Tribal art sculptures for sale

115 Original Contemporary Sculptures For Sale:

How to define Tribal Art style?

The visual arts and material culture of indigenous peoples are referred to as tribal art, sometimes known as non-Western art, ethnographic art, or, more controversially, primitive art. Tribal art typically has a ritualistic or spiritual function. The design and craftsmanship of objects from tribal cultures, typically with rural beginnings, is referred to as tribal art. 

In the 19th century, famous Western art professionals did not even consider non-Western art to be art. Instead, these objects were seen as relics and examples of "exotic" or "primitive" societies. But in the latter half of the 20th century, attitudes about tribal arts have shifted. Before postmodernism emerged in the 1960s, art critics saw tribal arts primarily from a formalist standpoint, giving little consideration to the symbolic significance, historical or cultural context, or artist's intention of the piece. Since then, tribal art, such as African art in Western collections, has come to be highly valued by international collectors, exhibitions, and the art market.

The phrase "tribal" could connote a less sophisticated kind of art that is associated with primitivism and suggests a lack of skill, design, intent, or concept. However, as museums reexamine and recurate their holdings in acknowledgment of the reality that tribal art is far from being simple and primitive and frequently has a skill of execution that is far beyond what we expect, it is gaining more and more public interest. Additionally, it has the power to reach our souls. Our inner instincts may be awakened and we connect with their truth as a result of their compelling presence and emotional energy, enhancing our perception of spiritual depth.

Historically, Western anthropologists, private collectors, and museums of ethnography and natural history have collected tribal artwork. In museum collections, tribal art can be divided into three main categories: Art from the Americas and the Oceania, especially that from Australia, Melanesia, New Zealand, and Polynesia; and African art, notably that from Sub-Saharan Africa.

African Tribal Art

Stone carvings, wood carvings (masks and sculptures), jewelry, basketry, textiles, pipes, musical instruments, weaponry, beadwork, and the design of architectural features like doors and wall ornamentation are all examples of African tribal art. The development of these crafts was impacted by the accessibility of tools, resources, and know-how; not all tribes engaged in these artistic endeavors. The most typical material was wood, frequently decorated with clay, paint, shells, beads, ivory, metal, feathers, animal hair, raffia, and on rare occasions even semi-precious stones.

African art was a fundamental part of an all-encompassing religion. The vital forces allegedly present in all living things were represented by specific images that acted as their embodiments or representatives. The essence of tribe ancestry was preserved by these representations of the dead, who frequently spoke for them and gave people a chance to connect with the ancestor spirits. African tribal artifacts were typically created as religious art - for a specific ritual or ceremonial usage - despite the fact that many of the forms used include secular components and some works of art are purely decorative and ornamental.

Initiation into age-groups, such as the young men's or old men's "societies," which each have their own unique symbols and cult motifs, is the basis of many tribal rituals. Such "societies" are known for their abundance of carved figurines and masks, many of which represent patron deities like the God of Thunder or the God of Fire. Although carvings were almost exclusively manufactured as a luxury item by some societies, they were just as ubiquitous and popular as masks and had a ritualistic significance. The Yoruba tribe in Nigeria were skilled round figure carvers and frequently crowned their typically large masks with hordes of very alive dolls, creating the illusion that a party was in progress. Sculptors could achieve a stature and notoriety that was somewhat akin to that of a well-known artist in the West because of the excellent caliber and repute of African sculpture among other tribes, notably the Yoruba.

Oceanic Tribal Art

The Oceania subregion is made up of four distinct ethnogeographic regions: Polynesia, Micronesia, Melanesia, and Australasia. Oceanian tribal art refers to the cultural traditions and creative history of the indigenous people who live in these four areas. This Lapita culture eventually had an impact on the bulk of Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. Another factor was the Vietnamese Dong-Son civilization, which flourished from around 600 AD and was a significant trader in the western Pacific. Bronze artifacts from this civilization have been found all throughout Oceania.

Although each region and island group had its unique aesthetic traditions that shaped its arts and crafts, oceanic tribal art was linked to pagan events involving the supernatural, spirit-worship, and fertility. A vast variety of art forms, including body painting, tattooing, painting, sculpting, wood carving, and textile art, were produced, with the majority of the materials utilized by artists and craftsmen being perishable. As a result, only a small number of examples - excluding stone buildings and sculpture - have persisted.

The monumental stone sculptures (moai) on Rapa Nui/Easter Island and the Marquesas, exemplifying the use of designs incorporating anthropomorphic figures with protruding tongues and bulging eyes, common to many eastern and remote areas of Polynesia, are among the famous examples of Polynesian art that have survived. Other examples include highly ornamented bark cloth in western Polynesia.

Because they were used in complicated pagan rites and cult practices throughout Melanesia, masks were a key motif in indigenous art. Micronesian tribal relics also include carved wooden bowls, painted boats, and stylized wooden masks in addition to body painting and tattooing. Body painting, rock painting, bark painting, rock engravings, standing stones, carving, sculpture, and ornamental adornments on tools and weapons are only a few examples of the numerous styles and media used in Australian Aboriginal art.

American Tribal Art

American Indian art has been profoundly impacted by both the nomadic, hunter-style lifestyle of the former and the little more static but nonetheless impoverished environment of the later. Another significant aspect in the emergence of regionally distinct creative traditions was the accessibility of resources including wood, wicker, metal, animal bone, clay, and cotton.

Southwest tribes were experts at weaving, making ceramics, and creating frescoes. These tribes included the Zuni, Navaho, and Hopi peoples as well as the Hohokam of southern Arizona, the Ansazi of northern Arizona and New Mexico, the Mimbres of south-west New Mexico, and the Ansazi. Native Americans from the Southwest invented sandpainting, often known as dry painting (notably the Navajo).

In the Midwest, tribes were solely responsible for shaping culture. These tribes were recognized for their intricate textile art as well as their well-known earthworks, or "effigy mounds," which were built to resemble different animals. Tribal art also comprised sculptured stone pipes with patterns ranging from the extremely realistic to the abstract, in addition to carved wood bowls and polished stone and copper ornaments.

The South-East region also produced pipes shaped like birds and animals, finely carved shells, and elaborately painted clothing accessories. In spite of using subpar clay, it was renowned for producing exquisite pottery. Pottery pieces were created and adorned in a variety of floral and geometric patterns for ceremonial, religious, and private uses.

Native American basketry was a prominent kind of art on the West Coast, particularly in California. The Iroquois tribe of the Northeastern Indians, in particular, were known for their woven wampum belts, porcupine quillwork, and False Face Society masks. The best tribal art produced in the Northwest was sculpture, particularly wood carving. Totems, little wooden figurines, and masks that were painstakingly painted and frequently inlaid with stones and abalone shells were among the most popular styles of hand-carved sculpture.

How Tribal Art influenced Modern Art

By the middle of the 19th century, as more expeditions brought back tribal artifacts, interest in what was then known as primitivism/primitive art - typically the art of black Africa - began to grow. Significant tribal art exhibitions from the late 19th and early 20th centuries also exposed non-Western art to the Western art community. Important exhibitions, such the 1941 American Indian Art and the 1935 African Negro Art, were held at the Museum of Modern Art. 

Artists discovered a model for an alternative to Western art in statues of tribal gods and ritual masks, whose non-naturalistic, highly stylized forms also incorporated powerful, highly emotive imagery. Tribal art had a significant influence on famous artists like Vincent Van Gogh and Henri Matisse, Paul Gauguin and Pablo Picasso. The most striking early effect was Cubism, which, by fragmenting the picture and giving up perspective, quickly weakened the Western paradigm by drawing primarily on the formal implications of tribal art. Abstract art was one of the main results of this.

The German group Die Brücke began focusing more on the primitive, instinctive, and ritualistic elements of non-Western art around the same period, establishing the major modern art movement known as Expressionism. The Dadaists furthered the breakdown of the Western paradigm by drawing inspiration from tribal art, Cubism, and Expressionism in Zürich, New York, and finally Paris. Dada's pictorial or sculptural work was mostly composed of collage and assemblage, its three-dimensional counterpart. The fact that art may be created out of anything and doesn't have to be painted, carved, or modeled was established by this work composed of found materials. Its imagery frequently incorporated aspects from tribal art and was confrontational on a political, social, or aesthetic level. Dada presented the concepts that eventually led to conceptual art, whose impact mixed with those of the other streams of modern art to create the vast, broad, enormously rich, varied, and globally diverse river of contemporary art that the world currently enjoys.

Discover contemporary Artworks on Artmajeur

Contemporary art is a vibrant constellation of artistic expressions. This creative universe encompasses a wide array of mediums, from paintings, sculpture, and photography to drawing, printmaking, textile art, and digital art, each medium a star shining with its own distinct radiance. Artists use diverse supports and materials to bring their visions to life, such as canvas, wood, metal, and even innovative digital canvases for the creation of virtual masterpieces. 

A contemporary painting, for instance, may weave its story through the masterful strokes of acrylic or oil, while a contemporary sculpture might sing its song in the language of stone, bronze, or found objects. The photographic arts capture and manipulate light to produce striking images, while printmaking employs techniques like lithography and screen-printing to produce multiples of a single, impactful image. Textile art plays with fabrics and fibers, whereas digital art pushes the boundaries of creation with innovative technology. 

The allure of contemporary art lies in its boundary-pushing nature, its relentless quest for experimentation and its constant reflection of the evolving human experience. This boundless creativity, coupled with its strong social and personal commentary, makes every piece of contemporary art a unique emblem of its time, a mirror held up to the realities and dreams of our complex world. It whispers to us, moves us, provokes thought, and kindles a deep emotional response, stirring the soul of anyone willing to listen. It is, indeed, the language of emotions and ideas, spoken in the dialect of our era.

Origins and history of contemporary art

The story of contemporary art unfolds in the mid-20th century, marked by seismic shifts in artistic expression. Post-World War II, around the 1950s and 1960s, artists began experimenting beyond traditional confines, challenging the norms of what art could be. This revolutionary epoch birthed myriad new movements and artistic forms such as abstract expressionism, pop art, and minimalism. Paintings, once confined by realism, embraced abstraction, as artists used color and form to express emotions and ideas. Notable periods like the advent of pop art in the late 1950s and early 1960s saw artworks mimicking popular culture and mass media, reflecting society’s shifting focus.

The sculptural arts, too, witnessed a metamorphosis. Sculptors started to experiment with new materials and forms, often creating artworks that interacted with the viewer and the surrounding space, fostering a sense of engagement. Drawing, a timeless practice, also evolved, with artists incorporating innovative techniques and concepts to redefine its role in contemporary art.

Photography, a relatively new medium, emerged as a powerful tool in the contemporary art landscape. Born in the 19th century, it truly came into its own in the latter half of the 20th century, blurring the lines between fine art and documentation. Printmaking, a practice dating back to ancient times, saw renewed interest and experimentation with techniques like lithography, etching, and screen printing gaining prominence.

The realm of textile art expanded dramatically, as artists began to appreciate the versatility and tactile quality of fabric and fibers. Artists began using textiles to challenge the boundaries between fine art, craft, and design. 

The dawn of digital technology in the late 20th century heralded a new age for contemporary art. Digital art emerged as artists started leveraging new technologies to create immersive, interactive experiences, often blurring the line between the virtual and the physical world.

Through these transformative periods, the essence of contemporary art has remained the same: a dynamic, evolving reflection of the times we live in, continually pushing boundaries and embracing the new, always questioning, always exploring.

Evolutions of theses contemporary works in the art market

As we navigate through the 21st century, the dynamic landscape of contemporary art continues to evolve and expand, reflecting our ever-changing world. Contemporary paintings, once primarily confined to two-dimensional canvases, now embrace a multitude of forms and techniques, ranging from mixed media installations to digital creations, each piece a rich a weaving of thoughts, emotions, and narratives. Sculpture, too, has ventured far beyond traditional stone and bronze, with artists incorporating light, sound, and even motion, embodying the ephemerality and flux of the modern world.

Photography, in the hands of Contemporary Artists, has expanded its horizons, seamlessly blending with digital technology to create breathtaking imagery that challenges our perception of reality. Drawing, as well, has transcended the borders of paper, incorporating multimedia elements and exploratory techniques to redefine its role in the artistic discourse. Printmaking continues to flourish, with contemporary artists using traditional methods in innovative ways to deliver potent social and personal commentaries.

Textile art, once considered a craft, now holds a prominent place in the contemporary art world, with artists using it to explore issues of identity, tradition, and cultural heritage. Meanwhile, digital art, the newest member of the contemporary art family, has revolutionized the way we create and interact with art, presenting immersive experiences that blur the boundary between the virtual and the physical.

These diverse forms of contemporary art hold significant value in the current art market, not only due to their aesthetic appeal but also their ability to encapsulate and communicate complex ideas and emotions. Collectors, curators, and art lovers worldwide seek these works, drawn to their inherent dynamism, their innovative use of materials, and their eloquent expressions of our shared human experience. As a testimonial to our times, these contemporary artworks encapsulate the pulse of our society and the resonance of individual voices, forever etching our collective narrative into the annals of art history.

Famous Contemporary Artists

As we delve into the vibrant realm of contemporary art, we encounter an array of artists who shape this dynamic field. Each a master in their medium - painting, sculpture, photography, drawing, printmaking, textile, or digital art - they push artistic boundaries, reflecting our era and challenging perceptions. Let’s explore these remarkable contributors and their groundbreaking works.

1. Gerhard Richter - Known for his multi-faceted approach to painting, Richter challenges the boundaries of the medium, masterfully oscillating between abstract and photorealistic styles. His works, whether featuring squeegee-pulled pigments or blurred photographic images, engage in a fascinating dialogue with perception.

2. Jeff Koons - A significant figure in contemporary sculpture, Koons crafts monumental pieces that explore themes of consumerism, taste, and popular culture. His iconic balloon animals, constructed in mirror-polished stainless steel, captivate with their playful yet profound commentary.

3. Cindy Sherman - An acclaimed photographer, Sherman uses her lens to explore identity and societal roles, particularly of women. Renowned for her conceptual self-portraits, she assumes myriad characters, pushing the boundaries of photography as a medium of artistic expression.

4. David Hockney - Hockney, with his prolific output spanning six decades, is a pivotal figure in contemporary drawing. His bold use of color and playful exploration of perspective convey an intoxicating sense of joy and an unabashed celebration of life.

5. Kiki Smith - An innovative printmaker, Smith’s work explores the human condition, particularly the female body and its social and cultural connotations. Her etchings and lithographs speak to universal experiences of life, death, and transformation.

6. El Anatsui - A master of textile art, Anatsui creates stunning tapestry-like installations from discarded bottle caps and aluminum scraps. These shimmering, flexible sculptures blend traditional African aesthetic with contemporary art sensibilities, speaking to themes of consumption, waste, and the interconnectedness of our world.

7. Rafael Lozano-Hemmer - A leading figure in digital art, Lozano-Hemmer utilizes technology to create interactive installations that blend architecture and performance art. His work, often participatory in nature, explores themes of surveillance, privacy, and the relationship between people and their environments.

Notable contemporary artworks

The contemporary art landscape is a dynamic patchwork of diverse expressions and groundbreaking ideas, each artwork a unique dialog with its audience. Here are a selection of some renowned contemporary artworks, spanning various media such as painting, sculpture, photography, drawing, printmaking, textile art, and digital art, that have profoundly influenced this vibrant movement.

1. "Cloud Gate" by Anish Kapoor, 2006 - This monumental stainless steel sculpture, also known as "The Bean," mirrors and distorts the Chicago skyline and onlookers in its seamless, liquid-like surface, creating an interactive experience that blurs the line between the artwork and the viewer.

2. "Marilyn Diptych" by Andy Warhol, 1962 - An iconic piece of pop art, this silkscreen painting features fifty images of Marilyn Monroe. Half brightly colored, half in black and white, it reflects the dichotomy of celebrity life and its influence on popular culture.

3. "Rhein II" by Andreas Gursky, 1999 - This photographic artwork, a digitally-altered image of the Rhine River, is celebrated for its minimalist aesthetic. It strips the landscape to its bare essentials, invoking a sense of tranquility and vastness.

4. "Black Square" by Kazimir Malevich, 1915 - A revolutionary painting in the realm of abstract art, this piece, featuring nothing more than a black square on a white field, challenges traditional notions of representation, symbolizing a new era in artistic expression.

5. "Puppy" by Jeff Koons, 1992 - This giant sculpture, a West Highland Terrier blanketed in flowering plants, explores themes of innocence, consumer culture, and the interplay between high art and kitsch. It’s a delightful blend of traditional sculpture and garden craft.

6. "Re-projection: Hoerengracht" by Ed and Nancy Kienholz, 1983-1988 - A room-sized tableau representing Amsterdam’s red-light district, this work combines elements of sculpture, painting, lighting, and found objects. It engages viewers in a stark commentary on commodification and objectification.

7. "Untitled" (Your body is a battleground) by Barbara Kruger, 1989 - This photomontage, combining black-and-white photography with impactful text, explores issues of feminism, identity, and power. Its potent, confrontational message is a prime example of the power of text in contemporary visual art.

8. "For the Love of God" by Damien Hirst, 2007 - This sculpture, a platinum cast of a human skull encrusted with 8,601 diamonds, probes themes of mortality, value, and the human fascination with luxury and decadence. It’s a compelling blend of macabre and magnificence.

9. "Physical impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living" by Damien Hirst, 1991 - This artwork, featuring a tiger shark preserved in formaldehyde, blurs the line between traditional sculpture and biological specimen. It prompts viewers to contemplate mortality and nature’s ferocity.

10. "One and Three Chairs" by Joseph Kosuth, 1965 - A piece of conceptual art, it presents a physical chair, a photograph of a chair, and a dictionary definition of a chair, thus exploring the relationship between language, picture, and referent in art.

These pieces, in their diversity, exemplify the rich tapestry of contemporary art, each piece a unique commentary on our world and a testament to the limitless potential of creative expression.