Abstraction

Abandoning the long-standing belief that art was a reflection of visible reality, Abstract artists used line, shape and colour to depict forms that lie somewhere on the non-representational linear continuum in order to question not only what art could represent, but also how it could embody ideas and sensations independent of narrative or figuration. As one of the most transformative developments in the history of art, many twentieth century art movements are encompassed by the banner of Abstract art, such as Expressionism, Lyrical abstraction, Spiritualism, Conceptual art, Fauvism and Cubism among others.

At its core, Abstract art is concerned with the autonomy of visual language. Form, line and, above all, colour, became the principal agents of meaning, liberated from descriptive function. This shift reflected a broader modern sensibility and an embrace of the invisible structures underlying individual experiences.

While the early decades of Abstraction were defined by experimentation across Europe and the United States, encompassing a spectrum from geometric precision to lyrical spontaneity, by the mid-twentieth century Abstraction had evolved into a more existential and process-driven practice where viewers are engaged through sensory and contemplative experience rather than through identification with the subject matter. This absence of representation opens a space for personal interpretation, transforming viewing into a form of participation and revolutionising the way that art is made and experienced.

The work of Hilma af Klint (1862 - 1944), a long-overlooked pioneer of Abstraction and non-representational art, profoundly complicates the canonical history of Modernism. Today, she stands as a foundational figure in the history of Abstraction, whose synthesis of mysticism, science, modernity and the unseen dimensions of artistic thought continues to resonate with contemporary discourses on art history.

Georgia O’Keeffe’s (1887 - 1986) transformation of natural forms into simplified, near-abstract compositions demonstrated that Abstraction could arise from close observation and inner contemplation rather than total detachment from the real. In her work, the organic and the abstract coexist, revealing a capacity to heighten perception and emotion.

Judit Reigl (1923 - 2020) reinvented painting as an embodied, performative act, continuously evolving across styles, techniques and media. Approaching the canvas as an arena for movement and intuition, and emphasising gesture as an extension of the body and psyche, her gestural abstraction reflected a broader postwar concern with human presence, freedom and the physical act of creation.

Maria Helena Vieira da Silva (1908 - 1992) advanced abstraction into intricate spatial complexity, suggesting that even without recognisable imagery, painting could evoke memory, architecture and the layered nature of modern experience. Her unique style combined Cubist, Futurist and Constructivist motifs to create distinct rhythms and patterns, managing to maintain a sense of deep space and perspective, even as jagged shapes fracture the picture plane.