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Expressionist Art

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
Sea and Mountains
Sea and Mountains

Sea and Mountains

Located in Zofingen, AG

In this painting, I've merged the vigor of expressionism with the serenity of impressionism, using acrylic and oil to craft a textured symphony of the natural world. The colors dance...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Early Morning
Early Morning

Early Morning

Located in Zofingen, AG

In creating this piece, I immersed myself in the visceral emotions that follow a tempest's passing—relief, contemplation, and a sense of renewal. I chose a blend of acrylics and oils...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Oil, Acrylic, Cardboard

"Fish" Watercolor   cm. 18 x 14  1937
"Fish" Watercolor   cm. 18 x 14  1937

"Fish" Watercolor cm. 18 x 14 1937

By Giulio da Milano

Located in Torino, IT

Fish,red,yellow,sea, animals Italian 1937 Giulio DA MILANO (Nizza, 1895 - Torino, 1990) Giulio Da Milano was a Giacomo Grosso's disciple and he was very close to the artists that...

Category

1930s Expressionist Art

Materials

Watercolor

Fried fishes, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Fried fishes, Painting, Oil on Canvas

Fried fishes, Painting, Oil on Canvas

Located in Yardley, PA

Fried fishes , well done )) :: Painting :: Expressionism :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenticity signed by the artist :: Ready to Hang: Yes :: Signed: Yes ::...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Oil

Two Figures Mixed Media On Linen
Two Figures Mixed Media On Linen

Two Figures Mixed Media On Linen

By Jürgen Görg

Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL

Two Figures oil, graphite on linen canvas 40x30 framed. Jurgen Gorg was born in 1951 in​, Dernbach Germany. His formative years were spent in Koblentz, before moving to Maintz to s...

Category

1980s Expressionist Art

Materials

Linen, Oil, Graphite

Weight of We - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Whites, Black
Weight of We - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Whites, Black

Weight of We - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Whites, Black

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

Ojú lárí, ọ̀rẹ́ ǹ dénú, this Yoruba proverb, which translates to "We only see faces, but true friendship is from within," emphasizes that real connection lies beneath the surface; it...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

H.O. Miethke Das Werk folio "University of Vienna Murals" 3 collotype prints
H.O. Miethke Das Werk folio "University of Vienna Murals" 3 collotype prints

H.O. Miethke Das Werk folio "University of Vienna Murals" 3 collotype prints

This listing is for 3 collotypes: "Medicine", "Jurisprudence", and "Philosophy", pictured, from the Das Werk portfolio by Gustav Klimt and k.k. Hof-und Staatsdruckerei, published by H.O. Miethke. Gustav Klimt created glyphs, unique to each of these pieces, specifically for this portfolio. Further information below: About the portfolio: DAS WERK GUSTAV KLIMTS, a portfolio of 50 prints, ten of which are multicolor collotypes on chine colle paper laid down on hand-made heavy cream wove paper with deckled edges; under each of the 50 prints is a gold signet intaglio printed on the cream paper each of which Klimt designed for the publication as unique and relating to its corresponding image; H.O. Miethke, Editor-Publisher; k.k. Hof-und Staatsdruckerei, Printer; printed in a limited edition of 300 numbered plus several presentation copies; Vienna, 1908-1914. The idea of collaboration in the arts is anything but new; however it has so often been viewed and assessed as somehow devaluing the intrinsic worth of art. It’s as if it was a dirty secret to be hidden away. More so even than the eroticism explored by Klimt, which divided public opinion, the artistic avant-garde began to boldly flaunt artistic collaboration beginning in the 19th century- which gained steam in the first part of the 20th century- to become a driving vehicle of contemporary artistic creation. Viewed in this context, the folios of collotype prints published by H.O. Miethke in Vienna between 1908-1914 known as Das Werk Gustav Klimts, are important art documents worthy of as much consideration for their bold stand they take on established ways of thinking about artistic collaboration as they are for their breathtakingly striking images. 1908 is indeed a watershed moment in the history of art. To coincide with the 60th anniversary of the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph I, Kunstschau opened in Vienna in May of that year. It was there that Klimt delivered the inaugural speech. Speaking about the avant-garde group’s unifying philosophy of Gesamtkunstwerk, or the synthesis of the arts, Klimt shared his belief that the ideal means to bring artists and an audience together was via “work on major art projects.” It was at Kunstschau 1908 that Klimt first exhibited his most iconic painting, The Kiss, as well as The Sunflower, Water Snakes I and II and Danae. It was at Kunstschau 1908 that Das Werk Gustav Klimts was first available for purchase. Thanks to Galerie Miethke’s organization, Kunstschau 1908 was possible. Miethke’s pioneering art...

Category

Early 1900s Expressionist Art

Materials

Paper

"Yellow sunset" seascape in oil of Volskya Lilyа
"Yellow sunset" seascape in oil of Volskya Lilyа

"Yellow sunset" seascape in oil of Volskya Lilyа

Located in Zofingen, AG

Yellow sunset" seascape in oil of Volsky Lily. Inspiring unforgettable view of the sea. He has thousands of them.And everyone is special. Everyone is unique. The painting is painted ...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

German expressionist drawing by Carl Hofer' Whispering'
German expressionist drawing by Carl Hofer' Whispering'

German expressionist drawing by Carl Hofer' Whispering'

By Carl Hofer

Located in Petworth, West Sussex

Carl Hofer (German, 1875 – 1955) Einflusterung (Whispering) Charcoal and pencil on paper Signed and inscribed ‘Einflusterung’ (lower middle) 17.1/4 x 13.3/8 in. (43.8 x 34 cm.) Provenance: These works come from the artist’s second wife Elizabeth and from then by descent. Carl Hofer was a German expressionist painter and the director of the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts. One of the most important painters of the Expressionist movement, his work was among those that was considered degenerate art by the Nazis. He studied in Karlsruhe under Hans Thoma. He first visited Paris in 1899 making acquaintance with Julius Meier-Graefe. In 1902 he studied in Stuttgardt and became friends with the sculptor Hermann Haller...

Category

20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Paper, Charcoal

Easter mood
Easter mood

Easter mood

Located in Zofingen, AG

In this oil painting, I poured my soul into capturing the tenderness of spring. The delicate blossoms, bathed in soft light, symbolize renewal and hope. I chose a harmonious symphony...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Paul Manes - Palaz of the Hoon, Painting 2008

Paul Manes - Palaz of the Hoon, Painting 2008

By Paul Manes

Located in Stamford, CT

Paul Manes was born May 4, 1948, in Austin, Texas. He began his professional career in New York City in the early 1980s. His art has been widely exhibited in America and Europe and h...

Category

Early 2000s Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Paint, Oil

A Party

A Party

Located in Edinburgh, GB

Born in 1962, Bludov was educated at the Faculty of Graphics at the Kiev State Art Institute in 1990. He is a member of the Union of Artists of Ukraine and a professor of art at the ...

Category

20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Acrylic

Judaica Bronze Sculpture "Rabbi" Figure Jewish American Boston Figural Modernist
Judaica Bronze Sculpture "Rabbi" Figure Jewish American Boston Figural Modernist

Judaica Bronze Sculpture "Rabbi" Figure Jewish American Boston Figural Modernist

By David Aronson

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 Art

Materials

Bronze

Marc Chagall, The Offering, from Chagall Lithographer I, 1960
Marc Chagall, The Offering, from Chagall Lithographer I, 1960

Marc Chagall, The Offering, from Chagall Lithographer I, 1960

By Marc Chagall

Located in Southampton, NY

This exquisite lithograph by Marc Chagall (1887–1985), titled L'Offrande (The Offering), from Chagall Lithographe I (Chagall Lithographer I), originates from the October 1960 issue p...

Category

1960s Expressionist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Winter  1982, canvas, cardboard, oil, 34.5x49 cm
Winter  1982, canvas, cardboard, oil, 34.5x49 cm

Winter 1982, canvas, cardboard, oil, 34.5x49 cm

Located in Riga, LV

Dzidra Bauma (1930) Dzidra Bauma works in watercolor technique. She paint figural compositions, portraits, landscapes, flowers and still life. She is one of the most productive wate...

Category

1980s Expressionist Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Colourful Abstract Sunset Sky, French Expressionist Original Painting
Colourful Abstract Sunset Sky, French Expressionist Original Painting

Colourful Abstract Sunset Sky, French Expressionist Original Painting

By Akos Biro

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

AKOS BIRO (HUNGARIAN 1911-2002) watercolor/ gouache size: 7.5 x 10.5 inches Beautifully colourful, original painting by the very popular and highly regarded Hungarian/ French painte...

Category

Late 20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Oil Pastel, Gouache

MidCentury Expressionist Portrait Painting, Oil on Canvas, Circle Ludwig Meidner
MidCentury Expressionist Portrait Painting, Oil on Canvas, Circle Ludwig Meidner

MidCentury Expressionist Portrait Painting, Oil on Canvas, Circle Ludwig Meidner

Located in Cotignac, FR

Mid century Expressionist oil portrait on canvas by Lirondo. The painting is signed and dated bottom right. This artwork presents a striking, expressionist portrait of a contemplati...

Category

Mid-20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Women Sleeping Face Down" by Gustav Klimt - Original Print from Courtesan Folio
"Women Sleeping Face Down" by Gustav Klimt - Original Print from Courtesan Folio

"Women Sleeping Face Down" by Gustav Klimt - Original Print from Courtesan Folio

By Gustav Klimt

Located in Palm Beach, FL

Plate #12 from Gustav Klimt's 1907 "Dialogues of the Courtesans" portfolio, consisting of 15 collotypes on cream japon paper. The drawings in this folio are said to be studies for Klimt's well-known Water Serpents paintings...

Category

Early 1900s Expressionist Art

Materials

Paper

My Work

My Work

By Joan Snyder

Located in New York, NY

Joan Snyder has been called an autobiographical, even confessional artist, who draws from her experiences and surroundings to create her paintings. While her subjects vary widely, Sn...

Category

1990s Expressionist Art

Materials

Etching, Woodcut

First Blossom
First Blossom

Rachael DalzellFirst Blossom, 2023

$5,173Sale Price|24% Off

First Blossom

By Rachael Dalzell

Located in Coltishall, GB

Inspired by Rachaels winter dog walks along the Norfolk Broads with her lovely dog Sandy. Rachael Dalzell's paintings are colourful and expressive.  Her free and lively use of paint...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Wood, Acrylic

"Tilted" by Masri - Red, Yellow, and Black Expressionist Hand Painted Portrait
"Tilted" by Masri - Red, Yellow, and Black Expressionist Hand Painted Portrait

"Tilted" by Masri - Red, Yellow, and Black Expressionist Hand Painted Portrait

By Masri Hayssam

Located in Carmel, CA

Masri Hayssam (Lebanese, born 1965) "Tilted" 2024 Oil Paint, Acrylic Paint, Mixed Media, Canvas, Stretcher Bars The artist signed the bottom left and back of the painting. "Tilted" ...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars

'Light Keeper' by Masri - Stunning Expressionist Abstract Portrait - Mixed Media
'Light Keeper' by Masri - Stunning Expressionist Abstract Portrait - Mixed Media

'Light Keeper' by Masri - Stunning Expressionist Abstract Portrait - Mixed Media

By Masri Hayssam

Located in Carmel, CA

Masri (Lebanese-Italian, 1965) 'Light Keeper' 2022 Oil paint, magazine paper, mixed media, canvas, stretcher bars The artist signed the painting on the back and bottom left. 'Light ...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Magazine Paper, Stretcher Bars

"Prowl" Red Abstract Figurative Landscape Signed P. Gonzalez
"Prowl" Red Abstract Figurative Landscape Signed P. Gonzalez

"Prowl" Red Abstract Figurative Landscape Signed P. Gonzalez

Located in Houston, TX

Unique red landscape of a man standing under a tree with black lightening overhead. Done in an expressionist style similar to that of Edvard Munch. Signed, titled, and dated by possi...

Category

1980s Expressionist Art

Materials

Acrylic

Purim Holiday Scene Judaica Aquatint Etching American Modernist WPA Artist
Purim Holiday Scene Judaica Aquatint Etching American Modernist WPA Artist

Purim Holiday Scene Judaica Aquatint Etching American Modernist WPA Artist

By Ben-Zion Weinman

Located in Surfside, FL

Born in 1897, Ben-Zion Weinman celebrated his European Jewish heritage in his visual works as a sculptor, painter, and printmaker. Influenced by Spinoza, Knut Hamsun, and Wladyslaw Reymont, as well as Hebrew literature, Ben-Zion wrote poetry and essays that, like his visual work, attempt to reveal the deep “connection between man and the divine, and between man and earth.” An emigrant from the Ukraine, he came to the US in 1920. He wrote fairy tales and poems in Hebrew under the name Benzion Weinman, but when he began painting he dropped his last name and hyphenated his first, saying an artist needed only one name. Ben-Zion was a founding member of “The Ten: An Independent Group” The Ten” a 1930’s avant-garde group, Painted on anything handy. Ben-Zion often used cabinet...

Category

Mid-20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Etching

H.O. Miethke Das Werk folio "The Great Poplar I" collotype print

H.O. Miethke Das Werk folio "The Great Poplar I" collotype print

DAS WERK GUSTAV KLIMTS, a portfolio of 50 prints, ten of which are multicolor collotypes on chine colle paper laid down on hand-made heavy cream wove paper with deckled edges; under ...

Category

Early 1900s Expressionist Art

Materials

Paper

Lübeck - German Expressionism Lithograph
Lübeck - German Expressionism Lithograph

Lübeck - German Expressionism Lithograph

Located in London, GB

This original lithograph is hand signed in pencil b artist "Ulrich Hubner" at the lower left cotner. It is also signed and dated in the plate. The work is hand numbered in pencil No...

Category

1910s Expressionist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Expressionist Ink, Pastel, Crayon Drawing Jewish American Modernist Ben Zion WPA
Expressionist Ink, Pastel, Crayon Drawing Jewish American Modernist Ben Zion WPA

Expressionist Ink, Pastel, Crayon Drawing Jewish American Modernist Ben Zion WPA

By Ben-Zion Weinman

Located in Surfside, FL

Expressionist ink and pastel crayon drawing of beans (carobs, flowers?) in pods Hand signed. Born in 1897, Ben-Zion Weinman celebrated his European Jewish heritage in his visual wo...

Category

Mid-20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Paper, Oil Crayon, Pastel, Ink

British Mid 20th Century watercolour on board still life painting of flowers
British Mid 20th Century watercolour on board still life painting of flowers

British Mid 20th Century watercolour on board still life painting of flowers

By Derrick Latimer Sayer

Located in Petworth, West Sussex

Derrick Latimer Sayer (British, 1917 – 1992) A vase of summer blooms Watercolour on board 24.3/4 x 16.3/4 in. (60.3 x 42.5 cm.) Sayer studied at the Chelsea School Art under Henry Mo...

Category

20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Watercolor, Board

Bouquet of fluttering butterfly
Bouquet of fluttering butterfly

Bouquet of fluttering butterfly

Located in Zofingen, AG

Bouquet of fluttering butterfly These Oxalis houseplants flutter their wings like butterflies. A flower has grown in my house. In this painting, I sought to capture the ephemeral be...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Expressionist art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Expressionist art 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 art created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of orange, blue, purple, green and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Iryna Kastsova, George Grosz, Stephen Basso, and Marc Chagall. 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 Expressionist art, so small editions measuring 1 inches across are also available.