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Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

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.

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Style: Surrealist
Period: 20th Century
Pablo Picasso Terracotta Fish Pitcher Madoura Pottery Sujet Poisson France 1952
Located in Portland, OR
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), terracotta fish pitcher. Madoura pottery 1952. This original terracotta fish pitcher was created by Picasso in 1952 and was ...
Category

1950s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Terracotta

Woman Aflame Salvador Dali 1980
Located in Delray Beach, FL
Salvador Dali Femme En FLamme Woman Aflame Artist signed in the mold, edition 141/350 Edition of 350 + 35AP stamped 'Venturi Arte' and Camblest 1981 Edi...
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Molt Clock : Dance of Time - Pate de verre sculpture, Signed - Daum
Located in Paris, FR
Salvador Dali (1904-1989) and Daum Molt Clock : Dance of Time Original pate de verre sculpture Edited and handcrafted by the Daum crystal glassworks Signed in the glass approx. 10....
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Glass

Jack of Hearts - limited edition porcelain plate made in France
Located in New York, NY
Salvador Dali Jack of Hearts, 1967 Limited Edition Limoges Porcelain Plate. Signature Fired into Plate. Numbered with COA 9 3/4 × 9 3/4 × 3/10 inches 24.8 × 24.8 × 0.8 cm Edition 35...
Category

Mid-20th Century Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic, Screen

Lincoln in Dalivision, Surrealist Metal Relief Sculpture after Salvador Dali
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: After Salvador Dali, Spanish (1904 - 1989) Title: Lincoln in Dalivision Year: 1979 Medium: Silver-plated bronze bas relief, backed by fel...
Category

1970s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Dali Chess Set
Located in Wilton, CT
Set of 32 polished and patinated-bronze chess pieces, 1966-70. Height varies from 38 mm; 1 1/2 inches to 85mm; 3 3/8 inches. Each piece signed on t...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Piano surréaliste, Salvador Dali
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Salvador Dali (1904-1989) Title: Piano surréaliste Year: 1984 Medium: Bronze Edition: 34/350, plus proofs Size: 26.3 x 15.7 x 12 inches Condition: Excellent Inscription: Inci...
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Post Soviet Non Conformist Russian Cast Paper Sculpture
Located in Surfside, FL
Mihail Mikhailovich Chemiakin (or Shemyakin, Russian: Михаил Михайлович Шемякин, born 4 May 1943) is a Russian painter, stage designer, sculptor and publisher, and a controversial re...
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Rag Paper

Red Starfish - ceramic tile - 1954
Located in Paris, FR
Salvador DALI (after) Red Starfish Handpainted ceramic tile Signed in the pattern 8 x 8" (20x20cm) Edited in 1954 by Maurice Duchin and hand crafted in atelier MPG under the control...
Category

1950s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

Night of Birds - ceramic tile - 1954
Located in Paris, FR
Salvador DALI (after) Night of Birds Handpainted ceramic tile Signed in the pattern 8 x 8" (20x20cm) Edited in 1954 by Maurice Duchin and hand crafted in atelier MPG under the contr...
Category

1950s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

original ceramic pendant " Chêvre-pied & Double Masque "
Located in CANNES, FR
Jean Cocteau (1889-1963) céramiques originales de Jean Cocteau . Pendentifs : "Chèvre-pied " 1958. pendentif ovale (9cm x7cm) . variante terre blanche en relief. " double masque " 1...
Category

1950s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

Lady Guidivar - original etching of nude female horse rider by Salvador Dalí
Located in Hamburg, DE
"Lady Guidivar" is a rare, original etching from 1969 by Salvador Dalí. It depicts lady Guidivar riding nude on a horse. Originally signed lower left ...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Etching

Rare 1966 Original Bronze Sculpture "The Two Nikes" edition of 6 Salvador Dali
Located in Surfside, FL
Salvador Dali (1904-1989) – The Two Nikes, Lilith, The Double Victory of Samothrace, Homage to Raymond Roussel Literature: Descharnes, Robert, Salvador Dalí, and Nicolas Descharnes. "Dalí, the hard and the soft: spells for the magic of form : sculptures & objects." (Azay-le-Rideau: Eccart, 2004), p, 114 (entry 270). Rare original bronze from edition of 6. This is exceedingly rare as most of his editions run into the hundreds. this is a true authentic Dali original sculpture. This was recently authenticated and comes accompanied by a Report of Authenticity from Frank Hunter, the Director of the Salvador Dalí Archives. Löpsinger 270 Executed in 1966, this bronze statue is incised with the artist’s signature and numbered ‘5/6’ on base. Published by Berrocal Foundry, the work measures 7 3/8 inches in height. Salvador Dalí (Spanish, 1904-1989) A leading proponent of Surrealism, Salvador Dalí is perhaps as well-known for his flamboyant personality as his superb technical skill. Dalí became acquainted with André Breton, a key figure of the Surrealist movement, in 1929. “The Persistence of Memory” is often cited as the most important work of this style. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, held a retrospective of the artist’s work in 1941. The next year, he began a more classical series of paintings, incorporating history, science and religion. In addition to painting, Dalí also made prints, photographs, films, jewelry and sculpture. His works can be found in collections worldwide, including the National Gallery, Washington, DC and the Salvador Dalí Museum. In 1928 Dali went to Paris where he met the Spanish painters Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro. He established himself as the principal figure of a group of surrealist artists grouped around Andre Breton, who was something like the theoretical "schoolmaster" of surrealism. Years later Breton turned away from Dali accusing him of support of fascism, excessive self-presentation and financial greediness. By 1929 Dali had found his personal style that should make him famous - the world of the unconscious that is recalled during our dreams. The surrealist theory is based on the theories of the psychologist Dr. Sigmund Freud. Recurring images of burning giraffes and melting watches...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Hit and Run
Located in Loveland, CO
Hit and Run by Gary Alsum Figurative bronze sculpture 33x12x20" ed/49 Fly Fisherman casting (The fly rod unscrews for shipping, artwork will be foam-in-place custom packed) ABOUT THE ARTIST: Taking the knowledge passed on from artists such as Fritz White, Glenna Goodacre...
Category

1990s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Granite, Bronze

Winged Brain
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Daniel Rothbart, Winged Brain, 1985, bronze, 5.5 x 7.75 x 4.5 in. (14 x 19.7 x 11.5 cm.), edition of 50 with one AP, signed and numbered.
Category

Late 20th Century Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Adam Kadmon ("Vision")
Located in New York, NY
Grisha Bruskin Adam Kadmon (dedicated to art historian and collector Jacob Baal Teshuva), 1992 Steel (Signed, Dated & Dedicated) 6 × 6 × 3 inches Edition AP Hand-signed by artist, In...
Category

1990s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Steel

Rhinoceros - Pate de verre sculpture, Signed - Daum 1972
Located in Paris, FR
Salvador Dali (1904-1989) and Daum Rhinoceros (Chippendale Rhinocerotype) Original two-tone yellow and opalescent brown pate de verre Edited and handcrafted by the Daum crystal glas...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Glass

L'Oiseau
Located in Palm Desert, CA
"L'Oiseau" is a sculpture by Surrealist Joan Miró. The bronze sculpture is signed verso, "Miro" and inscribed 'N.3', and with foundry stamp 'Clementi cire perdue (Paris). André Bret...
Category

1970s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Felicor, Terracotta Wall Sculpture by Roberto Matta
Located in Long Island City, NY
Felicor by Roberto Matta, Chilean (1911–2002) Terracotta Wall Plaque, signature inscribed, numbered in ink Edition of 49/150 Size: 15 x 12.75 x 2.25 in. (38.1 x 32.39 x 5.72 cm) Fram...
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Terracotta

Rare Salvador Dali Surrealist 3D Pop Up Etching Engraving Paper Sculpture 1973
Located in Surfside, FL
Genre: Surrealism Subject: people, architecture rendering Medium: Etching Surface: Paper Salvador Dali (Spanish, 1904-1989) I believe the title is L'Immortalite de L'Imperialisme Genetique, 1973, From Dix Recettes d'Immortalité, Published by Audouin-Descharnes, Paris, (Michler & Löpsinger 567-577) 3-Dimensional pop-up etching on stiff wove paper, (etchings with drypoint and heliogravure). Pencil hand signed lower right and pencil numbered 100/210 lower left. On Auvergne paper. Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Galerie Michael, Beverly Hills, CA Open: 13 1/2" x 30 1/2" x 22" it folds flat and closes like a pop up birthday card. It can be displayed in a plexiglass case like a Charles Fazzino or Red Grooms artwork. Salvador Dali Biography 1904-1989 Salvador Dali is considered as the greatest original artist of the surrealist art movement and one of the greatest masters of art of the twentieth century. Dali began to study art at the Royal Academy of Art in Madrid. He was expelled twice and never took the final examinations. His opinion was that he was more qualified than those who should have examined him. Surreal Art In 1928 Dali went to Paris where he met the Spanish painters Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro. He established himself as the principal figure of a group of surrealist artists grouped around Andre Breton, who was something like the theoretical "schoolmaster" of surrealism. Years later Breton turned away from Dali accusing him of support of fascism, excessive self-presentation and financial greediness. By 1929 Dali had found his personal style that should make him famous - the world of the unconscious that is recalled during our dreams. The surrealist theory is based on the theories of the psychologist Dr. Sigmund Freud. Recurring images of burning giraffes and melting watches...
Category

1970s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Paper, Board, Etching

Dali - De Draeger - Portfolio Luxury edition - 1968
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Dali -De Draeger, Portfolio by Max Gérard Luxury edition inside special packaged box bearing a cover with “soft melting pocket watch” and bronze medal of “L'Unicorne Dyonisiaque” minted and numbered by Monnaie de Paris...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Reinhoud dHaese Sculpture Mythical Figure Copper & Stone
Located in Detroit, MI
SALE ONE WEEK ONLY This work by Reinhoud d'Haese is a magnificent hammered copper figure on a natural stone base. This mythical creature, large and corpulent, invites a caress of it...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Stone, Copper

Gold Hand Chair
Located in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato
Pedro Friedeberg Gold Hand Chair. Gold leaf over wood. Signed inside the base. Includes certificate of authenticity signed by the artist. Available a...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Gold Leaf

Kinetic Bronze Expressionist Sculpture Skier or Surfer Modernist Sporting Figure
Located in Surfside, FL
Vintage stylized figural sculpture by J James Akston (1898-1983 Poland/New York/Florida) Crafted of cast bronze with a rich dark brown patina. A sports figure, depicting a snow skiing or water surfing figure in a Mid Century Modern Brutalist style. Segmented torso with movable parts. Mounted to a variegated green marble base. Signed with artist signature on edge of ski or surf board. Bronze statue measures 13" x 10 1/2" Overall height with marble base 19 inches. (it is either a surfboard or a snowboard) Joseph James Akston was a Polish American sculptor, painter, known for surrealist abstract painting and Aubusson (for Les Ateliers Pinton Frères, tapisserie d'aubusson) tapestry artist. Born in Warsaw, Poland in 1898 he died in Palm Beach Florida in 1983. During the 1960s and '70s the entrepreneur-artist James Joseph Akston adopted a unique Surreal Expressionist style in order to present his private primordial universe and lampoon its denizens, a ribald cast of animal creatures with human foibles. A successful industrialist, he began his career with General Motors foreign operations and then started his own business. Intermittently he studied painting, first with Jerry Farnsworth...
Category

Mid-20th Century Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Marble, Bronze

Angels
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork "Angels" 1984 is a embossed paper bas-relief sculpture by Chilean artist Lucia Waiser, b. 1940. it is hand signed and inscribed A/P (Artist Proof) in white pencil by the artist. The size of the subject is 12.75 x 15 inches, over all size is 15 x 22 inches. It is in excellent condition. About the artist: Lucia Waiser Palombo was born in Santiago on September 30, 1940. She studied Design at the Art School of the University of Chile, from which he graduated in 1966. Later he moved to the United States to study drawing at Foothill College in California. In 1976 he traveled to England where he completed a Master in Art Theory and History at the University of Sussex. The following year he studied lithography at the Brighton Polytechnic Institute. In 1980 he returned to the United States and entered Stanford University to study sculpture with Richad Randell. In 1984, he completed his artistic apprenticeship at the University of Berkeley, California, conducting a paper workshop dictated by Joan Rhine. Selected museums and public collections: COLLECTION IBM, SANTIAGO, CHILE CEMENTO MELON SA, LA CALERA, CHILE WINTHERTUR MUSEUM, SWITZERLAND SOUTH MUSEUM, CHILOE, CHILE VALDIVIA MUSEUM, VALDIVIA, CHILE SALVADOR ALLENDE MUSEUM, SANTIAGO, CHILE CONSULATE OF CHILE IN NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES NORGLAS, SANTIAGO, CHILE PAPELES BIO-BIO SA, CONCEPCION, CHILE SCULPTURE PARK, PROVIDENCIA, SANTIAGO, CHILE Selected exhibitions 1981 Selected in Sculpture, Seventh National Securities Placement Contest, Chile. 1991 Honorable Mention, Parque Arauco Es-Cultura Contest, Santiago. 1966 University of Chile, School of Design, Santiago, Chile. 1968 Vidal, Zurich, Switzerland. 1978 Bell, Book and Candle, San Juan, Puerto Rico. 1978 Lou Henry Hoover House, Standford University, Standford, California, United States. 1981 For being a Woman, South Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1982 San Francisco Museum Gallery, California, United States. 1983 Época Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1984 Chilean-French Institute. 1987 Carmen Waugh Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1988 Del Cerro Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1990 Sculpture Park, Santiago, Chile. 1991 British Chilean Institute of Culture, Santiago, Chile. 1992 National Painting Competition El Color del Sur, Puerto Varas, Chile. 1995 Arte Actual Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 2009 Accomplices, sculptures 2009, Artespacio Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1967 IL Principe, Florence, Italy. 1967 Bottega di Fulgenzi, Florence, Italy. 1979 Los Robles Gallery, Palo Alto, California, United States. 1980 Lou Henry Hoover House, Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States. 1980 Printers Inc., Palo Alto, California, United States. 1980 Palo Alto Cultural Center, Palo Alto, California, United States. 1981 VII National Securities Placement Contest, National Museum of Fine Arts, Santiago, Chile. 1982 Los Robles Gallery, Palo Alto, California, United States. 1982 Adam and Eve, Época Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1982 Innate Harmony, London, England. 1982 Christie's Contemporary Art, London, England. 1983 Five Women Artists, Espacio Arte Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1983 Contemporary Textile, Goethe Institut, Santiago, Chile. 1983 Third Anniversary Exhibition, The Moss Gallery, San Francisco, California, United States. 1983 Center Culturel de L'Amérique Latine, Paris, France. 1984 Bread in Art, South Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1984 Small Format, South Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1984 The Art and Survival of the Planet, National Museum of Natural History, Santiago, Chile. 1986 Nuestro Mundo Andino, Galería Arte Actual, Santiago, Chile. 1986 La Tertulia, Museum of Modern Art, Cali, Colombia. 1987 Carmen Waugh Gallery, Casa Larga, Santiago, Chile. 1987 The Couple, Época Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1988 Exhibition and auction of works by national artists, Dutch Embassy, ​​Santiago, Chile. 1988 Painting the Painting, El Cerro Gallery, Santiago, Chile. 1988 Sculptors' Meeting, Plaza Mulato Gil de Castro...
Category

Late 20th Century Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Mixed Media

Pair of Hand Chairs in black
Located in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato
Pedro Friedeberg Gold Hand Chair. Gold leaf over wood. Signed inside the base. Includes certificate of authenticity signed by the artist. Available as...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Gold Leaf

Large Salvador Dali Surrealist Bronze Portrait Sculpture Mexican Master Aguilar
Located in Surfside, FL
Carlos Aguilar y Linares, Mexican Sculptor (1945-2010) Sculpture chose him. In his hands and his soul he always had the necessary impulse to create wi...
Category

20th Century Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Marble, Bronze

Mini-Zoraida, Puzzle Sculpture by Berrocal 1969
Located in Long Island City, NY
A puzzle sculpture by Miguel Berrocal from 1970. This sculpture comes apart in 25 pieces. In original box with booklet Artist: Miguel Berrocal, Spanish (1933 - 2006) Title: Mini-Zor...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Teutonia, Bronze Sculpture, by Stefan Vladescu 1992
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Stefan Vladescu, Romanian (1952 - ) Title: Teutonia Year: 1992 Medium: Bronze Sculpture on marble base, signed and dated Size: 18.5 x 10 x 9 inches Base 2 x 11 x 10 inches
Category

1990s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Four Surrealist Skeletal Figures Unique Painted Mini Folding Screen
Located in Long Island City, NY
A very cool and stylish mini folding screen of carved figures hand painted by an unknown artist. It is likely from around 1970, the figures are a bit surrealist and match in a stiff ...
Category

1970s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Wood, Paint

Gianmario Italy 1987 Polychrome Cast Bronze Proof of Author
Located in Brescia, IT
Paolo Cassarà, this Italian artist, usually utilized painted terracotta in real human dimensions for his Surrealist artworks. It was exceptional the use...
Category

20th Century Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Butterfly Chair
Located in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato
Pedro Friedeberg Butterfly Chair. Gold leaf, Ink and acrylic over wood. Signed by the artist. Includes certificate of authenticity.
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Gold Leaf

Molt Clock : Dance of Time - Pate de verre sculpture, Signed - Daum
Located in Paris, FR
Salvador Dali (1904-1989) and Daum Molt Clock : Dance of Time Original pate de verre sculpture Edited and handcrafted by the Daum crystal gla...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Glass

Woman with Head of Roses, Surrealist Bronze Sculpture by Salvador Dali
Located in Long Island City, NY
"Woman with Head of Roses" or "Femme à Tête de Roses" is a bronze sculpture by Surrealist Salvador Dali. This interesting piece, referenced by Descharnes as number 684, includes a pl...
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Monograph: BOTERO SCULPTURE (hardback book, hand signed by Fernando Botero)
Located in New York, NY
Fernando Botero BOTERO SCULPTURE (hand signed by Fernando Botero), 1987 Hardback monograph with dust jacket (hand signed by Fernando Botero) Hand signed by Fernando on the first front end page 13 × 11 1/2 × 1 1/2 inches Provenance Hand signed for the present owner at Fernando Botero Sculpture...
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset

Le cabinet Anthropomorphique
Located in Tallinn, EE
Salvador Dalí (Spain, 1904-1989) Le cabinet Anthropomorphique 1982, signed Dali 057/330-A. Foundry marks Foneria Mirbosa, Barcelona. Silver sculpture. 12 x 23 cm, w. 2102 gr. A bron...
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Silver

Le cabinet Anthropomorphique
Located in Tallinn, EE
Salvador Dalí (Spain, 1904-1989) Le cabinet Anthropomorphique 1982, signed Dali 057/330-A. Foundry marks Foneria Mirbosa, Barcelona. Silver sculpture. 12 x 23 cm, w. 2102 gr.
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Silver

Don Quixote Bas Relief in Original Velvet Box
Located in Missouri, MO
"Don Quixote" 1979 Bronze (encased in original velvet box) Signed Lower right Numbered Lower Left 157/215 Size of Relief: 27" x 18.5" Size of Velvet box: 29.5" x 21" x 3.25" Provenance: Martin Lawrence Galleries Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dali was born May 11, 1904 in the small Spanish town of Figueras in the province of Catalunya. The name 'Salvador' had been given to an older brother who died in infancy. When Dali was born the name was passed on to him. No one could have known just how revolutionary and important this name would become to the art world. Growing up, Dali was a difficult child and refused to conform to family or community customs. Dali's father, a respected notary, his mother and younger sister all encouraged Dali's early interest in art. In fact, a room in the family home was the young artist's first studio. Early on, Dali's talent was already refined beyond his years, and with each year his talent only grew, as did his interests. After receiving private art lessons in Figueras for some time, Dali enrolled at the Escuela de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid in 1921. There he joined an avant-garde circle of students that included film-maker Luis Bunuel and poet-dramatist Federico Garcia Lorca. Although Dali excelled in his academic pursuits, he never took final examinations, deeming that he had no need for the type of education offered by formal schooling. He was expelled and reinstated, yet it mattered little to him. Salvador Dali's passion for the arts and his need to experience life on his own terms could not be met within the confines of school. He left. This did not sit well with Dali's father however, and Salvador was subsequently disowned. With no true home left to him, Dali moved into a fisherman's shack in the small village of Port Lligat, two miles from Cadaques and not far from the French border. Port Lligat would become the site of Dali's future mansion home where he would spend many years of his life. It was at this time that Dali came under the influence of two forces that shaped his philosophy and his art. The first was Sigmund Freud's theory of the unconscious, introduced to Dali in Freud's book The Interpretation of Dreams. The second was his association with the French surrealists, a group of artists and writers led by the French poet Andre Breton. When Dali visited Paris for the first time, he was introduced to the leading surrealists in the movement, but because of his lack of interest in politics, he was eventually shunned by this group. It was also around this time that Dali met the woman who was to become one the most important people in his life... his wife and soul mate, Gala. Gala was a Russian girl...
Category

1970s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Bust of John F. Kennedy
Located in Long Island City, NY
This iconoclastic sculpture links two of the twentieth century’s most renowned figures: President John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Salvador Dalí. Cast in wax and decorated with paperclip...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Centaur, Outdoor Sculpture by Ernst Neizvestny
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Ernst Neizvestny, Russian (1926 - 2016) Title: Centaur Year: 1973-89 Medium: Bronze Sculpture, signature and numbering inscribed Edition: 7 Size: 84 x 65 x 36 in. (213.36 x 1...
Category

1970s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Shadow: After the Egyptian
By David Cregeen
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: David Cregeen, British (1945 - ) Title: Shadow: After the Egyptian Year: circa 1985 Medium: Bronze Sculpture with Patina, signature inscribed Edition: 5 Size: 48.5 x 13.5 x ...
Category

1980s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

The Michelin Slave
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Salvador Dali, Spanish (1904 - 1989) Title: The Michelin Slave Year: 1967 Medium: Bronze Sculpture, Signature and number inscribed Edition: 5/6 Size: 12 in x 6 in d. (...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Swan-Elephant
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Salvador Dali, Spanish (1904 - 1989) Title: Swan-Elephant Year: 1967 Medium: Bronze Sculpture, Signature and number inscribed Edition: 5/6 Size: 4.5 in. x 8 in. x 5.5 i...
Category

1960s Surrealist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Surrealist figurative sculptures for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Surrealist 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 purple, green and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Salvador Dalí, (after) Salvador Dali, David Barnett, and Gary Alsum. Frequently made by artists working with Metal, and Ceramic 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 figurative sculptures, so small editions measuring 2 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 $273 and tops out at $250,000, while the average work sells for $3,400.

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