Surrealist 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.
Style: Surrealist
Color: Green
Mr Bomb
Located in Belfast, GB
Mr Bomb, 2019
59 1/8 x 39 3/8 in
150 x 100 cm
"The quirky manner in which Johnston pulls and twists narratives, highlighted by the realistic nature of his work, sheds light on the camouflaged absurdities hiding in plain sight. Johnston invites the viewer to dig through the layers of mundane normality with the shovel of imagination to unearth new perspectives." - Saatchi Art (2023)
Award winning artist Stephen Johnston was born in County Down in 1987, and graduated from the University of Ulster with a first class honours in Fine and Applied Art. Johnston’s work explores the relationship between our humanity, changing culture, and the link between them.
Johnston places realistic figures and ordinary objects in unusual contexts, giving new meanings to familiar things while challenging the observers perceptions of reality. His quirky and thought-provoking work is closely related to surrealism and is inspired by Belgian artists René Magritte and Michaël Borremans...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Oil
1960's British Surrealist Oil Painting - 'Remembering Bird' Fantasy Abstract
By Elvic Steele
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Stunning original oil painting by Elvic Steele depicting this surrealist fantasy abstract painting.
Elvic Steele is a fascinating English painter. Her works entrance the observer, d...
Category
Mid-20th Century Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Oil
1960's British Surrealist Oil Painting - 'Tree's In The Weather ' Abstract
By Elvic Steele
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Stunning original oil painting by Elvic Steele depicting this surrealist fantasy abstract painting.
Elvic Steele is a fascinating English painter. Her works entrance the observer, d...
Category
Mid-20th Century Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Oil
1960's British Surrealist Oil Painting - Fantasy Pink Tree Landscape
By Elvic Steele
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Stunning original oil painting by Elvic Steele depicting this surrealist fantasy abstract painting.
Elvic Steele is a fascinating English painter. Her works entrance the observer, d...
Category
Mid-20th Century Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Oil
untitled
Located in Spetses, GR
Original artwork by Sofia Fotiadou, ready to hang. Signed by the artist at the bottom left corner.
Certificate of authenticity is provided by the gallery.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Gerard Tunney, Midsummer night's dreamers, Original figurative painting
Located in Deddington, GB
A dancer looks upwards towards the sun as her fellow dancers sleep during rehearsals. The ballet is based on Shakespeare’s famous play. The green colours and foliage echo the forest ...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
IN VINO VERITAS, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas
By Marcelo Novo
Located in Yardley, PA
This piece is part of my "Contrast Series". "Like a musician playing by ear and improvising as he goes, my art begins not with cautious preliminary sketches but working directly on ...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
Green Summer II
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The figurative surrealistic paintings of Carlos Gamez de Francisco are heavily influenced by his Cuban upbringing in a Russian governed academia setting. This presence exposed Franci...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
Dialogue - figurative painting
Located in New York, NY
This painting by Henryk was done in 2018.
It will ship from the artists studio in Poland.
More about Henryk Laskowska:
Henryk Laskowski has been worki...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
Green Summer
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The figurative surrealistic paintings of Carlos Gamez de Francisco are heavily influenced by his Cuban upbringing in a Russian governed academia setting. This presence exposed Franci...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
"Cardboard Meat, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Alla Bartoshchuk's "Cardboard Meat " is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a blue and orange hued female figure in the company of floating cardboard cows frolicking with...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Panel, Oil
Green Orchid, Original Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
A surreal portrait of a woman camouflaged in flowers and greenery. "This harmonious artwork shows orchids placed across the work with vines floating in a bright green space," describes artist Asha Hanna...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
Green Virgin
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Hattakitkosol Somchai, Thai (1934 - 2000)
Title: Green Virgin
Year: 1970
Medium: Oil on Canvas, signed l.l.
Size: 27.5 x 31.5 in. (69.85 x 80.01 cm)
Category
1970s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
Jungle Head Marigold
Located in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato
Maike Kreichgauer painting "Jungle Head Marigold".
Oil and egg tempera on MDF.
Signed by the artist.
11.8 x 11.8 in. image.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Egg Tempera, Board
Le Paradis - Paradise, Topical Verdant Fantasy Landscape with Flamingos Egrets
By Henri-Robert Bresil
Located in Miami, FL
Paradise was found and it's in the mind's eye of Haitian painter Henri-Robert Bresil. His stylized renditions of a verdant world populated by birds of Paradise... Pink Flamingos and...
Category
1990s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
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Siren
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Category
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Oil, Acrylic, Oil Crayon
Before / After (diptych)
Located in Nashville, TN
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DREAMS ON PAPER AIRPLANES
Located in Blacksburg, VA
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(" Dreams and hopes are...
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Large Signed Surreal Nude Male Portrait Symbolist Landscape Framed Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Antique American school modernist landscape with male figures. Really well painted and a very interesting composition. Impressive giltwood frame as well! Signed and dated lower ri...
Category
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H 20 in W 47 in D 2 in
In the eyes of the beholder
Located in Sempach, LU
In the eyes of the beholder " is a still life with an apple in the style of symbolism.
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Each of us is faced with ...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
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20th Century Surrealist Painting By Philip Krevoruck Wpa Era
Located in Hoddesdon, GB
Philip Krevoruck 1919-1999 an accomplished WPA artist . Surrealist Oil on board painted during the 1950s .
Dimensions:
30inch X 25.5inch including frame . 24 X 19.5 without frame .
M...
Category
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H 25.5 in W 30 in D 1 in
"FIELD PROJECT", painting, surrealist dream, rocket, priestess, sci-fi, worship
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Located in Toronto, Ontario
FIELD PROJECT is an acrylic on canvas surrealist painting by Brooklyn, New York artist Tony Geiger. It measures 60x48" and is a unique artwork. Note the mo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Paintings
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Ronde, Figurative Surrealist Signed Oil Painting
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Ronde, Signed Oil Painting
By French artist Claude Benard, (1926 - 2016)
Signed by the artist on the lower left hand corner,
titled verso
Oil painting on canvas, unframed
Canvas size...
Category
Mid-20th Century Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Oil
Tactile Fantasy Surreal Erotic Nude Composition Signed Framed Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Vintage signed surreal nude painting. Oil on board. Framed. Image size, 12L x 8H. Signed.
Category
1980s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Vintage Modernist Artist Studio Surreal Portrait Framed Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Vintage modernist artist studio. Oil on canvas. Framed. Image size, 24H x 20L.
Category
1960s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
Contemporary Oil of Antique, Rustic Porcelain Christian/Catholic Virgin Mary
Located in Fort Worth, TX
Mother Mary, 2017
John Hartley discovered his life's passion while growing up in Piqua, Ohio. Encouraged to develop his talents in an academic environme...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Acrylic, Canvas, Oil
H 40 in W 30 in D 2.5 in
Original-Framed-Lovers-Surrealism-Abstract-UK Woman artist-GSY House Collection
Located in London, GB
Inspired by Picasso's Surrealism, cubism and abstract techniques, artist Gloria L. has crafted a captivating series that pays homage to the romantic allure of lovers. Through a use o...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
H 28.35 in W 23.82 in D 0.71 in
Previously Available Items
Foggy - Acrylic painting Pop art Vibrant colors Polish artist
Located in Warsaw, PL
ABOUT THE ARTIST
MARTA RYNKIEWICZ is a Polish contemporary artist (born in 1983).
She studied painting with Professor Henryk Czenik and graphic arts with Professor Jerzy Krechowic...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
H 31.5 in W 31.5 in D 0.79 in
Chamber - Greek Doric Temple & Lush Green Gardens with Reflecting Pool, Framed
By John Hrehov
Located in Chicago, IL
The stark, surreal scene of John Hrehov's painting entitled "Chamber" includes a Greek temple, complete with doric columns. The temple is mirrored on a reflecting pond which sits in a manicured garden. The edges are crisp and contained and the pure saturated colors add to the aesthetic of the piece. The painting is framed in a simple white float frame measuring 17.75 x 15.25 inches.
John Hrehov
Chamber
oil on panel
16.50h x 14w in
41.91h x 35.56w cm
JHR017
John Hrehov
Education
1985 MFA-Painting, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
1981 BFA-Painting, Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH.
Solo Exhibitions
2017 John Hrehov, Paintings and Drawings. Tom Thomas Gallery, Indiana University East, Richmond, IN.
2012 Shades from White to Black, New Drawings. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY.
2011 John Hrehov: Charcoal. Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne.
2009 John Hrehov: A Survey 1999-2009 Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY.
Paintings and Drawings. Seerveld Gallery, Trinity Christian College, Palos Heights, IL.
2004 John Hrehov: Drawings and Paintings. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY.
2002 Paintings. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY.
2001 Charcoal. Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne.
John Hrehov, Paintings and Drawings. Wood Street Gallery, Chicago, IL.
2000 The Picture Proper. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY.
Fearful Symmetry. Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN.
Allegories in Contemporary Life. Yvonne Rapp Gallery, Louisville, KY.
1999 Paintings and Working Drawings. Adams Hall Gallery, Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL.
1998 John Hrehov. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY.
John Hrehov: Paintings and Drawings. Wood Street Gallery, Chicago, IL.
1997 Object Lesson, Paintings, and Drawings by John Hrehov. Yvonne Rapp Gallery, Louisville, KY.
1995 John Hrehov. Trinity Art Gallery, Trinity Christian College, Palos Heights, IL.
1993 John Hrehov: Selected Works 1980-1992 Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne.
Group Exhibitions
2019 2019 Alumni Exhibition. Reinberger Gallery at The Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH.
Out Of The Closet. Denise Bibro Fine Art, New York, NY.
1026 West Berry Street: The Fort Wayne Art School. Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN.
2018 Artlink Regional Exhibition. Artlink Contemporary Art Gallery, Fort Wayne, IN.
2017 Sola Grace-Faith-Scripture: An Exhibition of Sacred Visual Art. Good Shepherd Institute at Concordia Theological
Seminary, Fort Wayne, IN.
Norman Bradley...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Panel, Oil
Heated landscape - Contemporary Acrylic Painting, Vibrant colors, Green & yellow
Located in Warsaw, PL
*Painting will be available after 6.06.2021*
Marta Rynkiewicz is a young Polish artist born in 1983.
She studied painting with Professor Henryk Czenik and graphic arts with Profes...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
The Coward
By Madeleine Bialke
Located in Denver, CO
"My work sets an imaginary stage on which to explore the role of nature in the evolving identity of America. As climate change and ecological devastation wreak havoc on a local and national scale, and an expanding population continues to build an urban sprawl while looking inward into screens-- nature simplifies. I use flat, shallow spaces to discuss natural limits. The colors are derived from clothing catalogues and house paint swatches and do not reference the directly perceptual world. Color is used to create uneasy, unsettling associations with its subjects to suggest a world changed by chemicals, pollution, and integral man-made alterations to the fabric of the natural world. The loopy, slightly humorous treatment of each scene evokes the American comic. Iconic landscape imagery, such as conifers and cumulous clouds, in this sense function as an expression of national iconology and ethos. My representation of nature is codified in a set of mythic narratives, spatial conventions, and communal symbols, removing itself from the original experienced place into cultural arenas."
Born in Ithaca, New York, Madeleine Bialke lives and works in Brooklyn. She received her MFA in Painting from Boston University in 2016, and her BFA from SUNY Plattsburgh in 2013.
Residencies include Northwestern State University of Oklahoma in 2018, and in 2017 at the Julio Valdez...
Category
2010s Surrealist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Surrealist paintings for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Surrealist 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 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, green and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Elvic Steele, Rudolf Kosow, Isabel Rock, and Henry David Potwin. Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Oil 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 paintings, so small editions measuring 2 inches across are also available. Prices for 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 $1 and tops out at $400,000, while the average work sells for $2,999.
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