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Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

SURREALIST STYLE

In the wake of World War I’s ravaging of Europe, artists delved into the unconscious mind to confront and grapple with this reality. Poet and critic André Breton, a leader of the Surrealist movement who authored the 1924 Surrealist Manifesto, called this approach “a violent reaction against the impoverishment and sterility of thought processes that resulted from centuries of rationalism.” Surrealist art emerged in the 1920s with dreamlike and uncanny imagery guided by a variety of techniques such as automatic drawing, which can be likened to a stream of consciousness, to channel psychological experiences.

Although Surrealism was a groundbreaking approach for European art, its practitioners were inspired by Indigenous art and ancient mysticism for reenvisioning how sculptures, paintings, prints, performance art and more could respond to the unsettled world around them.

Surrealist artists were also informed by the Dada movement, which originated in 1916 Zurich and embraced absurdity over the logic that had propelled modernity into violence. Some of the Surrealists had witnessed this firsthand, such as Max Ernst, who served in the trenches during World War I, and Salvador Dalí, whose otherworldly paintings and other work responded to the dawning civil war in Spain.

Other key artists associated with the revolutionary art and literary movement included Man Ray, Joan Miró, René Magritte, Yves Tanguy, Frida Kahlo and Meret Oppenheim, all of whom had a distinct perspective on reimagining reality and freeing the unconscious mind from the conventions and restrictions of rational thought. Pablo Picasso showed some of his works in “La Peinture Surréaliste” — the first collective exhibition of Surrealist painting — which opened at Paris’s Galerie Pierre in November of 1925. (Although Magritte is best known as one of the visual Surrealist movement’s most talented practitioners, his famous 1943 painting, The Fifth Season, can be interpreted as a formal break from Surrealism.)

The outbreak of World War II led many in the movement to flee Europe for the Americas, further spreading Surrealism abroad. Generations of modern and contemporary artists were subsequently influenced by the richly symbolic and unearthly imagery of Surrealism, from Joseph Cornell to Arshile Gorky.

Find a collection of original Surrealist paintings, sculptures, prints and multiples and more art on 1stDibs.

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Style: Surrealist
Period: 1940s
"The Circus" Original Surreal Watercolor & Ink Drawing by Walter Schnackenberg
Located in Chicago, IL
Walter Schnackenberg’s style changed several times during his long and successful career. Having studied in Munich, the artist traveled often to Paris where he fell under the spell o...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink, Watercolor

"The Embrace" Original Surreal Watercolor & Ink Drawing by Walter Schnackenberg
Located in Chicago, IL
Walter Schnackenberg’s style changed several times during his long and successful career. Having studied in Munich, the artist traveled often to Paris where he fell under the spell o...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink, Watercolor

'The Holy Grail', Last Supper, Egyptian Iconography, Seattle Art Museum, Surreal
By Leo Kenney
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower center, 'Leo Kenney' (American, 1925-2001) and dated 1947. A seminal figure in the second generation of Northwest School artists, Leo Kenney was, like many of his conte...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, India Ink, Watercolor

Ink Drawing
Located in Wilton, CT
Original Ink Drawing by Jean Cocteau. Signed with certificate of authenticity.
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

"Le combat des poissons "Pencil study with annotations , cm. 30 x 20 1940 ca
Located in Torino, IT
André Masson ( 1896-1987) Pencil study with annotations on the right side, acquired by the previous owner from Luis Masson son of Andrè Masson
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Pencil

Lady with the Military Medals, Watercolor and Ink on Paper by Benjamin Benno
Located in Long Island City, NY
Lady with the Military Medals Benjamin Benno, American (1901–1980) Date: 1940 Watercolor and ink on paper, signed and dated Size: 24 x 14.38 in. (60.96 x 36.51 cm) Frame Size: 27 x 2...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink, Watercolor

Still Life with Fruit Bowl and Water Jug, Crayon on Paper by Benjamin Benno
Located in Long Island City, NY
Still Life with Fruit Bowl and Water Jug Benjamin Benno, American (1901–1980) Date: 1940 Crayon on paper, signed and dated Size: 13 x 17.13 in. (33.02 x 43.5 cm) Frame Size: 24.5 x 2...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Crayon

Untitled 7, Colored Ink drawing by Benjamin Benno
Located in Long Island City, NY
The Amazon Benjamin Benno, American (1901–1980) Date: circa 1940 Colored ink on paper Size: 14.75 x 21 in. (37.47 x 53.34 cm) Frame Size: 22 x 28 inches
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink

Que Font Ces Gens - Ink Drawing by Salvador Dalì - 1945
Located in Roma, IT
Que font ces gens is a beautiful modern artwork realized by Salvador Dalì in 1945. China Ink Drawing on paper. Original outstanding drawing realized to illustrate the book "The Labyrinth" by Maurice Sandoz, published in 1945. Signed and dated on the lower right recto. Executed on thick cream wove paper, not laid down and taped to the mount along the upper edge. The upper, right and lower edges are slightly unevenly cut. There are two pinholes towards the upper right and upper left corners. The sheet is time stained and there is a spot of foxing beneath the lower edge of the drawing. There are some remnants from previous mounting at the upper two corners not visible when framed. There are handling marks to the perimeter of the sheet. The ink is strong and well preserved. The artwork is accompanied by authentication of Robert P. Descharnes, Paris 2003, reference archive: D-3461. Prov. Sotheby's Impressionist & Modern Art Sale...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink, Paper

"Study for Ladders" Juanita Guccione, Abstract Surrealism, Female Artist
Located in New York, NY
Juanita Guccione (1904 - 1999) Study for Ladders, 1948 Gouache on paper 17 x 13 inches Signed lower left, dated, and inscribed “Study for Oil Painting...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Gouache

Nachtgespenst / Night ghost
Located in Wien, 9
Franz Rogler (1921 -1994) studied wood and stone sculpture with Wilhelm Gösser at the Graz School of Applied Arts and attended the master class for painting with Rudolf Szyszkowitz. During his studies he was drafted for military service and, together with fellow artist Hans Fronius, was deployed as a war painter in Austria, Germany, Italy, the former Yugoslavia, Greece and Russia. During this time he completed studies at the Academy in Zagreb and organised exhibitions in Austria. In 1944 he deserted and managed to escape to Switzerland, where he settled in Basel after his internment and came into contact with the Swiss Surrealists of "Group 33" and with the artists Hans Arp, Max Ernst and Meret Oppenheim through his friend Regula Weilenmann. After the end of the war, he studied at the Basel Art School with Walter Bodmer and Heinrich Müller, which introduced him to Constructivist art. In 1947 Rogler returned to Graz and became a member of the Graz Secession. From 1948 to 1950 he studied at the Vienna Academy with Albert Paris Gütersloh, before returning to Graz as a freelance artist in 1950. In 1953 he received the Art Prize of the City of Graz and his works were published in the first issue of the "Surrealist Publications" edited by Edgar Jené and Paul Celan...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Charcoal

Du entgehst der Strafe nicht / You do not escape the punishment
Located in Wien, 9
Franz Rogler (1921 -1994) studied wood and stone sculpture with Wilhelm Gösser at the Graz School of Applied Arts and attended the master class for painting with Rudolf Szyszkowitz. During his studies he was drafted for military service and, together with fellow artist Hans Fronius, was deployed as a war painter in Austria, Germany, Italy, the former Yugoslavia, Greece and Russia. During this time he completed studies at the Academy in Zagreb and organised exhibitions in Austria. In 1944 he deserted and managed to escape to Switzerland, where he settled in Basel after his internment and came into contact with the Swiss Surrealists of "Group 33" and with the artists Hans Arp, Max Ernst and Meret Oppenheim through his friend Regula Weilenmann. After the end of the war, he studied at the Basel Art School with Walter Bodmer and Heinrich Müller, which introduced him to Constructivist art. In 1947 Rogler returned to Graz and became a member of the Graz Secession. From 1948 to 1950 he studied at the Vienna Academy with Albert Paris Gütersloh, before returning to Graz as a freelance artist in 1950. In 1953 he received the Art Prize of the City of Graz and his works were published in the first issue of the "Surrealist Publications" edited by Edgar Jené and Paul Celan...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink, Paper

Das Mondgespenst / The ghost of the moon
Located in Wien, 9
Franz Rogler (1921 -1994) studied wood and stone sculpture with Wilhelm Gösser at the Graz School of Applied Arts and attended the master class for painting with Rudolf Szyszkowitz. During his studies he was drafted for military service and, together with fellow artist Hans Fronius, was deployed as a war painter in Austria, Germany, Italy, the former Yugoslavia, Greece and Russia. During this time he completed studies at the Academy in Zagreb and organised exhibitions in Austria. In 1944 he deserted and managed to escape to Switzerland, where he settled in Basel after his internment and came into contact with the Swiss Surrealists of "Group 33" and with the artists Hans Arp, Max Ernst and Meret Oppenheim through his friend Regula Weilenmann. After the end of the war, he studied at the Basel Art School with Walter Bodmer and Heinrich Müller, which introduced him to Constructivist art. In 1947 Rogler returned to Graz and became a member of the Graz Secession. From 1948 to 1950 he studied at the Vienna Academy with Albert Paris Gütersloh, before returning to Graz as a freelance artist in 1950. In 1953 he received the Art Prize of the City of Graz and his works were published in the first issue of the "Surrealist Publications" edited by Edgar Jené and Paul Celan...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, India Ink

Jünglinge / Youths
Located in Wien, 9
Franz Rogler (1921 -1994) studied wood and stone sculpture with Wilhelm Gösser at the Graz School of Applied Arts and attended the master class for painting with Rudolf Szyszkowitz. During his studies he was drafted for military service and, together with fellow artist Hans Fronius, was deployed as a war painter in Austria, Germany, Italy, the former Yugoslavia, Greece and Russia. During this time he completed studies at the Academy in Zagreb and organised exhibitions in Austria. In 1944 he deserted and managed to escape to Switzerland, where he settled in Basel after his internment and came into contact with the Swiss Surrealists of "Group 33" and with the artists Hans Arp, Max Ernst and Meret Oppenheim through his friend Regula Weilenmann. After the end of the war, he studied at the Basel Art School with Walter Bodmer and Heinrich Müller, which introduced him to Constructivist art. In 1947 Rogler returned to Graz and became a member of the Graz Secession. From 1948 to 1950 he studied at the Vienna Academy with Albert Paris Gütersloh, before returning to Graz as a freelance artist in 1950. In 1953 he received the Art Prize of the City of Graz and his works were published in the first issue of the "Surrealist Publications" edited by Edgar Jené and Paul Celan...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Graphite

Cobwebs and Rocks
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Cobwebs and Rocks Watercolor, 1940 Signed, dated, and copyrighted lower right Exhibited: Zimmerli Art Museum, Benjamin Benno: Retrospective Exhibition, 1988 Illustrated: Gustafson, Zimmerli Museum: Benjamin Benno: Retrospective Exhibition, 1988 Color Plate 14 copy copy of the catalog accompanies the watercolor Condition: excellent Image size: 14 3/4 x 21 inches Provenance: Estate of the Artist Ruth O...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Les Voiles by Léopold Survage - Abstract watercolour
Located in London, GB
Les Voiles by Léopold Survage (1987-1968) Watercolour on paper 23 x 38 cm (9 x 15 inches) Monogrammed, stamped and dated lower right Executed in 1945 ...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Veillee Sepulchrale; Verso: Study of two figures in a landscape
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Veillee Sepulchrale Verso: Study of two figures in a landscape Pen and ink on rose colored Canson watermark paper, 1944 Signed in ink with the artist's initials lower center (see photo) Dated 1944 lower center; Titled in ink upper left corner (see photo) Provenance: Swann Galleries, 2010, realized $900. John Popplestone (1928-2013), Akron, OH collector, noted psychologist and author Berman brothers (painters) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigationJump to search This article is about the painters. For the American songwriters/producers, see Berman Brothers (producers). Eugene Berman in Italy in the 1960s Eugène Berman (Russian: Евгений Густавович Берман; 4 November 1899, Saint Petersburg, Russia – 14 December 1972, Rome) and his brother Leonid Berman (1896 – 1976[1]) were Russian Neo-romantic painters and theater and opera designers. Contents 1 Early years 2 Later years and death 2.1 Works 3 Legacy 4 See also 5 References Early years Born in Russia, the Bermans fled the Russian revolution in 1918. In Paris the Bermans exhibited at the Galerie Pierre where their work earned them the name "Neo-Romantics" for its melancholy and introspective qualities, having taken inspiration from the Blue Period paintings of Pablo Picasso. Other Neo-Romantic painters were Christian Bérard, Pavel Tchelitchev, Kristians...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Pen, Ink

Portrait of Bachoo Dinshaw, Countess Woronzow
Located in Miami, FL
Powerful pencil study of Bachoo, Countess Woronzow. Tchelitchew exaggerates the sitter's features with abnormally large eyes for dramatic effect, Bachoo (Countess Bachoobai Woronzow-...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Archival Paper, Graphite

A Ma Cherie Pilette
Located in Miami, FL
India ink/Wash on paper Signed and dated on lower left The work is housed in Four Thousand Five Hundred Dollara Frame with Master Museum matting We could sell the work with the ma...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, India Ink

Portrait of Bachoo, Countess Woronzow, 1946
Located in Miami, FL
Powerful pencil study of Bachoo, Countess Woronzow. Tchelitchew exaggerates the sitters features with abnormally large eyes for dramatic effect, Bachoo (Countess Bachoobai Woronzow-D...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Graphite

Untitled - Drawing by Wifredo Lam - Ink and Pencil - 1941
Located in Roma, IT
This extraordinary and rare drawing by Wifredo Lam is one of the artworks that the artist took with him when he moved from Cuba to France. In Paris, Lam showed Picasso his drawings a...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Pencil, Ink

Exceptional set of complete works, dedicated, with 8 original endpage drawings
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Jean Cocteau Exceptional copy of the complete works in 9 volumes, dedicated to Jacques Fonson, 8 with original endpage drawings Half bound in red morocco with gold lettering 8 volum...
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1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Gold Leaf

Related Items
Modern Figurative Surrealist Watercolor Painting, Drawing 'Prince of Innocence'
Located in Surfside, FL
Angelic boy with a devil figure. Gary Hansmann (1947-2008) was active/lived in California. He is known for abstract, Surrealism figure painting. Gary William Hansmann was born Dec. 4, 1940, in San Diego to Ethel May Williams and Lester Hughes Hansmann. He grew up in Encinitas and served in the Army in the early 1960s. Gary Hansmann, San Diego artist, teacher and gallery owner, was known for his Surrealist drawings and graphics. He spent time working in Paris and exhibiting his art throughout Europe, but San Diego was home until he moved to Washington state. His life partner was fellow artist, Jill Hosmer. Mr. Hansmann, a respected printmaker and prolific artist, created thousands of drawings, prints and paintings as well as hundreds of poems. His interest in bullfighting led to a book of poetry and illustrations on the subject, “La Corrida, The Run”, a collection of poetry & artwork written as he was preparing for his first bullfight. Prologue written by famous Mexican Matador Antonio Lomelin. The book is written in English and translated into Spanish on opposing pages and was published in 1983. Mr. Hansmann taught intaglio and monotype at the Academy of Fine Arts in San Diego from 1977 to 1980 and at the San Diego Museum of Art in 1980. He also gave lectures and demonstrations throughout the art community, including at the San Diego Art Guild in Del Mar and Artist Equity in San Diego. Although he attended Palomar College in San Marcos and studied lithography at the San Diego Academy of Fine Arts, Mr. Hansmann was mostly self-taught and self-educated. Mr. Hansmann had shows in several art-world capitals, including Paris; Lisbon, Portugal; Cologne, Germany; Brussels, Belgium; and New York. he had one-person exhibits at the Loft Gallery in Clarkston, the Lewis-Clark State College Center of Arts & History, the Carnegie Art Center in Walla Walla and the Valley Art Center in Clarkston. During his long, distinguished career as an artist he had numerous one-person exhibits all over the world and the United States. His group shows are too numerous to mention, but his one-person exhibits were in Koln, Germany; Bruxelles, Belgium; Paris, France; Viana do Castelo, Portugal; Lisbon, Portugal; Tecate, Mexico; and British Columbia, Canada; and many states at home. Palomar College, San Marcos, Calif. San Diego Academy of Fine Arts Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, N.Y. University of Southern California, Idyllwild (ISOMATA) University of San Diego San Diego Museum of Art James Copley Library, La Jolla, Calif. Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana, Venice, Italy Centre de Arte Moderna Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon, Portugal Museo Taurino de la Communidad de Madrid, Madrid, Spain Atelier Lacouriere et Frelaut, Paris, France Gordon Gilkey Collection Portland Art Museum, Portland, Or. Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay...
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1980s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, India Ink, Watercolor

Large Ink Drawing Abstract Expressionist Rooster Woman Artist
Located in Surfside, FL
Judith Brown (December 17, 1931 – May 11, 1992) was a dancer and a sculptor who was drawn to images of the body in motion and its effect on the cloth surrounding it. She welded crushed automobile scrap metal into energetic moving torsos, horses, and flying draperies. Brown attended Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, New York (B.A., 1954), where she learned to weld from her teacher, Theodore Roszak, a pioneering abstract expressionist sculptor. This is done in a style similar to Leonard Baskin. Select Commissions Mural Sculpture, Lobby, Louisville Radio Station WAVE Fountain, commissioned by Architectural Interiors, New York City Model, designed and executed for Festival of Two Worlds, Spoleto, Italy Sculpture, designed for Electra Film Productions, NYC Noah's Ark, exhibited at Bronx Zoo, New York City, at Rochester Museum and Science Center, Rochester, New York, and at Hopkins Center, Hanover, New Hampshire Store Windows, executed Tiffany & Company Windows, New York City, Christmas 1957, 1959, 1962, October 1969, Spring 1979, and October 1980 Wall Sculptures: for Youngstown Research Center (1963-4), commissioned by Youngstown Steel Company, Youngstown, Ohio; for Hecht and Company, Landmark Shopping Center, Alexandria, Virginia, Daniel Schwartzman, Architect; for Lobby, 570 Seventh Avenue, New York City, Giorgio Cavaglieri, Architect; for Lobby, Cities Service Company's New Research Center, Cranbury, New Jersey; for Ottauquechee Health Center, Woodstock, Vermont Eternal Lights: for Congregation Beth-El, South Orange, New Jersey; for Congregation Sharey Tefilo, East Orange, New Jersey Menorahs: commissioned by Architect Fritz Nathan for the Permanent Collection of the Jewish Museum, New York City; commissioned by Smith College for the Helen Hill Chapel, Northampton, Massachusetts; commissioned by Jules Scherman, of Wisteria Press, Inc., New York City Altar Cross, commissioned by Smith College for the Helen Hill Chapel, Northampton, Massachusetts Landscape, Memorial Piece for Gustave Heller, YM-YWCA, Essex County, New Jersey Memorial Plaque for Robert A. Ferguson, Westchester County Airport, Purchase, New York Sculpture for Vice President's office, Atlantic Richfield Company, New York City Bronze Relief Sculpture for Gymnasium Lobby, South Richmond High School, Staten Island, New York, Daniel Schwartzman, Architect Poster, Stratton Arts Festival, Stratton, Vermont Medallion, commissioned by Brandeis University National Women's Committee, New York City Model for Fountain for the Plaza at Windsor, Vermont Bronze Sculpture, commissioned by Intramural, Inc. for Building Lobby, N/E Cor. 79th Street and Second Avenue, New York City Presentation Piece, commissioned by Graphic Arts Associates of Delaware Valley, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Wall Mural, Noah's Ark, Roosevelt Hospital, New York City 1977: Designed and executed Hanes Hosiery "Million Dollar Award"; Designed and executed "Old Spice" Smart Ship Award 1978: Commissioned to design and execute the "Walter White Award" for the NAACP for presentation to Hubert Humphrey; Commissioned to design and execute the Award for the Honorees of the National Board YWCA's First Tribute to Women in International Industry 1979: Designed and executed Jewelry for the Museum of Modern Art, New York City; Designed and executed limited edition of Mazuzas for Brandeis University-National Women's Committee, New York City 1980: Bronze Cross commissioned for St. James Episcopal Church, Woodstock, Vermont 1982: Eubie Award, New York Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences 1985: Two Sculptures, Marriott Hotel, Orlando, Florida 1986: Two large Sculptures for indoor reflecting pools, Palm Desert Hotel, Palm Springs, California; John Portman, Eight Sculptures for Peachtree Plaza Hotel, Atlanta, Georgia; John Portman, Beach House, Sea Island, Georgia 1987: Loan Installation, DeCordova Museum, Lincoln, Massachusetts 1988: Eleven foot outdoor Sculpture for Front Plaza, River Court, Charles River, East Cambridge, Massachusetts, H. J. Davis Development Corp.; Tomie dePaola...
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1950s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

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Untitled #25-1997-22
Located in New Orleans, LA
This work was part of "Body Politics", the August/September 2022 exhibition marked the debut of this work in the region (New Orleans), and the first time any of these works have been...
Category

1990s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

Abstract Expressionist Watercolor Painting Sculpture Woman Artist Judith Brown
Located in Surfside, FL
Judith Brown ( 1931 – 1992) Watercolor, 1962 Spires (painting of sculpture) Hand signed Judith Brown (December 17, 1931 – May 11, 1992) was a dancer and a sculptor who was drawn to images of the body in motion and its effect on the cloth surrounding it. She welded crushed automobile scrap metal into energetic moving torsos, horses, and flying draperies. Brown attended Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, New York (B.A., 1954), where she learned to weld from her teacher, Theodore Roszak, a pioneering abstract expressionist sculptor. This is done in a style similar to Leonard Baskin. She is a well known feminist artist who also made some wonderful jewelry and judaica. Select Commissions Mural Sculpture, Lobby, Louisville Radio Station WAVE Fountain, commissioned by Architectural Interiors, New York City Model, designed and executed for Festival of Two Worlds, Spoleto, Italy Sculpture, designed for Electra Film Productions, NYC Noah's Ark, exhibited at Bronx Zoo, New York City, at Rochester Museum and Science Center, Rochester, New York, and at Hopkins Center, Hanover, New Hampshire Store Windows, executed Tiffany & Company Windows, New York City, Christmas 1957, 1959, 1962, October 1969, Spring 1979, and October 1980 Wall Sculptures: for Youngstown Research Center (1963-4), commissioned by Youngstown Steel Company, Youngstown, Ohio; for Hecht and Company, Landmark Shopping Center, Alexandria, Virginia, Daniel Schwartzman, Architect; for Lobby, 570 Seventh Avenue, New York City, Giorgio Cavaglieri, Architect; for Lobby, Cities Service Company's New Research Center, Cranbury, New Jersey; for Ottauquechee Health Center, Woodstock, Vermont Eternal Lights: for Congregation Beth-El, South Orange, New Jersey; for Congregation Sharey Tefilo, East Orange, New Jersey Menorahs: commissioned by Architect Fritz Nathan for the Permanent Collection of the Jewish Museum, New York City; commissioned by Smith College for the Helen Hill Chapel, Northampton, Massachusetts; commissioned by Jules Scherman, of Wisteria Press, Inc., New York City Altar Cross, commissioned by Smith College for the Helen Hill Chapel, Northampton, Massachusetts Landscape, Memorial Piece for Gustave Heller, YM-YWCA, Essex County, New Jersey Memorial Plaque for Robert A. Ferguson, Westchester County Airport, Purchase, New York Sculpture for Vice President's office, Atlantic Richfield Company, New York City Bronze Relief Sculpture for Gymnasium Lobby, South Richmond High School, Staten Island, New York, Daniel Schwartzman, Architect Poster, Stratton Arts Festival, Stratton, Vermont Medallion, commissioned by Brandeis University National Women's Committee, New York City Model for Fountain for the Plaza at Windsor, Vermont Bronze Sculpture, commissioned by Intramural, Inc. for Building Lobby, N/E Cor. 79th Street and Second Avenue, New York City Presentation Piece, commissioned by Graphic Arts Associates of Delaware Valley, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Wall Mural, Noah's Ark, Roosevelt Hospital, New York City 1977: Designed and executed Hanes Hosiery "Million Dollar Award"; Designed and executed "Old Spice" Smart Ship Award 1978: Commissioned to design and execute the "Walter White Award" for the NAACP for presentation to Hubert Humphrey; Commissioned to design and execute the Award for the Honorees of the National Board YWCA's First Tribute to Women in International Industry 1979: Designed and executed Jewelry for the Museum of Modern Art, New York City; Designed and executed limited edition of Mazuzas for Brandeis University-National Women's Committee, New York City 1980: Bronze Cross commissioned for St. James Episcopal Church, Woodstock, Vermont 1982: Eubie Award, New York Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences 1985: Two Sculptures, Marriott Hotel, Orlando, Florida 1986: Two large Sculptures for indoor reflecting pools, Palm Desert Hotel, Palm Springs, California; John Portman, Eight Sculptures for Peachtree Plaza Hotel, Atlanta, Georgia; John Portman, Beach House, Sea Island, Georgia 1987: Loan Installation, DeCordova Museum, Lincoln, Massachusetts 1988: Eleven foot outdoor Sculpture for Front Plaza, River Court, Charles River, East Cambridge, Massachusetts, H. J. Davis Development Corp.; Tomie dePaola...
Category

1960s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

1957 Feminist Surrealist Israeli Colorful Watercolor Painting Myriam Bat Yosef
Located in Surfside, FL
Myriam Bat-Yosef Surrealist abstract painting in colorful abstract shapes and shades in the style of Joan Miro Hand signed and dated Tel Aviv, 1957. frame measures 10 X 5.5 sheet measures 2.5 X 7 inches The envelope of the Peter Buch poster is just for provenance and is not included in this sale. Myriam Bat-Yosef, whose real name is Marion Hellerman, born on January 31 , 1931 in Berlin, Germany to a Jewish family from Lithuania, she is an Israeli-Icelandic artist who paints on papers, paintings, fabrics, objects and human beings for performances. Myriam Bat-Yosef currently lives and works in Paris. In 1933, her family fleeing the Nazi Holocaust, Myriam Bat-Yosef emigrates to Palestine and settles in Jaffa. In 1936, she suffers a family tragedy, her father, militant Zionist, is called to fight, still recovering from an operation of appendicitis. The incision will become infected, antibiotics did not exist yet, and her father will die in the hospital after 9 months of suffering. Myriam and her mother leave Palestine to live in Paris for three years. French is Myriam's first school language. In 1939, still fleeing Nazism, she returned to Palestine, leaving France by the last boat from Marseille. She moved to Tel Aviv with her mother, aunt and maternal grandmother. In 1940, she began attending the Academy of Fine Arts in Tel Aviv and took her name as an artist, Bat-Yosef, which means Joseph's daughter in Hebrew, as a tribute to her father. In 1946, Myriam graduated as a kindergarten teacher but wanted to be an artist. Her mother enrolled her in an evening school to prepare a diploma of art teacher. At 19, she performs two years of military service in Israel. In 1952, with a pension of $50 a month that her mother allocated, she went to study at the Beaux-Arts in Paris. To survive, she has several activities while studying. In 1955, she had her first solo exhibition, at the Israeli Club on Wagram Avenue in Paris. Many artists, such as Yaacov Agam, Yehuda Neiman Avigdor Arikha, Raffi Kaiser, Dani Karavan and sculptors Achiam and Shlomo Selinger attended the opening . In 1956, she enrolled at the School of Fine Arts in Florence. This is where she meets the painter Errô. They share an icy studio in winter. Myriam moves to Milan with friends. She organizes a joint exhibition with Erro, one room each, at the Montenapoleone gallery. Her works are admired by the sculptor Marino Marini and the painters Renato Birolli and Enrico Prampolini. Myriam and Erro exhibit in Rome, Milan, Florence and meet many personalities: Alain Jouffroy and his wife, the painter Manina, Roberto Matta and his wife Malitte, textile artist who was one of the founders of the Pompidou Center. Back in Paris, Myriam and Erro get married, which allows Myriam to avoid being called into the Israeli army during the Suez Canal War. In 1957, Myriam and her husband went to Iceland. Myriam works in a chocolate factory. Having enough money, she starts producing art again. She exhibited in Reykjavik's first art gallery. She meets the artist Sigridur Bjornsdottir, married to the Swiss painter Dieter Roth . In 1958, Myriam and her husband leave for Israel. They exhibit in Germany, then in Israel. Back in Paris, the couple became friends with artists of the surrealist movement, such as Victor Brauner, Hans Bellmer, the sculptor Philippe Hiquily, Liliane Lijn, future wife of Takis and photographer Nathalie Waag. Erro and Myriam have a daughter on March 15, 1960, named Tura, after the painter Cosmè Tura, but also close to the Icelandic Thora or the Hebrew Torah. Bat-Yosef’s complex trajectory throughout the 20th century is linked as much to the transnational history of what was for a time called the School of Paris as it is to a certain legacy of Surrealism. Her work features the same idea of resolving antinomies that also defined the spirit of surrealism, and is enhanced with her readings of the Kabbalah and her spiritual grounding in Taoism. However, while there are reasons for her approach to be associated with the process of the ready-made, it is important to consider the immediate intrication of these works with her practice of performance, during which the body itself is also painted – a feminist response to Yves Klein’s Anthropometries (1960) and an echo of the happenings which Jean-Jacques Lebel organised at the time in Paris. In 1963, Erró told Myriam that if she wants to be a painter, she can not be his wife. Myriam chose to be a painter and the couple divorced in 1964. Since that time, Myriam Bat-Yosef has exhibited in many countries: Europe, United States, Japan, etc. Although long in the shadows, the work of Myriam Bat-Yosef has been greeted by many artists and personalities: Anaïs Nin, Nancy Huston, André Pieyre of Mandiargues, José Pierre, René de Solier , Jacques Lacarrière, Alain Bosquet, Pierre Restany, Sarane Alexandrian and Surrealist André Breton who, after a visit to her studio, confided to having been intrigued by its phantasmagorical dimension. She was included in the book Pop Art and Beyond: Gender, Race, and Class in the Global Sixties by Mona Hadler and Kalliopi Minioudaki. Extract "World Citizen, Artist of the Pop Era Sarah Wilson; Why do we know so little of Myriam Bat-Yosef, the most important female Israeli artist of the Pop era? Issues of identity and sexuality feature constantly in her work. She exhibited internationally from Reykjavik to Tokyo; she had two shows at Arturo Schwarz’s famous Dada/surrealist gallery in Milan; she participated in feminist art events in Los Angeles. Above all, in 1971, she conceived Total Art, a Pop Gesamtkunstwerk inside and outside the Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Painter, performer, and installation artist, she was also a lover, wife, and mother. Of Lithuanian-Jewish descent, she was close to the family of philosopher Emmanuel Levinas. An émigré in Paris she would repudiate a national passport, participating in Garry Davis’s short-lived “World Citizens” movement. She continues the lineage of women surrealist artists: Valentine Hugo, Leonor Fini, Dorothea Tanning, Leonora Carrington, Unica Zürn, Jane Graverol, Toyen, Alice Rahon...
Category

1950s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Que Font Ces Gens - Ink Drawing by Salvador Dalì - 1945
Located in Roma, IT
Que font ces gens is a beautiful modern artwork realized by Salvador Dalì in 1945. China Ink Drawing on paper. Original outstanding drawing realized to illustrate the book "The Labyrinth" by Maurice Sandoz, published in 1945. Signed and dated on the lower right recto. Executed on thick cream wove paper, not laid down and taped to the mount along the upper edge. The upper, right and lower edges are slightly unevenly cut. There are two pinholes towards the upper right and upper left corners. The sheet is time stained and there is a spot of foxing beneath the lower edge of the drawing. There are some remnants from previous mounting at the upper two corners not visible when framed. There are handling marks to the perimeter of the sheet. The ink is strong and well preserved. The artwork is accompanied by authentication of Robert P. Descharnes, Paris 2003, reference archive: D-3461. Prov. Sotheby's Impressionist & Modern Art Sale...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink, Paper

Red Flowers Abstract Still Life
Located in Soquel, CA
Abstracted still life of a vase of red flowers and fruit blending into an abstract expressionist watercolor composition by Les Anderson (American, 1928-2009). Signed "Les Anderson" l...
Category

1980s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Colorful Expressionist Still Life with Watermelon and Pears
Located in Soquel, CA
Vivid watercolor still life with colorful expressionist pink and purple hues, of a bright table with watermelon, pears, and flowers on heavy paper by Monterey artist Les Anderson (Am...
Category

Early 2000s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Original Dora Maar, (Picasso's muse) fine ink drawing of a reverent saint, 1998
Located in Petworth, West Sussex
This is a beautiful and fine avant-garde finished drawing of a reverent saint by the French female artist, Dora Maar. Dora Maar was a distinctive artist in her own right marked by s...
Category

20th Century Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink

An original British 20th Century drawing by British illustrator Heath Robinson
Located in Petworth, West Sussex
William Heath Robinson (British, 1872-1944) 'The Friendly Dog' Signed 'W. Heath Robinson.' (lower right) Pen and ink on paper 11 X 8.1/2in. (28 X 21.7cm.) (excluding frame) 46 x 38cm...
Category

Early 20th Century Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Pen

TWO BIRDS
Located in Portland, ME
Graves, Morris (American 1910-2001). TWO BIRDS. Brown Ink on tan paper, not dated. Although signed in pencil, lower right, the signature proved fugitive dur...
Category

Mid-20th Century Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Pencil

TWO BIRDS
H 18 in W 24 in
Summer Set 8, watercolor monoprint (unique) on Dieu Donne handmade paper, signed
By Arlene Shechet
Located in New York, NY
Arlene Shechet Summer Set 8, 2005 Watercolor monoprint on dieu donné hand made paper 21 × 27 1/2 inches Signed and dated in graphite on the front Exquisite watercolor monoprint on di...
Category

Early 2000s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Handmade Paper, Monoprint, Mixed Media, Graphite

Previously Available Items
1940s "Toy Story" Charcoal and Pencil Surreal Drawing
Located in Arp, TX
Artist Unknown "Toy Story" c. 1940s Pencil on paper 13.5"x8.25" image 15.5"x10.25" paper unframed Unsigned
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Charcoal, Pencil

London Transport Poster original gouache design Derrick Sayer
Located in London, GB
Derrick Latimer Sayer (British: 1917-1992) Design for poster for London Transport 33x31cm Gouache We have been unable to trace this design as a finis...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Gouache

Set Design Modern Oil Painting on Paper Manner of Eugene Berman Surrealist Woman
Located in Surfside, FL
This does not appear to be signed. It is in the manner or style of Eugene Berman but it does not appear to be signed.This is a mixed media work, with oil, watercolor ink and gouache on paper. Eugène Berman (Russian: Евгений Густавович Берман; born 1899, Saint Petersburg, Russia – died 1972, Rome, Italy) and his brother Leonid Berman were Russian, Italian Neo-romantic painters and theater and opera designers. Born in Russia, the Bermans fled the Russian revolution in 1918. They moved to Paris where Berman studied art at the Académie Ranson. Pierre Bonnard and Edouard Vuillard were two of the greatest influences on his work. The architect Emilio Terry was also a big influence. He launched the "Louis XVII" architectural style that combined different historical aesthetic styles in a dreamlike manner. It was with Terry that Berman first traveled to Italy, where he gained inspiration from the Baroque architecture of Giovanni Guercino, and painters such as Lorenzo Bernini, Giovanni Tiepolo, and Francesco Guardi. Berman's first group exhibition was a show at the Durer Gallery in Paris featuring the "Neo-Romantics". The success from this first exhibition led to his first solo show at the Galerie l'Etoile. His paintings were lauded for their fantastical nature, and eventually provided him with the opportunity to move to the United States. In 1932 Berman was offered an exhibition at the Julian Levy Gallery in New York. Levy and Berman had met in Paris, and Levy had expressed an interest in Neo-Romanticism, as well as Surrealism. Berman often combined the two styles in his imaginary landscapes, which depicted architectural forms in vast and deserted vistas alongside romanticized figures that allude to classical figural studies. His scenes provided a visual commentary on the decay of the modern world, which he portrayed as being in ruins. Berman moved to the United States in 1935 and continued to exhibit in Levy's gallery. Established as a painter Berman began turning his artistic abilities to other endeavors include covers for Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Town and Country. He further broadened his artistic repertoire when he began to design stage sets for the Hartford Music festival. He combined his talent for set design with his love of architecture and created sets for several ballet companies and the Metropolitan Opera. Many of his theatrical projects brought him into collaboration with Igor Stravinsky. Berman continued to design theatrical sets for The Metropolitan Opera up until the late 1950s, and for Stravinsky until 1966. Meanwhile, his paintings continued to gain sizable recognition in several group exhibitions as well as a solo exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago. Berman's success as a set designer did not diminish his passion for painting. He spent much of his time traveling in Europe and the United States, finding a particular affinity for California and the Southwest. He settled in Hollywood, California in the early 1940s. In 1947 Berman was awarded a Guggenheim fellowship for a tour of the Southwest, where he studied the desert landscapes. He found a strong correlation between the vast, often bare landscapes he had been painting from his imagination and the flat, dry lands of Arizona and New Mexico. The loneliness and isolation Berman often expressed in his works lay out before him in the arid southwest. He combined these landscape studies from his fellowship with the theatricality of Hollywood to create new commentaries on materialism, fame, and the gaps in post-war prosperity. He still maintained his signature element of Neo-Romanticism, which was a departure from many of his contemporaries who were working with abstract Cubism and Futurism. Several of the paintings that came out of his southwest trip were shown at an exhibit at the Knoedler Gallery in New York. In 1949 Berman married film actress, Ona Munson, most famously known for her portrayal of Belle Watling in Gone With the Wind. The same year, Berman received another Guggenheim fellowship, and the couple traveled to Mexico together. He continued to draw inspiration from the Southwest, all the while maintaining the visual continuity of Greco-Roman ruins. Berman traveled to Italy with Munson in 1950 to see some of his paintings that were in galleries alongside the works of Salvador Dali and Marcel Duchamp. The international appeal of his work was one of the many factors that contributed to his lifelong success. His classical imagery and architecture combined with the surrealist elements and Baroque shapes made his works very popular with a broad audience. His stage designs brought his unique way of seeing the world to a larger scale as well as to a new audience.In Paris the Bermans exhibited at the Galerie Pierre where their work earned them the name "Neo-Romantics" for its melancholy and introspective qualities, having taken inspiration from the Blue Period paintings of Pablo Picasso. Other Neo-Romantic painters were Christian Bérard, Pavel Tchelitchew, Kristians Tonny...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

India Ink, Mixed Media, Oil, Watercolor

Salvador Dali - Original Signed Drawing - Ladies Dance
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Salvador Dali - Original Signed Drawing 1946 Ink on paper 38.3 x 30.8 cm (15 1/6 x 12 1/8 in.) Signed and dated with monogram lower left PROVENANCE: Julien Levy Gallery, New York (...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Untitled
Located in Roma, IT
China ink on paper. Hand signed. Image dimensions: 30 x 22.5cm This artwork is shipped from Italy. Under existing legislation, any artwork in Italy created over 50 years ago by an ...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

Untitled
Untitled
H 18.71 in W 15.75 in
Jean Cocteau - Original Signed Ink Drawing
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Jean Cocteau Rare Original Ink Signed Drawing Signed "Souvenir de Jean" Dimensions: 19 x 12 cm Jean Cocteau Writer, artist and film director Jean Cocteau was one of the most influ...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Ink

NEW SYNTHESIS
Located in Los Angeles, CA
"NEW SYNTHESIS" GRAPHITE AND COLORED PENICL ON PAPER SIGNED, DATED 1947 ILLUSTRATED IN THE BOOK ON THE ARTIST "DARK METROPOLIS" 39.5 X 29.5 INCHES Irving Norman 1906-1889 Bo...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Graphite

Man and Beast
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Beautiful surrealist drawing by Spanish surrealist, Julio de Diego (1900-1979). Color pencil and graphite on paper, image measures 8.5 x 11.5 inches; 15 x 17 inches framed. Signed and dated lower right. Excellent condition with no damage or restoration. Birth place: Madrid, Spain Death place: Woodstock, NY Addresses: NYC; Woodstock, NY; Sarasota, FL Profession: Painter, illustrator, printmaker, designer, craftsperson, teacher Studied: Study in Madrid, Paris & Rome. Exhibited: AIC, 1929-46 (solo, 1935); AIC, 1935, 1944; Chicago Soc. A., 1938 (gold medal); WMAA, 1940-54; Corcoran Gal, 1943; PAFA, 1944-53; Milwaukee AI, 1944; Surrealist Exhib, Paris, France & London, Eng, 1947; Int. Cult. Affairs Exhib., Dept. of State, Paris, London & Rome, 1948; Carnegie Inst.; Frank Oehlscchlaeger, Chicago, 1970s; Woodstock Artist's Assoc., 1977 (retrospective). Other awards: Polish Art Soc. (prize); Soc. Advertisers (prize); First prize, Men & Steel Show, 1954; The Figure, Arvida Corp., Sarasota, FL, 1971. Member: AEA New York (pres); Sarasota Artist Assn.; Woodstock AA Work: Walker Art Center; IBM; AIC; Milwaukee AI; SFMA; PMG; U.S. State Dept.; MMA; Washington Univ, St Louis, MO; Montclair Art Mus, NJ; Encyclopaedia Britannica Collection, New York; Santa Barbara Mus Art, CA; Woodstock AA. Commissions: Murals & chapel doors, St Gregory Church, Chicago, IL, 1929; Bullfight (mural), Hotel Sherman, Chicago, 1933; Fort Sheridan (mural), Fort Sheridan, Chicago, 1936; Story of Wine (mural), Hotels Ambassador & Sherman, Chicago, 1937; metal sculptures & murals, Ling Nang Restaurant, New York, 1959; also many others. Comments: Best known for his series of war paintings and for his covers of Fortune magazine. He was also a mural painter, fashion illustrator, jewelry maker, stage scene designer, and actor. He once appeared as an extra in the Ballet Russe's Petrouchka with Nijinsky. He came to NYC in 1924 after extensive travel in Europe. His wife was the famous stripper, Gypsy Rose Lee. He was proud of his collection of African, Mexican, and Indian toys and artifacts and imaginative junk. Teaching: AIC, 1939-40; Univ Denver, 1948-52; Artist Equity Workshop, 1955-57. Illustrator: Rendezvous with Spain, 1946. Author: Commentaries: Europe, 1952; Have You Seen Birds...?, 1968; A Stranger in the Spanish Village, 1964; The Book of Ah!,1970; Cuckoo heads, 1971. Sources: WW73; WW47; Bruce Henderson, "He Paints Weird War & Peace" Life Mag (1946); Ralph M Pearson...
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil

Man and Beast
Man and Beast
H 15 in W 17 in D 1 in
Venus Taking a Break
By Norman Reeves
Located in Buffalo, NY
An original gouache painting by well known American illustrator Norman Reeves. Reeves created many covers for Fortune magazine during his lifetime.
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Archival Paper, Gouache

Surrealist Landscape with Black Sun
By Charles Campbell
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Signed in ink lower right Provenance: Estate of the artist
Category

1940s Surrealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

India Ink, Graphite

Surrealist drawings and watercolor paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Surrealist drawings and watercolor paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add drawings and watercolor paintings created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, orange, purple, yellow and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Isabel Rock, Corne Akkers, Maria C. Bernhardsson, and Sergio Barletta. Frequently made by artists working with Paper, and Paint and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Surrealist drawings and watercolor paintings, so small editions measuring 3.75 inches across are also available. Prices for drawings and watercolor paintings made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $121 and tops out at $224,500, while the average work sells for $1,494.

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