Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
EXPRESSIONIST STYLE
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.
Find a collection of authentic Expressionist paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs.
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Style: Expressionist
Crucifixion
By Doris Caesar
Located in Greenwich, CT
signed "Caesar" lower right edge
American, 1892-1971
Doris Porter Caesar was born in 1892 in Brooklyn, New York. Her father’s successful career as a lawyer allowed her to attend Mi...
Category
1950s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Mother and Child, Modern Bronze Sculpture by Chaim Gross
By Chaim Gross
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Chaim Gross, Austrian (1904 - 1991)
Title: Mother and Child
Medium: Bronze Sculpture, signature inscribed
Size: 10 x 5 x 5 in. (25.4 x 12.7 x ...
Category
1950s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Mother and Newborn Child, Bronze Sculpture by Kuno Lange
By Kuno Lange
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Kuno Lange, German (1950 - )
Title: Mother and Newborn
Year: 1997
Medium: Bronze Sculpture, signature and number on base
Edition: 2/9
Size: 28 in. x 7 in. x 3.5 in. (71.12 cm...
Category
1990s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Art Deco Expressionist Bronze Judaica Rabbi Sculpture Los Angeles Modernist
By Peter Krasnow
Located in Surfside, FL
Bronze Jewish Rabbi. Original Patina. Art-deco wood carved base. It is signed with initials P.K. and marked "Calif Art Bronze Fdry LA" (California Art Bronze Foundry Los Angeles). it is not dated.
PETER KRASNOW (1886-1979), Russian-Ukrainian, American artist painter and sculptor, born Feivish Reisberg, was a California modernist and colorist artist known for his abstract wood sculptures and architectonic hard-edge paintings and drawings which were often based on Hebrew calligraphy and other subjects related to his Jewish heritage...
Category
1930s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Bust of a Man, Bronze Sculpture by Chaim Gross
By Chaim Gross
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Chaim Gross, Austrian/American (1904 - 1991)
Title: Bust of a Man
Year: 1967
Medium: Bronze Sculpture, signature inscribed
Size: 12.5 x 6.5 x 8.5 in. (31.75 x 16.51 x 21.59 c...
Category
1960s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Bronze Sculpture Rabbi w Torah Judaica Figure American Boston Figural Modernist
Located in Surfside, FL
Aronson, David 1923-
David Aronson, son of a rabbi, was born in Lithuania in 1923 and immigrated to America at the age of five. He settled in Boston, Massachusetts where he studied at the school of the Museum of Fine Arts under Karl Zerbe, a German painter well known in the early 1900s. Aronson later taught at the school of the Museum of Fine Arts for fourteen years and founded the School of Fine Art at Boston University where he is today a professor emeritus. An internationally renowned sculptor & painter, Aronson has won acclaim for his interpretation of themes from the Hebrew Talmud and Kabala. His best known works include bronze castings, encaustic paintings, and pastels. His work is included in many important public and private collections, and has been shown in several museum retrospectives around the country. He is considered to be one of the most important 20th century American artists.
At twenty-two David Aronson had his first one-man show at New York's Niveau Gallery. The next year, six of his Christological paintings were included in the Fourteen Americans exhibition at Manhattan's Museum of Modern Art where Aronson’s work was included alongside abstract expressionists Arshile Gorky, Robert Motherwell and Isamu Noguchi. In the 1950s, Aronson turned more toward his Jewish heritage for the inspiration for his art. Folklore as well as Kabalistic and other transcendental writings influenced his work greatly. The Golem (a legendary figure, brought to life by the Maharal of Prague out of clay to protect the Jewish community during times of persecution) and the Dybbuk (an evil spirit that lodges itself in the soul of a living person until exorcised) frequently appear in his work.
In the sixties, Aronson turned to sculpture. His work during this period is best exemplified by a magnificent 8’ x 4’ bronze door which now stands at the entrance to Frank Lloyd Wright's Johnson Foundation Conference Center for the Arts in Racine, Wisconsin. In the seventies and eighties, Aronson continued his work in pastel drawings, paintings, and sculptures, often exploring religion and the frailties of man's nature. During this time, in addition to a traveling retrospective exhibition and many one-man shows in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Boston at the Pucker-Safrai Gallery on Newbury Street, Aronson won many awards and became a member of the National Academy of Design in New York. Two years ago he retired from teaching to work full-time in his studio in Sudbury, Massachusetts.
included in the catalog
Contemporary Religious Imagery in American Art
Catalog for an exhibition held at the Ringling Museum of Art, March 1-31, 1974.
Artists represented: David Aronson, Leonard Baskin, Max Beckmann, Hyman Bloom, Fernando Botero, Paul Cadmus, Marvin Cherney, Arthur G. Dove, Philip Evergood, Adolph Gottlieb, Jonah Kinigstein, Rico Lebrun, Jack Levine, Louise Nevelson, Barnett Newman, Abraham Rattner, Ben Shahn, Mark Tobey, Max Weber, William Zorach and others.
Selected Awards
1990, Certificate of Merit, National Academy of Design
1976, Purchase Prize, National Academy of Design
1976, Joseph Isidore Gold Medal, National Academy of Design
1976, Purchase Prize in Drawing, Albrecht Art Museum
1975, Isaac N. Maynard Prize for Painting, National Academy of Design
1973, Samuel F. B. Morse Gold Medal, National Academy of Design
1967, Purchase Prize, National Academy of Fine Arts
1967, Adolph and Clara Obrig Prize, National Academy of Design
1963, Gold Medal, Art Directors Club of Philadelphia
1961, 62, 63, Purchase Prize, National Institute of Arts and Letters
1960, John Siimon Guggenheim Fellowship
1958, Grant in Art, National Institute of Arts and Letters
1954, First Prize, Tupperware Annual Art Fund Award
1954, Grand Prize, Third Annual Boston Arts Festival
1953, Second Prize, Second Annual Boston Arts Festival
1952, Grand Prize, First Annual Boston Arts Festival
1946, Traveling Fellowship, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
1946, Purchase Prize, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
1944, First Popular Prize, Institute of Contemporary Art
1944, First Judge's Prize, Institute of Contemporary Art
Selected Public Collections
Art Institute of Chicago
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Bryn Mawr College
Brandeis University
Tupperware Museum, Orlando, Florida
DeCordova Museum
Museum of Modern Art Print Collection, New York
Atlanta University
Atlanta Art...
Category
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Trapeze Artists
By Gérard Koch
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Gerard Koch, French (1926 - )
Title: Trapeze Artists
Year: circa 1962
Medium: Bronze Sculpture
Size: 18 in. x 34 in. x 7 in. (45.72 cm x 86.36 ...
Category
1960s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Praying Woman, Modern Bronze and Marble Sculpture by Ruth Gutman
By Ruth Gutman
Located in Long Island City, NY
This bronze patina sculpture is set on a warm toned marble base. The sculptor, Ruth Gutman, has created an expressionist rendering of a woman praying. ...
Category
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Marble, Bronze
Glazed Ceramic Sculpture Plaque WPA Artist NYC Frank Kleinholz Couple of Lovers
Located in Surfside, FL
Frank Kleinholz (Brooklyn, 1901 - 1987)
Lovers
Ceramic unique glazed miniature sculptural plaque with gold leaf or foil under the glaze.
Initialled recto and hand signed verso with a self portrait drawing.
Framed measures 8.75 X 8.75 inches, Plaque is 6 X 6 inches.
c.1950's-1960's
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Frank Kleinholz was a painter based in New York City whose work spanned several art movements including Expressionism and Social Realism. His work was strongly influenced by Max Beckmann, is a late survival of the social commentary expressionism of the WPA era; His early lithograph works were intensely personal and reflected the influence of the Depression and the World Wars, but his palette lightened as he increasingly focused on families and the bonds between adults and children. He was contemporary of William Gropper and Ben Shahn. As the son of a blind father and hard-working mother who supported the family with a delicatessen. From early childhood, he had to earn a living and sold newspapers and ran errands for local businesses. He graduated from Fordham Law School, and at age 23 was admitted to the bar. In the mid-1930s, while practicing insurance as well as law, he began oil painting and printmaking with teachers including Yasuo Kuniyoshi and Sol Wilson. He gained quick recognition and between 1941 and 1980 participated in numerous exhibitions including the National Academy of Design, the Brooklyn Museum and the Worcester Art Institute. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Kleinholz graduated Fordham Law School in 1923. In the 1930s, he began studying painting under Yasuo Kuniyoshi and Sol Wilson. He quickly rose to prominence with the inclusion of Abstract art in the Carnegie Institute exhibition of 1941. His painting Backstreet won a purchase prize by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Chronology His strongest influences were American Social Realists Reginald Marsh and Philip Evergood, the German Expressionists George Grosz and Kathe Kollwitz, the Mexican muralists Diego Rivera, Jorge Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros, and the early 20th century Paris Modernists.
Described by Newsweek as a "Brooklyn-born Gauguin," Kleinholz focused on urban life in New York, Brooklyn and Coney Island, as well as intimate, social realist scenes of parents and children, watercolor paintings of flowers and birds, and sunbathers. His political works include anti war paintings...
Category
20th Century Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic, Paint, Glaze
"Chicken Pox, " Ceramic Platter with Chickens & a Man signed by Michael Gross
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Chicken Pox" is an original ceramic platter by Michael Gross. The artist signed the piece "Gross". It depicts a gray man with chicken pox and some yellow birds with teeth.
20" diameter
The ceramic sculptures of Wisconsin artist Michael Gross are personal narratives that reveal an unusual mix of earthly magic and primal vitality. The artist works in a variety of forms, including figurines, large vessels and furniture. With over a dozen museum exhibitions under his belt, the artist is a regular exhibitor at SOFA in New York...
Category
1980s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic
Liliane Danino, ladder for all, Elevation, Bronze Sculpture
Located in Tel Aviv, IL
Liliane Danino, Ladder for all, bronze sculpture, sculpture, dancers , nude figures, elevation, dance, Israeli artist, Israeli art
Category
2010s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Martenita Tribute to Picasso Murano Glass Sculpture
Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL
Martenita Omaggio To Picasso,
Signed, artist logo stamp, and title.
Walter Furlan was born (1931-2018) in Chioggia, a small town near Venice. He started to work in a furnace calle...
Category
Early 2000s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Glass, Blown Glass
Expressionist Wall Sculpture by Chris Riccardo
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
renown sculptor Chris Riccardo
Terracotta with under glazes
EDUCATION:
1990 - BFA- College of Fine Arts, Boston University, Boston, MA
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
PRESENT
STUDIO 740- ARTIST/ STUDIO MANAGER, Helena, MT
ASSISTANT CURATOR OF EDUCATION- HOLTER MUSEUM OF ART, Helena, MT
1998-2014
SCULPTURE DEPART. CHAIR/ FOUNDRY DIRECTOR - Armory Art Center,WPB, FL
2012
SUMMER RESIDENT ARTIST @ THE ARCHIE BRAY FOUNDATION, Helena, MT
2010
ELECTED MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL SCULPTURE SOCIETY
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - The Arthur R. Marshall Foundation, WPB, FL
DESIGNED & FABRICATED SENIOR GIFT SCULPTURE - Northwood University, WPB, FL
2008
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - Judge Knott Award, Historical Society of Palm Beach County
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - Providencia Award- Palm Beach County Convention Bureau, WPB, FL
FINALIST - My Wendy, My Way, Wendy’s International, Dublin, OH
2003
DESIGNED & FABRICATED CEE CEE LYLES MEMORIAL- Veteran’s Park, Ft. Pierce, FL
1998 - 1996
RDK STUDIOS - Owner/Operator, FIne Art Bronze Foundry, Riviera Beach, FL
EXHIBITIONS:
2015
CHRIS RICCARDO & FRIENDS, The Art Spirit Gallery of Fine Art, Coure d’Alene, ID
16TH ANNUAL SMALLL ARTWORKS INVITATIONAL, The Art Spirit Gallery of Fine Art, Coure d’Alene, ID
2014
ON & OFF THE WALL: SOFLO CERAMICS, The Art Gallery @ Eissey Campus Gallery
ART PALM BEACH, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
IN LIQUID 15, Philadelphia, PA
2013
NCECA 2013: Resident Artist Exhibtion, NCECA 18 Hands Gallery, Houston TX
ART PALM BEACH, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
THE INVISIBLE HOURDE: Unit 1 Gallery, WPB, FL
2012
ARCHIE BRAY @ the Kolva-Sullivan Gallery, Spokane, WA
RESIDENT ARTIST EXHIBITION: Bray Warehouse Galley, The Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT
MUSES & SIRENS: CHRIS RICCARDO & JACQUES De BEAUFORT, The Art GAllery @ Eissey Campus, PBG, FL
PALM BEACH ART & ANTIQUES, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
SMALL FAVORS VII- The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA
BEYOND THE BRICKYARD ( 4th Annual Juried Exhibition ) Juried by Richard Shaw...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Terracotta
Expressionist Wall Sculpture by Chris Riccardo
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
renown sculptor Chris Riccardo
Terracotta with under glazes
EDUCATION:
1990 - BFA- College of Fine Arts, Boston University, Boston, MA
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
PRESENT
STUDIO 740- ARTIST/ STUDIO MANAGER, Helena, MT
ASSISTANT CURATOR OF EDUCATION- HOLTER MUSEUM OF ART, Helena, MT
1998-2014
SCULPTURE DEPART. CHAIR/ FOUNDRY DIRECTOR - Armory Art Center,WPB, FL
2012
SUMMER RESIDENT ARTIST @ THE ARCHIE BRAY FOUNDATION, Helena, MT
2010
ELECTED MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL SCULPTURE SOCIETY
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - The Arthur R. Marshall Foundation, WPB, FL
DESIGNED & FABRICATED SENIOR GIFT SCULPTURE - Northwood University, WPB, FL
2008
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - Judge Knott Award, Historical Society of Palm Beach County
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - Providencia Award- Palm Beach County Convention Bureau, WPB, FL
FINALIST - My Wendy, My Way, Wendy’s International, Dublin, OH
2003
DESIGNED & FABRICATED CEE CEE LYLES MEMORIAL- Veteran’s Park, Ft. Pierce, FL
1998 - 1996
RDK STUDIOS - Owner/Operator, FIne Art Bronze Foundry, Riviera Beach, FL
EXHIBITIONS:
2015
CHRIS RICCARDO & FRIENDS, The Art Spirit Gallery of Fine Art, Coure d’Alene, ID
16TH ANNUAL SMALLL ARTWORKS INVITATIONAL, The Art Spirit Gallery of Fine Art, Coure d’Alene, ID
2014
ON & OFF THE WALL: SOFLO CERAMICS, The Art Gallery @ Eissey Campus Gallery
ART PALM BEACH, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
IN LIQUID 15, Philadelphia, PA
2013
NCECA 2013: Resident Artist Exhibtion, NCECA 18 Hands Gallery, Houston TX
ART PALM BEACH, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
THE INVISIBLE HOURDE: Unit 1 Gallery, WPB, FL
2012
ARCHIE BRAY @ the Kolva-Sullivan Gallery, Spokane, WA
RESIDENT ARTIST EXHIBITION: Bray Warehouse Galley, The Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT
MUSES & SIRENS: CHRIS RICCARDO & JACQUES De BEAUFORT, The Art GAllery @ Eissey Campus, PBG, FL
PALM BEACH ART & ANTIQUES, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
SMALL FAVORS VII- The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA
BEYOND THE BRICKYARD ( 4th Annual Juried Exhibition ) Juried by Richard Shaw...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Terracotta
Igor
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Terracotta with under glazes
EDUCATION:
1990 - BFA- College of Fine Arts, Boston University, Boston, MA
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
PRESENT
STUDIO 740- ARTIST/ STUDIO MANAGER, Helena, MT
ASSISTANT CURATOR OF EDUCATION- HOLTER MUSEUM OF ART, Helena, MT
1998-2014
SCULPTURE DEPART. CHAIR/ FOUNDRY DIRECTOR - Armory Art Center,WPB, FL
2012
SUMMER RESIDENT ARTIST @ THE ARCHIE BRAY FOUNDATION, Helena, MT
2010
ELECTED MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL SCULPTURE SOCIETY
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - The Arthur R. Marshall Foundation, WPB, FL
DESIGNED & FABRICATED SENIOR GIFT SCULPTURE - Northwood University, WPB, FL
2008
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - Judge Knott Award, Historical Society of Palm Beach County
DESIGNED & FABRICATED ANNUAL AWARD - Providencia Award- Palm Beach County Convention Bureau, WPB, FL
FINALIST - My Wendy, My Way, Wendy’s International, Dublin, OH
2003
DESIGNED & FABRICATED CEE CEE LYLES MEMORIAL- Veteran’s Park, Ft. Pierce, FL
1998 - 1996
RDK STUDIOS - Owner/Operator, FIne Art Bronze Foundry, Riviera Beach, FL
EXHIBITIONS:
2015
CHRIS RICCARDO & FRIENDS, The Art Spirit Gallery of Fine Art, Coure d’Alene, ID
16TH ANNUAL SMALLL ARTWORKS INVITATIONAL, The Art Spirit Gallery of Fine Art, Coure d’Alene, ID
2014
ON & OFF THE WALL: SOFLO CERAMICS, The Art Gallery @ Eissey Campus Gallery
ART PALM BEACH, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
IN LIQUID 15, Philadelphia, PA
2013
NCECA 2013: Resident Artist Exhibtion, NCECA 18 Hands Gallery, Houston TX
ART PALM BEACH, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
THE INVISIBLE HOURDE: Unit 1 Gallery, WPB, FL
2012
ARCHIE BRAY @ the Kolva-Sullivan Gallery, Spokane, WA
RESIDENT ARTIST EXHIBITION: Bray Warehouse Galley, The Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT
MUSES & SIRENS: CHRIS RICCARDO & JACQUES De BEAUFORT, The Art GAllery @ Eissey Campus, PBG, FL
PALM BEACH ART & ANTIQUES, JF Gallery, WPB, FL
SMALL FAVORS VII- The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA
BEYOND THE BRICKYARD ( 4th Annual Juried Exhibition ) Juried by Richard Shaw...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Terracotta, Glaze
$2,500
Mexican indian woman with Water Pot (In the style of Francisco Zúñiga)
Located in Guadalajara, Jalisco
Mexican Indian Woman with Water Pot (In the style of Francisco Zúñiga)
Unknow Artis
Lost Wax Bronze
45 x 35 x 35 cm
1960, MX
No base
Category
1970s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Eagle Skull
By Burt Brent
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
Bronze sculpture by artist Burt Brent. Edition 1/30.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Fleet Moment
By Doris Caesar
Located in Greenwich, CT
Featured in the Doris Caesar catalog by Martin H. Bush, page 110.
Category
1950s Expressionist Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Bronze
Expressionist figurative sculptures for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Expressionist figurative sculptures 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 figurative sculptures created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of green and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including David Aronson, Doris Caesar, Chris Riccardo, and Jackie Shatz. Frequently made by artists working with Metal, and Bronze and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Expressionist figurative sculptures, so small editions measuring 3.54 inches across are also available. Prices for figurative sculptures 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 $650 and tops out at $264,248, while the average work sells for $3,367.