Movement & school

Styles & movements.

Browse by art-historical movement — from late-19th-century Impressionism through colour-field, post-war abstraction, contemporary photography, and Indigenous Australian painting. Each style page is annotated with key dates, pioneers, and museum partners holding works in that vein.

18 movements1860 – presentCurator-annotated
Abstract
Abstract
Abstract art emphasizes color, form, line, texture, and composition over realistic representation. Rather than depicting recognizable subjects, it explores emotion, movement, and visual expression through nonrepresentational or simplified imagery. Ranging from bold geometric designs to expressive gestural works, abstract art brings depth, energy, and contemporary sophistication to a wide variety of interiors.
382 works
Abstract Expressionism
Abstract Expressionism
Abstract Expressionism is a postwar movement emphasizing spontaneous gesture, emotional intensity, and non-representational forms, using bold color and expressive techniques to convey inner experience and artistic freedom.
221 works
American Realism
American Realism
American Realism emerged in the late 19th century, portraying everyday life with honesty and authenticity. Rejecting idealization, its artists captured ordinary people, urban scenes, rural landscapes, and working-class experiences, emphasizing accurate observation, natural detail, and the social realities of American life.
132 works
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau flourished from the 1890s to the early 1900s, celebrating flowing lines, organic forms, and nature-inspired motifs. Characterized by graceful curves, floral patterns, and decorative elegance, the movement united fine art, architecture, and design, creating harmonious works that blended beauty, craftsmanship, and innovation.
170 works
Arts and Crafts
Arts and Crafts
The Arts & Crafts style emerged in the late 19th century, celebrating traditional craftsmanship, natural materials, and simple, functional design. Reacting against industrial mass production, it emphasizes handcrafted quality, honest construction, organic motifs, and timeless beauty, often featuring wood, textiles, ceramics, and nature-inspired forms.
6 works
Contemporary
Contemporary
Contemporary art encompasses diverse styles and mediums created from the late twentieth century to today, exploring identity, culture, technology, and social issues through innovative and evolving artistic practices.
310 works
Contemporary Aboriginal
Contemporary Aboriginal
Contemporary Aboriginal Art merges ancient Indigenous traditions with modern expression, using powerful symbolism and diverse media to explore Dreaming, Country, cultural identity, and contemporary issues.
61 works
Cubism
Cubism
Cubism emerged in the early 20th century, revolutionizing art by depicting subjects from multiple viewpoints simultaneously. Characterized by fragmented forms, geometric shapes, and flattened perspectives, Cubism challenged traditional representation and profoundly influenced modern art, architecture, design, and visual culture.
54 works
Expressionism
Expressionism
Expressionism emphasizes emotional intensity over realism, using bold colors, distorted forms, and energetic brushwork to convey personal feelings, psychological depth, and subjective responses to the world.
75 works
Impressionism
Impressionism
Impressionism emerged in late 19th-century France, capturing fleeting moments through loose brushwork, vibrant color, and the changing effects of light. Focusing on landscapes, city scenes, and everyday life, Impressionist artists emphasized atmosphere, movement, and spontaneous observation over precise detail and traditional academic techniques.
580 works
Japanese Art
Japanese Art
Japanese Art encompasses centuries of artistic tradition, celebrated for its refined simplicity, balance, and reverence for nature. From elegant ukiyo-e woodblock prints to ink painting and decorative screens, Japanese art emphasizes harmony, graceful composition, seasonal beauty, and meticulous craftsmanship, influencing artists and designers worldwide.
124 works
Minimalism
Minimalism
Minimalism is an art movement that emerged in the 1960s, emphasizing simplicity, clarity, and essential form. Characterized by clean lines, geometric shapes, restrained color palettes, and the elimination of unnecessary detail, Minimalist art focuses on balance, space, and materiality. Its timeless aesthetic brings calm, sophistication, and understated elegance to contemporary interiors.
6 works
Modernism
Modernism
Modernism was a revolutionary art movement that emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, embracing innovation, experimentation, and new ways of seeing the world. Rejecting traditional conventions, Modernist artists explored abstraction, bold color, expressive form, and simplified composition, profoundly shaping the course of contemporary art and design.
145 works
Naturalism
Naturalism
Naturalism emerged in the 19th century, emphasizing faithful observation and accurate depictions of the natural world. Artists portrayed landscapes, people, animals, and everyday life with lifelike detail, realistic light, and authentic color, celebrating nature and ordinary subjects without idealization or dramatic embellishment.
25 works
Naïve Art (Primitivism)
Naïve Art (Primitivism)
Naïve Art (Primitivism) is characterized by simplified forms, vivid colors, and a direct, untrained style that emphasizes imagination over academic technique. Often depicting everyday life, nature, and folklore, these works possess a distinctive charm, expressive honesty, and timeless sense of innocence.
54 works
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism is an art style inspired by the ideals of ancient Greece and Rome, emphasizing balance, harmony, clarity, and disciplined composition. Popular in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, it features idealized figures, historical and mythological subjects, and a refined, timeless elegance rooted in classical traditions.
9 works
Post-Impressionism
Post-Impressionism
Post-Impressionism expanded on Impressionism by emphasizing personal expression, bold color, symbolic meaning, and strong composition over realistic representation. Spanning the late 19th century, the style includes diverse approaches—from expressive brushwork and vivid landscapes to structured forms—by artists seeking emotion, imagination, and individual vision beyond direct observation.
246 works
Realism
Realism
Realism is a mid-19th-century movement dedicated to depicting everyday life with honesty and natural detail, celebrating ordinary people and experiences without idealization or romantic embellishment.
102 works
Renaissance
Renaissance
Renaissance art revived classical ideals through realism, perspective, and balanced composition, celebrating human achievement and the harmonious relationship between art, science, and the natural world.
86 works
Romanticism
Romanticism
Romanticism celebrated emotion, imagination, and the sublime beauty of nature, emphasizing dramatic landscapes, individual expression, and powerful storytelling over classical order and reason.
143 works
Tonalism
Tonalism
Tonalism is an American landscape movement characterized by muted colors, soft atmospheric effects, and poetic scenes of dawn, dusk, and mist that evoke tranquility, contemplation, and meditative beauty.
3 works