styles . These are based on common characteristic features of the works of art and cultural products of a age.

The division into epochs serves as a tool for structuring and classification of works and artists into a temporal framework and a cultural history.

The most important Art Periods And Movements include, for example antiquity , romance, Gothic , Renaissance , Baroque , Biedermeier, Impressionism , Expressionism , Art Nouveau and Pop Art ...

The knowledge of Art Periods And Movements plays a major role, especially in art trade as well as in art theory and classic image analysis.

In this section of the art blog, we would like to help you a better understanding of these eras, styles and currents.

Art styles and styles

The art style or the style in works of art describes the uniform expression of the works of art and cultural products from an age, an artist or an artist group, an art direction or art school.

It is a tool for classification and systematization of the variety of art. He denotes unanimous things that differ from others.

The term is thematically related to Art Movement , but is not only to be seen in a temporal framework and therefore far more comprehensive.

In this section we would like to help you a better understanding of styles and currents in art.

Similar posts:

  • Abstract art - overview
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Focus on works of art

  • Large -format oil painting "Toubou" (2022) by Reneta Isin
    Large -format oil painting "Toubou" (2022) by Reneta Isin
  • Abstract painting "Inner Light (2021)" by Sanjay Punekar, acrylic on canvas (unique)
    Abstract painting "Inner Light (2021)" by Sanjay Punekar, acrylic on canvas (unique)
  • “Strength and Conviction” (2023) by Nana Artamonova, oil on canvas
    “Strength and Conviction” (2023) by Nana Artamonova, oil on canvas
  • "Two women in the café" by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (limited reproduction)
    "Two women in the café" by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (limited reproduction)
  • "Rope dancer" by August Macke, limited Giclée reproduction
    "Rope dancer" by August Macke, limited Giclée reproduction

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