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Gestural Abstraction

The phrase gestural abstraction refers to a way of making art - not what necessarily gets painted, but how it does.  By abandoning the application of paint to a surface in a controlled and premeditated way, gestural painters apply paint intuitively, physically, by dripping, splattering, pouring, smearing or throwing it at the surface itself. What matters to the gestural abstraction painters then isn't the paint but the physicality, honesty, intuition and deep personal expression. This in turn leads to the artist abandoning a focus on subject matter, turning inward for inspiration. As such, the act of painting itself becomes the subject. Willem de Kooning, Lee Krasner and Franz Kline led this movement from the 1940s onwards, with Jackson Pollock undoubtedly being the most notable with his pierced paint tins, dripping across the surface of Number 1A, 1948 (1948).  Abstract gestural painters explore their deepest emotions and they express that part of themselves during the physical act of painting. Pollock would later note that he had no fears about making changes to a painting, because, he said, the work has a life of its own. The painting itself is a relic of the action, it is a recording of the gestures made. Still influencing artists today, the likes of Caroline Vis and Sebastien Desnos (s3b desnos) both reference Pollock in their work, either echoing the expression of emotion or indeed as Desnos puts it, “action painting."

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Painting, Heart V, Stanislav Bojankov

Stanislav Bojankov

Painting . 29 x 29 x 2 cm Painting . 11.4 x 11.4 x 0.8 inch

$196

Painting, Incandescent, Bald

Bald

Painting . 46 x 38 x 2 cm Painting . 18.1 x 15 x 0.8 inch

$774

Painting, TX5, Marcel Speet

TX5

Marcel Speet

Painting . 60 x 50 x 4 cm Painting . 23.6 x 19.7 x 1.6 inch

$780

Fine Art Drawings, En el bosque, Carlos Velilla

Carlos Velilla

Fine Art Drawings . 10.5 x 19.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 4.1 x 7.7 x 0 inch

$867

Fine Art Drawings, No se desprende, Carlos Velilla

Carlos Velilla

Fine Art Drawings . 21.5 x 15.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 8.5 x 6.1 x 0 inch

$867

Fine Art Drawings, Miro et moi, Muriel Deumie

Muriel Deumie

Fine Art Drawings . 29 x 39 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 11.4 x 15.4 x 0.4 inch

$451 $406

Print, Collage fun, Muriel Deumie

Muriel Deumie

Print . 40 x 40 x 0.2 cm Print . 15.7 x 15.7 x 0.1 inch

$289

Painting, Regatta Red, VeraD

VeraD

Painting . 89 x 130 x 2 cm Painting . 35 x 51.2 x 0.8 inch

$4,508

Painting, Neon III, Paulo Gnecco

Paulo Gnecco

Painting . 60 x 45 x 2 cm Painting . 23.6 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch

$725

Photography, Insitu, Muriel Deumie

Muriel Deumie

Photography . 30 x 63 x 1 cm Photography . 11.8 x 24.8 x 0.4 inch

$324 $291

Painting, Flowers Thoughts 3, VeraD

VeraD

Painting . 20 x 20 x 0.5 cm Painting . 7.9 x 7.9 x 0.2 inch

$202

Painting, Poems, Marta Zawadzka

Marta Zawadzka

Painting . 120 x 120 x 2.3 cm Painting . 47.2 x 47.2 x 0.9 inch

$5,664

Painting, Evening, Marta Zawadzka

Marta Zawadzka

Painting . 120 x 100 x 2 cm Painting . 47.2 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch

$5,432

Painting, Cache cache, Muriel Deumie

Muriel Deumie

Painting . 73 x 183 x 2 cm Painting . 28.7 x 72 x 0.8 inch

$1,387 $1,248

Painting, Figure, Stanislav Bojankov

Stanislav Bojankov

Painting . 100 x 70 x 3 cm Painting . 39.4 x 27.6 x 1.2 inch

$2,890 $2,167

Fine Art Drawings, Nus, Claire Bonnet-Masimbert

Nus

Claire Bonnet-Masimbert

Fine Art Drawings . 35 x 27 x 0.5 cm Fine Art Drawings . 13.8 x 10.6 x 0.2 inch

$301

Painting, Woman, Aloyzas Smilingis

Aloyzas Smilingis

Painting . 49 x 39 x 0.3 cm Painting . 19.3 x 15.4 x 0.1 inch

$1,271