Abstract art is a form of art that does not represent an accurate depiction of visual reality, but rather uses visual language of shape, form, color, and line to create a composition that may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. It is often seen as carrying a moral dimension, standing for virtues such as order, purity, simplicity, and spirituality. The term "abstract" can be applied to art that is based on an object, figure, or landscape, where forms have been simplified or schematized, as well as to art that uses forms, such as geometric shapes or gestural marks, which have no source at all in an external visual reality.
The origin of abstract art has been a subject of debate, but Wassily Kandinsky is generally credited as the pioneer of abstract art. He famously said, "back then not one single painter was painting in an abstract style". His first abstract painting that propelled abstract art into the public eye was Komposition V, created in 1911. However, a lesser-known Swedish painter, Hilma af Klint, was also creating abstract art around the same time.
Abstract art has been around for well over 100 years and has been a central stream of modern art since the early 1900s. It represents an artistic break from traditional molds and has held its own against changing art movements, manifestos, and testimonials for all these centuries.
