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Conceptual Art

CONCEPTUAL STYLE

In 1967, artist Sol LeWitt wrote that in “Conceptual art the idea or concept is the most important aspect of the work.” He was giving a name to an art movement that had emerged in the 1960s in which artists were less focused on their medium being something traditionally “artistic” and instead engaged in using any object, movement, form, action or place to express an idea.

LeWitt’s work was featured alongside an assemblage of notes, drawings and outlines by other artists in “Working Drawings and Other Visible Things on Paper Not Necessarily Meant to Be Viewed as Art,” a groundbreaking show at New York City’s School of Visual Arts curated by Mel Bochner, another leading exponent of Conceptualism. Building on radical 20th-century statements, like Fountain (1917) by French artist Marcel Duchamp, Conceptual artists around Europe and North and South America were not interested in the commercial art scene and rather directly challenged its systems and values.

Stretching into the 1970s, this movement has also been called Post-Object art and Dematerialized art. Conceptual art reflected a larger era of social and political upheaval. Pieces associated with the style range from Roelof Louw’s Soul City (Pyramid of Oranges) (1967) — a work of installation art that sees fresh oranges stacked into a pyramid from which visitors are allowed to take one orange away — to On Kawara’s “Today” series, which saw the Japanese artist carefully painting a date in white acrylic on canvases consisting of a single color from 1966 to his death in 2014. Artists such as Ed Ruscha, who created the Twentysix Gasoline Stations book — a collection of photos of gas stations that is widely said to be the first modern artists’ book — made photography a major platform for Conceptual art, as did Bruce Nauman, who burned one of Ruscha's books and then photographed it for his own.

Conceptual art’s legacy of questioning artistic authorship, ownership and how to work with complex ideas of space and time had a significant influence on the decades of culture that followed, and it continues to inform art today.

The collection of Conceptual photography, paintings and sculptures on 1stDibs includes artworks by John Baldessari, Jenny Holzer, Lawrence Weiner, Joseph Kosuth and others.

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Style: Conceptual
The Farm
The Farm

The Farm

By Greg Decker

Located in Atlanta, GA

Greg's witty and charming oil painting on aluminium comes framed in a floater frame which adds 1.75 inches all the way around. "Greg Decker is a visionary painter. His work epitomise...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Metal

Singapore Stamp Collection, 15c Singapore Sterna Bird Pink - Pop art color photo
Singapore Stamp Collection, 15c Singapore Sterna Bird Pink - Pop art color photo

Singapore Stamp Collection, 15c Singapore Sterna Bird Pink - Pop art color photo

By Heidler & Heeps

Located in Cambridge, GB

From the 2018 Singapore Series, Postcards from afar. This artwork is a limited edition of 25, gloss photographic print. Accompanied by a signed and numbered certificate of authentic...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Silver Gelatin

HOPE - 4 conceptual still life photographs spelling motivational word
HOPE - 4 conceptual still life photographs spelling motivational word

HOPE - 4 conceptual still life photographs spelling motivational word

By Christian Stoll

Located in San Francisco, CA

large scale conceptual environmental still life photographs playing with viewer's perspective creating individual letters from found objects spelling the word HOPE H-O-P-E by Christ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment

Garment of Hope 3 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Africa Girl
Garment of Hope 3 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Africa Girl

Garment of Hope 3 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Africa Girl

By John Ali

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

"Garment of Hope," a poignant masterpiece crafted by the skilled hands of artist John Ali, invites viewers into a world where innocence and resilience converge. This evocative artwor...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

The Kaddish, Conceptual Screenprint Monoprint by Unknown Artist
The Kaddish, Conceptual Screenprint Monoprint by Unknown Artist

The Kaddish, Conceptual Screenprint Monoprint by Unknown Artist

Located in Long Island City, NY

Unknown Artist - The Kaddish, Medium: Screenprint Monoprint, signed in ink lower right, Size: 44 x 30.25 in. (111.76 x 76.84 cm)

Category

1990s Conceptual Art

Materials

Monoprint, Screen

Delicate Ecosystem, Conceptual Etching by Mel Chin
Delicate Ecosystem, Conceptual Etching by Mel Chin

Delicate Ecosystem, Conceptual Etching by Mel Chin

By Mel Chin

Located in Long Island City, NY

This thought-provoking 1996 etching by Mel Chin exemplifies Contemporary Conceptual Art’s engagement with environmental themes and ecological awareness. Chin’s intricate composition ...

Category

1990s Conceptual Art

Materials

Etching, Aquatint

Riggs Library I, Washington DC

Riggs Library I, Washington DC

By Reinhard Görner

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Riggs Library Washington DC 57 x 50 inches ed. of 10 $6,000 68 x 60 inches ed. of 7 $9,000 79.8 x 70 inches ed. of 5 $11,000 signed and numbered on label, verso Paper is trimmed...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

C Print, Lambda

Contemporary Giclée Photo of Modern Still Life, Tableware Figures on Pink & Blue
Contemporary Giclée Photo of Modern Still Life, Tableware Figures on Pink & Blue

Contemporary Giclée Photo of Modern Still Life, Tableware Figures on Pink & Blue

By Ryan Rivadeneyra

Located in Barcelona, ES

"Sexy Miami Futuristic Cocktail Lounge" is a series of photographs by Ryan Rivadeneyra inspired by the Art Deco colors of Miami that show beautiful objects and textures arranged meti...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Photographic Film, Photographic Paper, Giclée

Weight of Return -21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Modern, Skate
Weight of Return -21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Modern, Skate

Weight of Return -21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Modern, Skate

By Michael Adetula

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

This piece captures the moment where emotion becomes stronger than ego. The running figure carries two contrasting elements (a skating machine symbolizing movement, escape, and the f...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Archival Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Palm Springs 7

Palm Springs 7

By Vanessa Marsh

Located in Sante Fe, NM

Further to Fly is a series of Wet Plate Collodion Photograms that continues in my practice of using drawings on mylar layered with light-sensitive materials in the darkroom to create...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Photogram

NO SMOKING, Rare historic 1970s Fluxus hand pulled silkscreen mid century design
NO SMOKING, Rare historic 1970s Fluxus hand pulled silkscreen mid century design

NO SMOKING, Rare historic 1970s Fluxus hand pulled silkscreen mid century design

Located in New York, NY

Maciunas & George Brecht, George Maciunas, George Brecht No Smoking, ca. 1973 Rare, historic Hand pulled Fluxus silkscreen Limited edition and rarely found collectible (though exact number produced not known) 16 31/50 × 16 3/4 inches Black and white hand-pulled silk screen by George Maciunas of George Brecht's iconic ”No Smoking” offset wallpaper squares George Maciunas was a Lithuanian American artist, art historian, and art organizer who was the founding member and central coordinator of Fluxus, an international community of artists, architects, composers, and designers. "George Maciunas had an extreme dislike of smoking. Being an asthmatic he could not tolerate it personally and with his complete devotion to Fluxus, professionally he felt there was no time or space for such a self-indulgent act. This disdain led fellow Fluxus artist, George Brecht to suggest a “no smoking” sign...

Category

1970s Conceptual Art

Materials

Screen

Bapst Library, Boston
Bapst Library, Boston

Bapst Library, Boston

By Reinhard Görner

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Bapst Library Boston 50 x 62.4 inches ed. of 10 $6,000 60 x 74.9 inches ed. of 7 $9,000 70 x 87.4 inches ed. of 5 $11,000 signed and numbered on label, verso Paper is trimmed to...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

C Print, Lambda

Moving Flag
Moving Flag

Moving Flag

By David Datuna

Located in Indianapolis, IN

David Datuna (1974-2022) Moving Flag (2013) Mixed media construction with collage, paint, and acrylic glasses lenses. Size: 32 x 57 x 9.5 in (81.3 x 144.8 x 24.1 cm) Hand signed on ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Mixed Media, Paint, Acrylic Polymer

"Let Me In, Let Me Out" - Abstract Mixed Media Composition
"Let Me In, Let Me Out" - Abstract Mixed Media Composition

"Let Me In, Let Me Out" - Abstract Mixed Media Composition

Located in Soquel, CA

"Let Me In, Let Me Out" - Abstract Mixed Media Composition Boldly colored abstract figurative composition by California artist Elizabeth Arrington Leaf (American, B-1955). Three lar...

Category

1970s Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Paper, Acrylic

LeWitt, Composition, Ficciones (after)
LeWitt, Composition, Ficciones (after)

LeWitt, Composition, Ficciones (after)

By Sol LeWitt

Located in Southampton, NY

Silkscreen on vélin Saunders Waterford, St Cuthberts Mill paper. Paper Size: 8 x 7.625 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued. Notes: From the album, Ficciones, 1984...

Category

1980s Conceptual Art

Materials

Screen

Barbie in a Box - 3D Ltd Ed 5/10

Barbie in a Box - 3D Ltd Ed 5/10

By Reisig and Taylor

Located in New York, NY

An homage to the famed Barbie Doll. About the Artists: Animated through an assemblage of analog, digital, and lenticular photographic technologies, these selections from Reisig a...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Lenticular

Post Conceptual Digital Artist Oil Painting Screenprint Diptych Joseph Nechvatal
Post Conceptual Digital Artist Oil Painting Screenprint Diptych Joseph Nechvatal

Post Conceptual Digital Artist Oil Painting Screenprint Diptych Joseph Nechvatal

Located in Surfside, FL

Joseph Nechvatal The Oedipal God of Oil Paint and Destruction, Diptych Oil and screenprint on two canvases, 1985, both signed 'Joseph Nechvatal', titled and dated on the reverse, with label from Brooke Alexander, NY. Joseph James Nechvatal (born 15 January 1951) is a post-conceptual digital artist and art theoretician who creates computer-assisted paintings and computer animations, often using custom-created computer viruses. Joseph Nechvatal was born in Chicago. He studied fine art and philosophy at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Cornell University and Columbia University, where he studied with Arthur Danto while serving as the archivist to the minimalist composer La Monte Young. From 1979, he exhibited his work in New York City, primarily at Galerie Richard, Brooke Alexander Gallery and Universal Concepts Unlimited. He has also solo exhibited in Berlin, Paris, Chicago, Cologne, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Aalst, Belgium, Youngstown, Senouillac, Lund, Toulouse, Turin, Arles and Munich. His work in the early 1980s chiefly consisted of post minimalist gray graphite drawings that were often photo mechanically enlarged. During that period he was associated with the artist group Colab and helped establish the non-profit cultural space ABC No Rio. In 1983 he co-founded the avant-garde electronic art music audio project Tellus Audio Cassette...

Category

1980s Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Screen

Guggenheim, Surrealist Screenprint by Pol Bury 1972
Guggenheim, Surrealist Screenprint by Pol Bury 1972

Guggenheim, Surrealist Screenprint by Pol Bury 1972

By Pol Bury

Located in Long Island City, NY

Artist: Pol Bury, Belgian (1922 - 2005) Title: Guggenheim Year: 1972 Medium: Screenprint, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 215/250 Size: 24.75 x 34.5 inches

Category

1970s Conceptual Art

Materials

Screen

Three Dog Night
Three Dog Night

Three Dog Night

By Michael Beam

Located in Buffalo, NY

The title for this work was inspired by the ruminations of Charles Manson in the 2010 publication Charles Manson NOW. “When you come to prison and you stay the fifteen years, all the dogs of the world are dead when you come back out, there is no dog that was a live when you were out last time. The three dog...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Acrylic, Canvas, Glitter, Spray Paint

Tender Weight of Waiting 2 -21st Century Contemporary Figurative Portrait Modern
Tender Weight of Waiting 2 -21st Century Contemporary Figurative Portrait Modern

Tender Weight of Waiting 2 -21st Century Contemporary Figurative Portrait Modern

By Michael Adetula

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

The Tender Weight of Waiting captures a moment of calm shaped by unseen expectations. Surrounded by books centered on love, marriage, and self-preparation, the subject retreats into ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Archival Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Tender Weight of Waiting 1 -21st Century Contemporary Figurative Portrait Modern
Tender Weight of Waiting 1 -21st Century Contemporary Figurative Portrait Modern

Tender Weight of Waiting 1 -21st Century Contemporary Figurative Portrait Modern

By Michael Adetula

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

The Tender Weight of Waiting captures a moment of calm shaped by unseen expectations. Surrounded by books centered on love, marriage, and self-preparation, the subject retreats into ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Archival Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic

The Son
The Son

The Son

By Tina Barney

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Tina Barney is an American artist renowned for her photographs of friends and family in domestic, yet often highly-charged, settings. Her images evoke both the spontaneity of documen...

Category

1980s Conceptual Art

Materials

C Print

Library Hall, Upper Lusatian Library of Sciences, Görlitz Germany, Architecture
Library Hall, Upper Lusatian Library of Sciences, Görlitz Germany, Architecture

Library Hall, Upper Lusatian Library of Sciences, Görlitz Germany, Architecture

By Reinhard Görner

Located in Los Angeles, CA

This large-scale architectural photograph by German artist Reinhard Görner depicts the Library Hall at the Upper Lusatian Library of Sciences in Görlitz, Germany. Arches open like portals into the interior, bringing public cultural heritage into private space in the rich, glowing tones of brown wood. Reinhard Görner is known for invoking an atmosphere of awe, meditation and contemplation through crisp, richly detailed scenes of grand historical and cultural public narratives. This effect is enhanced through aesthetically striking compositions, which might include stunningly perfect (or interestingly-off) symmetry, portals through a series of doorways, and other careful choices of perspective and scale. Housing about 150,000 volumes, this library is not only the largest in Görlitz, but also the most significant regional library between Dresden and Wrocław. Rich in history, it stands at the crossroads of Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic, serving as a beacon for historical research and knowledge transfer in the region. Lit by a warm, timeless glow, the scene leads you through multiple carved archways...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Lambda

Gentleman, Marble and Travertine Conceptual Sculpture
Gentleman, Marble and Travertine Conceptual Sculpture

Gentleman, Marble and Travertine Conceptual Sculpture

By Maria Dompe

Located in Surfside, FL

MARIA DOMPE, (Italian, b. 1958), Gentleman Sculpture, marble and travertine, 1995, height: 20 in. One of a pair, (Gentleman and Lady) being sold separately. Maria Dompe was born in ...

Category

Late 20th Century Conceptual Art

Materials

Travertine, Marble

Embrace of Solitude - 21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Modern
Embrace of Solitude - 21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Modern

Embrace of Solitude - 21st Century Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Modern

By Michael Adetula

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist Mic...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Electric Donjon, Surrealist Etching from Brodsky and Utkin: Projects 1981 - 1990
Electric Donjon, Surrealist Etching from Brodsky and Utkin: Projects 1981 - 1990

Electric Donjon, Surrealist Etching from Brodsky and Utkin: Projects 1981 - 1990

By Alexander Brodsky and Ilya Utkin

Located in Long Island City, NY

Artist: Alexander Brodsky and Ilya Utkin, Russian (1955 - ) Title: Electric Donjon from Brodsky and Utkin: Projects 1981 - 1990 Year: 1990 Medium: Etching on German Rag paper, signed...

Category

1990s Conceptual Art

Materials

Etching

Athenæum, Boston
Athenæum, Boston

Athenæum, Boston

By Reinhard Görner

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Athenæum, Boston 50 x 50 inches ed. of 10 $6,000 60 x 60 inches ed. of 7 $9,000 70 x 70 inches ed. of 5 $11,000 signed and numbered on label, verso Paper is trimmed to the image...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

C Print, Lambda

Tupac Shakur
Tupac Shakur

Tupac Shakur

By Jack Florczyk

Located in New York, NY

Homage to the late great musician Tupac Shakur. Images. Lyrics from his songs. Not framed. Acrylic paint on sheet music wheat pasted to wood panel. ...

Category

2010s Conceptual Art

Materials

Wood, Mixed Media

Conceptual art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Conceptual art available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add art created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, purple, orange, red and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Reinhard Görner, Kojun, Jose Sierra, and xulong zhang. Frequently made by artists working with Paper, and Paint and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Conceptual art, so small editions measuring 1 inches across are also available. Prices for art made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $45 and tops out at $500,000, while the average work sells for $2,465.