The 20th century was ushered in with the international expositions in Paris (1889 and 1900), which exhibited the Eiffel tower. Other artistic innovations include the Impressionistic art of Monet, Cezanne, Renoir, Degas, Pissarro, and Rodin.

Later, the surrealism movement led by Dali and Magritte created new ways of exploring the mind through art. Expressionism, of which Chagall was an exponent, and abstraction artists such as Mondrian, came to the forefront; and the Spanish painter Pablo Picasso was recognized as one of the greatest artists of the 20th century.