Modern Art
The first decades of the 20th century were a period of artistic upheaval, with modern art movements including Cubism, Surrealism, Futurism and Dadaism questioning centuries of traditional views of what art should be. Using abstraction, experimental forms and interdisciplinary techniques, painters, sculptors, photographers, printmakers and performance artists all pushed the boundaries of creative expression.
Major exhibitions, like the 1913 Armory Show in New York City — also known as the “International Exhibition of Modern Art,” in which works like the radically angular Nude Descending a Staircase by Marcel Duchamp caused a sensation — challenged the perspective of viewers and critics and heralded the arrival of modern art in the United States. But the movement’s revolutionary spirit took shape in the 19th century.
The Industrial Revolution, which ushered in new technology and cultural conditions across the world, transformed art from something mostly commissioned by the wealthy or the church to work that responded to personal experiences. The Impressionist style emerged in 1860s France with artists like Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne and Edgar Degas quickly painting works that captured moments of light and urban life. Around the same time in England, the Pre-Raphaelites, like Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, borrowed from late medieval and early Renaissance art to imbue their art with symbolism and modern ideas of beauty.
Emerging from this disruption of the artistic status quo, modern art went further in rejecting conventions and embracing innovation. The bold legacy of leading modern artists Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Piet Mondrian and many others continues to inform visual culture today.
Find a collection of modern paintings, sculptures, prints and other fine art on 1stDibs.
1960s Modern Art
Offset
1910s Modern Art
Wood Panel, Oil
2010s Modern Art
Ink, Paper, Pen
1930s Modern Art
Lithograph
1960s Modern Art
Masonite, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
C Print
1960s Modern Art
Silver Gelatin
1960s Modern Art
Silver Gelatin
1970s Modern Art
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Ink, Rag Paper, Giclée
1850s Modern Art
Lithograph, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Ink, Rag Paper, Giclée
1990s Modern Art
Lithograph
1920s Modern Art
Screen
1880s Modern Art
Etching
1930s Modern Art
Watercolor
1940s Modern Art
Board, Egg Tempera
1840s Modern Art
Lithograph
Mid-20th Century Modern Art
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Ink, Rag Paper, Giclée
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Rag Paper, Archival Ink, Giclée
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Ink, Rag Paper, Giclée
2010s Modern Art
Archival Pigment
1960s Modern Art
C Print
20th Century Modern Art
Pastel, Cardboard
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Screen
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Pigment
1950s Modern Art
Pencil, Graphite
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Pigment
1940s Modern Art
Engraving
1970s Modern Art
Lithograph
1960s Modern Art
C Print, Color
1970s Modern Art
Lithograph
1960s Modern Art
C Print
1950s Modern Art
C Print
1930s Modern Art
Photographic Paper
1970s Modern Art
Lithograph
1970s Modern Art
Paper, Etching, Aquatint
1970s Modern Art
Lithograph
1960s Modern Art
Silver Gelatin
1970s Modern Art
Lithograph
1970s Modern Art
C Print
20th Century Modern Art
Offset
1960s Modern Art
Glass, Blown Glass
1990s Modern Art
Gouache
1850s Modern Art
Paper, Engraving
1960s Modern Art
C Print, Color
1960s Modern Art
C Print
1970s Modern Art
Screen
1960s Modern Art
Lithograph
1950s Modern Art
C Print
1970s Modern Art
Silver Gelatin
1910s Modern Art
Woodcut
1930s Modern Art
Wood, Engraving
1970s Modern Art
Lithograph
20th Century Modern Art
Gouache