nonrepresentational

American  

[non-rep-ri-zen-tey-shuh-nl] / ˌnɒn rɛp rɪ zɛnˈteɪ ʃə nl /

adjective

1. not resembling or portraying any object in physical nature.

   a nonrepresentational painting.

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nonrepresentational British  

/ ˌnɒnrɛprɪzɛnˈteɪʃənəl /

adjective

1. art another word for abstract

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Other Word Forms

• nonrepresentationalism noun
• nonrepresentationalist noun

Etymology

Origin of nonrepresentational

First recorded in 1920–25; non- + representational

Example Sentences

Alfred Leslie, a second-generation Abstract Expressionist and filmmaker who turned his back on nonrepresentational art in the early 1960s to lead a revival of figurative painting, died on Friday in Brooklyn.

From New York Times

His immediate artistic forebears, including Jackson Pollock and the other nonrepresentational painters of the 1950s, had already thoroughly upended the notion of painting as a recognizable picture.

From Washington Post

The blossoms in her new artwork jostle with nonrepresentational imagery, and are often deployed in fanciful ways.

From Washington Post

Among the paintings are two nonrepresentational ones — “Blue Abstract” and “Orange Abstract” — that are among the show’s most striking entries.

From Washington Post

Sarcasm warming into insight was the hallmark of the style, which borrowed the nonrepresentational techniques of midcentury drama and wed it to a psychological acuity rarely before seen in American musicals.

From New York Times