These three terms are often used interchangeably. They are not the same.
Modern art broke the rules. It said: representation is not the only option. That opening matters. It is still the ground we work on.
Contemporary art engages with the present. It asks: what does this moment require? Not aesthetically. Structurally. Honestly.
Abstract art is neither of those things exactly. It is a decision to remove the subject and let colour, surface, and material carry the meaning.
My work sits in all three conversations. Built on the precision of a traditional technique. Engaging with what it means to make contemporary art today. Stripped of narrative. Dependent on material presence.
Oil and pigment on canvas — layer after layer — is not a neutral choice. It is a commitment to depth over surface.
Abstract, contemporary, and rooted in a long practice. That is the territory. That is atmospheric abstraction.
Claire Lassonnery
French contemporary abstract artist
Atmospheric abstraction