Surrealist More Art
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.
1950s Surrealist More Art
Lithograph
1970s Surrealist More Art
Lithograph
1930s Surrealist More Art
Lithograph
1970s Surrealist More Art
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Acrylic, Board
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
A towering stack of pancakes, topped with butter and dripping syrup, balances as a plumb line ensures its perfect level. The precise measurement keeps the foo...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Watercolor
1970s Surrealist More Art
Etching, Aquatint, Lithograph
1920s Surrealist More Art
Paper
Artist Comments
A landscape watercolor painted in the realist tradition blends humor with commentary on modern life. The scene reflects on the cost of living and the conditio...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Watercolor
Artist Comments
A surreal pinball game unfolds as oversized marbles cascade on a fire escape outside an inner city dwelling. The complimentary colors between the building and...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Oil
1970s Surrealist More Art
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset, Felt Pen
2010s Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Oil
1920s Surrealist More Art
Paper
1970s Surrealist More Art
Lithograph
1930s Surrealist More Art
Paper, Engraving
Artist Comments
As part of artist Rachel Srinivasan's Rodeo Tarot series, this interpretation of the Seven of Pentacles tarot card uses green to embody the themes of growth, ...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Oil
Artist Comments
Inspired by her relocation from the Midwest to Florida, artist Kit Silver paints a whimsical fusion of seahorses and bunnies. The warm hues and intricate deta...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Oil
1970s Surrealist More Art
Paint, Paper, Mixed Media
Artist Comments
A white chicken with a quirky stack of objects on its head balances on a unicycle. The pile includes a coffee cup, a potted plant, an egg, a toy truck, books,...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Ink, Watercolor, Archival Paper, Graphite
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Acrylic
Early 2000s Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Oil
1920s Surrealist More Art
Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Watercolor
1940s Surrealist More Art
Photogravure, Paper
Artist Comments
Part of her series about the divinatory meanings of the swords tarot cards, artist Rachel Srinivasan paints a minotaur with blades and a caduceus. She feature...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Watercolor
1920s Surrealist More Art
Etching
1960s Surrealist More Art
Paper
1920s Surrealist More Art
Paper
Artist Comments
Around noon on a Friday, a tiny rider in a pink tutu balances atop a green dinosaur adorned with a yellow daisy. They navigate the ta...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Oil
1920s Surrealist More Art
Photogravure, Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Acrylic, Board
1950s Surrealist More Art
Lithograph
1950s Surrealist More Art
Lithograph
1960s Surrealist More Art
Paper
Artist Comments
"A panther in space, now that's out of this world," says artist Miranda Gamel. She depicts a surrealist image of the ebony fe...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist More Art
Oil
1970s Surrealist More Art
Etching, Aquatint
1970s Surrealist More Art
Etching, Aquatint
1970s Surrealist More Art
Etching, Aquatint
1980s Surrealist More Art
Etching, Aquatint
1980s Surrealist More Art
Etching, Aquatint
1950s Surrealist More Art
Etching, Aquatint
1950s Surrealist More Art
Etching, Aquatint
1960s Surrealist More Art
Woodcut
1920s Surrealist More Art
Paper
1970s Surrealist More Art
Woodcut
1970s Surrealist More Art
Woodcut
1970s Surrealist More Art
Woodcut
1970s Surrealist More Art
Woodcut
