Abstraalisti

Abstraalisti is a term used in Dutch-language art discourse to describe artists and theorists who emphasize abstraction across media. It denotes a loose, cross-disciplinary tendency rather than a single school, and it is often used to mark a shared interest in non-representational inquiry within a broader field of practice.

The word abstraalisti derives from abstractie, the Dutch word for abstraction, and its use spans criticism, scholarship, and curatorial writing. In various contexts, the term is used to distinguish non-figurative approaches from representational art while remaining distinct from any formalized movement. Abstraalisti can intersect with strands of De Stijl, Constructivism, Minimalism, Conceptual Art, and contemporary media practices, yet it remains a flexible umbrella rather than a rigid doctrine.

Core concerns of abstraalisti include the primacy of form, color, line, texture, and spatial relations, as well as the experiential aspects of viewing and listening. Works associated with the term often explore perception, ambiguity, and the autonomy of the artwork from narrative content. Methodologically, practitioners may employ systems, serial procedures, geometric or organic vocabularies, and, in some cases, chance operations or algorithmic processes.

Practices associated with abstraalisti span painting, sculpture, installation, photography, video, sound art, and digital media. The approach emphasizes materiality and process, with attention to how context, display, and viewer interaction shape meaning.

In criticism, abstraalisti are discussed as a flexible category that accommodates diverse tendencies within abstraction in modern and contemporary art. Related topics include abstract art, geometric abstraction, and related movements in Western art history.