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Conceptual Photography

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
Color:  Purple
African American Youth With Water Reflections
Located in Miami, FL
In the early 1970's Mitchell Funk was a trailblazer of color photography. In this stunning portrait the photographer merges naturalism and representation with abstraction. A candid s...
Category

1970s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment

Singapore Stamp Collection, 30c Singapore Orchid Purple - Floral color photo
Located in Cambridge, GB
30 Cents Singapore Orchid Purple, from the Heidler & Heeps Stamp Collection. This historic postage stamps that make up the Heidler & Heeps Stamp Collection, Singapore Series 'Postcards from Afar' have been given a twenty-first century pop art lease of life. The fine detailed tapestry of the original small postage stamp has been brought to life, made unique by the franking stamp and Heidler & Heeps specialist darkroom process. This artwork is a limited edition of 25 gloss photographic c-print, dry-mounted to aluminium, presented in a museum board white window mount and a choice of black or white box frame fitted with anti-reflective UV70% glass. It is signed and numbered on reverse accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. This artwork is available in other sizes. Be sure to look at Heidler & Heeps other artworks listed on 1stDibs as they are great paired for interior design projects. Following on from the hugely successful ‘Vinyl Collection’, Natasha Heidler & Richard Heeps have collaborated again, drawing from the childhood past time of stamp collecting...
Category

2010s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Silver Gelatin

Self Portrait #19 From Un niño en el Chicle Series. Limited edition photograph
Located in Miami Beach, FL
#19, 2021 by Jose Sierra From "Un niño en el Chicle" Series Archival Pigment Print on Hahnemühle paper Image size: 40 in. H x 24.4 in. W Edition of 10 + 1AP Unframed Additional siz...
Category

2010s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Archival Pigment, Color

Untitled - Contemporary, Chinese, Polaroid, Emulsion Transfer, Women
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Untitled' (Chinese Classical) - 2002, 26 cm x 32cm. Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs. Archival Print, POLAROID 809 Emulsion Transfer. Signed, embossed stamp and artist certificate. Not mounted. Xulong Zhang Short Bio: He has been engaged in fashion portrait photography for 30 years and loves Polaroid photography. In 2000, he began to develop Polaroid photography and traveled to 34 countries for photography. Vita: 1999 Has won the title “Ten Elites” in the 3rd China Portrait Photography. 2000 Named the World Chinese Artist, known as “The Prince of Album” 2001 September, CCTV special report on “Zhang Xulong’s Body Art Photography” gained strong feedback from the community. 2002 January, published “Strategies for Commercial Portrait Photograph” by Zhejiang Photography Publishing. 2002 February, launched the concept of “Tang Yun” and greatly accepted by the market. His idea has spread across whole China’s photography industry. 2002 July, launched the concept of “Picasso’s scene backdrop” for kids photography and shocking the whole industry. 2002 August, published “Ms.Tang’s Body Art Portrait Album”, the first female body photography in China, by People’s Arts Publishing 2002 September, a personal exhibition entitled “seeing memory” in the ancient city of Shanxi Province, the 2nd session of the Pingyao International Photography Festival. In December of 2002, he was invited to give lectures in Malaysia and auction off the “Fruitful Achievements” exhibition in Kuala Lumpur, donating all money to the Kuala Lumpur Charitable aid for nursing homes and orphanages, won the "goodwill ambassador" title of honor in Kuala Lumpur. 2003 February-March, held the exhibition of “White Valentines” at Beijing International Trade and Exhibition Centre. December 2003, pioneered the new concept of "Royal Wedding", and completed the album of “Invasion 2004” wedding photography books published by Jilin art press. In December 2003 was awarded the 2003 annual contribution of the Chinese human body photography. 2003 Published “China Portrait Culture”. 2004 January, published Body Art & Portrait album “Chun Hua Qiu Shi”. 2004 March, held the exhibition of “Body Art & Portrait photography” in Chengdu. 2004 May, featured on a special report of “Match En China” in Paris. 2004 September, Pingyao international photography festival held entitled "the ambiguity of ancient legacy" xu-long Zhang body art exhibition 2005 August. 2005 August, accept the German star weekly "Der Stern" special report of “China nude” photography...
Category

2010s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Color, Polaroid, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment

Singapore Stamp Collection, 30c Singapore Orchid Purple - Floral color photo
Located in Cambridge, GB
30 Cents Singapore Orchid Purple, from the Heidler & Heeps Stamp Collection. This historic postage stamps that make up the Heidler & Heeps Stamp Collection, Singapore Series 'Postcar...
Category

2010s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Silver Gelatin

TODAY - large format photograph of conceptual motivational billboard at night
Located in San Francisco, CA
large scale original photograph of a billboard signage against ultramarine blue night sky from a series of conceptual motivational messages on iconic Americana signs...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Photography

Materials

Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment, Archival Ink, Giclée

TODAY - large format (framed) photograph of conceptual billboard sign at night
Located in San Francisco, CA
billboard against ultramarine blue night sky, a large scale original photograph from a series of conceptual motivational messages on classic Americana billboards in landscape of the ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Conceptual Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, Plexiglass, Archival Paper, Archival Ink, Giclée, Ar...

Untitled
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Untitled' 2015, Edition of 20 plus 2 Artist Proofs, digital C-Print, based on an IMPOSSIBLE 8x10 Colour, 21.5 cm x 27cm, not mounted, Signed, embossed stamp and artist certificate. ...
Category

2010s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid

Untitled
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Untitled' (Chinese Classical), 2002, Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs, digital C-Print, POLAROID 809 Emulsion Transfer, 26 cm x 32cm, not mounted, Signed, embossed stamp and artis...
Category

2010s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid

Singapore Stamp Collection, 30c Singapore Orchid Purple - Floral color photo
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 Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Silver Gelatin

Notre Dame 6 - Contemporary, 21st Century, Polaroid, Paris, Icons
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Notre Dame 6' 2010, Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs, archival Pigment Print, based on a Polaroid 810 transfer process, 20x27.3cm, not mounted, Signed, embossed stamp and artist c...
Category

2010s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Color, Polaroid, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment

Jo Yarrington, Lick, Dip, Paint, 2018, LED Light, Putty, Plastic
Located in Darien, CT
This installation imagines a dipping pot that the Radium Girls might have had at a work station. Lit by black light to highlight the neon glow, this object conveys a modern view on t...
Category

2010s Conceptual Photography

Materials

LED Light, Putty, Plastic

Golden Gate Bride with Sailboats
Located in Miami, FL
Cover Nikon World, Spring 2005, Published in Popular Photography Magazine 2000, Times Square Billboard 2001 Signed , dated lower right, Edition 2 ...
Category

1990s Conceptual Photography

Materials

Photographic Film

Three Empire State Buildings, 1976
Located in Miami, FL
Late light strikes two metal souvenirs placed on a ledge and set against the midtown skyline. Shot with a 20mm lens with maximum depth of field to rende...
Category

Conceptual Photography

Materials

Photographic Paper

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Conceptual photography for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Conceptual photography 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 photography 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, green, orange and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Reinhard Görner, Jose Sierra, xulong zhang, and Gianfranco Pezzot. Frequently made by artists working with C Print, and Paper 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 photography, so small editions measuring 1 inches across are also available. Prices for photography 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 $46,412, while the average work sells for $3,512.

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