Surrealist Animal Paintings
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.
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Paint, Mixed Media, Archival Paper, Pen
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Part of artist Michael Wedge's series explores the contrast between urban and rural environments. This surrealist painting depicts the installation of some digital technology in an unlikely place in nature. A woman prepares to climb up the ladder while another approaches with an open laptop and an extension wire at hand. They are busy in the middle of an open field with a fox wandering between them and deers grazing in the distance.
About the Artist
Michael Wedge works in a variety of mediums: sculpture, painting, mixed media and more. He oftentimes starts with a mental image and creates digital collages, which become the basis for his paintings. A lot of his work references themes from his personal life, such as the experience of living in a city versus in the countryside. If his art seems mysterious, it;s because he enjoys making complex works. "I am attracted to images or moments that seem to have something subtle or hidden under the surface," he explains. When he;s not making art, he teaches it at an elementary school.
Words that describe this painting: surrealism...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Acrylic, Canvas
Artist Comments
Artist Rachel Srinivasan presents a surreal image of a white bison standing in the middle of 10 swords—nominative to its corresponding card from the tarot d...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
A surreal portrait of a jaguar overlaid with a glowing peony. "She moves unapologetically through space, through water, through the land," says artist Miranda...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Paint, Mixed Media, Archival Paper, Pen
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Paint, Mixed Media, Archival Paper, Pen
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil, Panel
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1950s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1930s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil, Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1970s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil, Wood Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Linen, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1960s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil, Panel
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil, Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Watercolor
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Acrylic, Panel
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 Animal Paintings
Oil
20th Century Surrealist Animal Paintings
Birch, Oil, Wood Panel
Artist Comments
The bison and the beetle have a prehistoric elegance about them that I thought would compliment each other perfectly. Symbolically, both represent life and mortality, which has been on my mind lately. To Native Americans, bison are symbolic of sacred life and abundance. And in ancient greek mythology the beetle became revered as a symbol of rebirth and immortality -- its daily journey across the sky became an allegory of human life. The Wallpaper collection is a juxtaposition of masculine meets feminine. I wanted to create a unique series that stands apart from traditional nature paintings, where the wild and somewhat prehistoric aspects of my animals featured contrast against their delicate backdrops. In addition to this, many of my paintings are created with a little bit of underlying symbolism usually sparked from a world event or life moment that I am experiencing. I concentrate on this theme as a therapeutic mantra throughout the creation of the painting. For each painting, different techniques and layers of design are implemented when creating the wall paper effect. To keep the patterns consistent I create a stencil to outline the shapes of my hummingbirds, bugs and fish, and then I hand paint each shape individually. In the areas where I wanted a little more chaos, I would forgo the stencil and eyeball each design. My animals are always painted first, and then I layout the design around them.
About the Artist
Australian-born Alana Clumeck...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
A tortoise hangs suspended by a hook, with daisies resting gently on its shell. The composition blends realism and surrealism, inviting reflection on captivit...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil
1970s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Gouache, Rag Paper
Artist Comments
Waves of vibrant colors radiate from a blue chalice, creating a rhythmic pattern. Framing the scene are horses galloping along the sides with a white bison at the bottom. The artwork is part of artist Rachel Srinivasan's tarot series. It represents the beginning of a new relationship or a renewal of communication. Water, waves, vessel, and the color blue are all symbolic in the cosmology of tarot.
About the Artist
For Rachel Srinivasan, an idea is worth putting on a canvas only if it still feels exciting after a few days. Rachel enjoys mulling the idea over in her mind for some time before creating an artwork. She hopes viewers will engage with her work and wonder about the subject matter, shapes and colors. "My current work is all about creating a connection between the person on the canvas with the viewer," she explains. She prefers large paintings and sometimes even makes her own canvases. She currently lives in Arizona and enjoys baking rhubarb pies, reading, running and going to art museums.
Words that describe this painting: water, ace, tarot, magic, water, happiness, horse, series, music, sorcery, mysticism, spirituality, bison, fantasy, animals, surrealism, oil painting, blue
Ace of Cups...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1940s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Masonite, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1970s Surrealist Animal Paintings
Gouache, Rag Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Animal Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
