Expressionist Figurative Paintings
While “expressionist” is used to describe any art that avoids naturalism and instead employs a bold use of flattened forms and intense brushwork, Expressionist art formally describes early-20th-century work from Europe that drew on Symbolism and confronted issues such as urbanization and capitalism. Expressionist artists experimented in paintings and prints with skewed perspectives, abstraction and unconventional, bright colors to portray how isolating and anxious the world felt rather than how it appeared.
Between 1905 and 1920, Austrian and German artists, in particular, were inspired by Postimpressionists such as Paul Gauguin and Vincent van Gogh in their efforts to strive for a new authenticity in their work. In its geometric patterns and decorative details, Expressionist art was also marked by eclectic sources like German and Russian folk art as well as tribal art from Africa and Oceania, which the movement’s practitioners witnessed at museums and world’s fairs.
Groups of artists came together to share and promote the themes now associated with Expressionism, such as Die Brücke (The Bridge) in Dresden, which included Erich Heckel, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff and investigated alienation and the dissolution of society in vivid color. In Munich, Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider), a group led by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc, instilled Expressionism with a search for spiritual truths. In his iconic painting The Scream, prolific Norwegian painter Edvard Munch conveyed emotional turmoil through his depiction of environmental elements, such as the threatening sky.
Expressionism shifted around the outbreak of World War I, with artists using more elements of the grotesque in reaction to the escalation of unrest and violence. Printmaking was especially popular, as it allowed artists to widely disseminate works that grappled with social and political issues amid this time of upheaval. Although the art movement ended with the rise of Nazi Germany, where Expressionist creators were labeled “degenerate,” the radical ideas of these artists would influence Neo-Expressionism that emerged in the late 1970s with painters like Jean-Michel Basquiat and Francesco Clemente.
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1980s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Watercolor
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Wood Panel, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Board
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas
1990s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Watercolor
1980s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Diana Elena Chelaru depicts figures grooving to the pulsating beat of the music. Bright lights cast vibrant hues across the scene, adding an electrifying...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
Mid-20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Gouache, Board
1940s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
In this lively and spirited painting, five figures revel in the music and each other's company. Tones of blue and orange embrace their forms as they hit the dan...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
1970s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic, Canvas
Artist Comments
A woman holds her dress as she walks on the beach. The bright golden light outlines her body, setting her apart from the abstract purple horizon in the background. With broad brushstrokes, artist Connie Millholland...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil
Artist Comments
This painting shows a happy moment between friends dancing with each other. They close their eyes and lift their hands, fully immersing themselves in the experi...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Encaustic
Artist Comments
Artist Diana Elena Chelaru captures the essence of movement in her composition, where two figures dance, swaying to the rhythm. Bright beams from the strobe lig...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Acrylic
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Acrylic
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1990s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1970s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Graphite
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Mid-20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
Mid-20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1950s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
1970s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Masonite, Oil
Artist Comments
Artist Sharon Sieben creates a stern portrait of a man who, despite his attempt to appear disinterested, finds himself unable to resist the allure of curiosit...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
1940s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic, Gouache
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1970s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
Early 2000s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic, Wood
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Paper, Gouache
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
Late 20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Wood Panel
1940s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Panel
Artist Comments
Artist Robert Hofherr illustrates an expressionist portrait of a Victorian family and their pet dog. Influenced by similar works of Picasso, this interpretation of a vintage formal...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
1970s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
1970s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
1930s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Gouache
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil
1970s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board