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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21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Board
Late 20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil, Paper
1980s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Mixed Media, Masonite
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil
19th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1960s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Masonite, Oil
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Fabric, Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Board, Oil
1970s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Paper, Gouache
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
19th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Linen, Oil
1980s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Gouache, Cardboard
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1930s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Paper, Gouache
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Fabric, Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Two figures bask in the light of the cosmos, their curvaceous forms mirroring the flow of celestial bodies. The varying blue tones represent the sky before nigh...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
Artist Comments
This painting portrays a woman with an ambiguous expression, adding a mysterious mood to the piece. The blue streaks in her hair and the shadow on her face cr...
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Fabric, Oil, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Linen
1990s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Wood, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Charcoal, Mixed Media, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Early 20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Linen, Oil, Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Wood, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
1930s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1940s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Linen, Oil
Late 20th Century Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Gouache, Oil Pastel
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1980s Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic