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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
Twin Soul - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Modern, Women, Love
Twin Soul - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Modern, Women, Love

Twin Soul - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Modern, Women, Love

By Kehinde Oyafajo

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

This painting, Twin Soul, explores the invisible bond that connects two bodies, two individuals, two spirits. Though they appear as separate individuals, they share a profound sense ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Mother's Strength - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Modern
Mother's Strength - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Modern

Mother's Strength - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Modern

By Kehinde Oyafajo

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

This artwork celebrates the resilience and unwavering strength of motherhood. The mother carries her child close to her heart while balancing the demands of daily life. Her calm expr...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Tennis, Expressionist Lithograph by Stephen Kuzma

Tennis, Expressionist Lithograph by Stephen Kuzma

Located in Long Island City, NY

Stephen Kuzma, American (1933 - ) - Tennis, Medium: Lithograph, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 275, Image Size: 18 x 27 inches, Size: 21.5 x 30 in. (54.61 x 76.2 cm)

Category

Mid-20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Marc Chagall Gold Framed Lithograph 'Le filigrane violet' Vibrant and Dreamy
Marc Chagall Gold Framed Lithograph 'Le filigrane violet' Vibrant and Dreamy

Marc Chagall Gold Framed Lithograph 'Le filigrane violet' Vibrant and Dreamy

By Marc Chagall

Located in Chesterfield, MI

This piece is very unique and bound to have attention drawn to it. This Chagall lithograph is straight out of a dream state, with vibrant colors and emotion seeping out from its seem...

Category

Late 20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Portfolio: La Révolution Française 1789
Portfolio: La Révolution Française 1789

Portfolio: La Révolution Française 1789

By Bernard Buffet

Located in OPOLE, PL

Bernard Buffet (1928–1999, France) Portfolio: La Révolution Française 1789, 1977 Bernard Buffet’s La Révolution Française 1789 (1977) is a striking portfolio of ten color lithograph...

Category

1970s Expressionist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Le Duet
Le Duet

Le Duet

By Paul César Helleu

Located in Los Angeles, CA

PAUL CÉSAR HELLEU Le Duet. Color chalks and pencil on tan wove paper, circa 1900. 653x500 mm; 25 3/4x19 3/4 inches. Signed in pencil, lower right recto. Framed size: 36.5 x 31 x 1....

Category

Early 20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Chalk, Pencil

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

St Tropez on the French Riviera, Oil on Board Painting by Ramon Dilley
St Tropez on the French Riviera, Oil on Board Painting by Ramon Dilley

St Tropez on the French Riviera, Oil on Board Painting by Ramon Dilley

Located in Atlanta, GA

Ramon Dilley — Coastal View of Saint‑Tropez, Oil on Board Painting, 1985 A vibrant and atmospheric oil on board painting by Ramon Dilley (French, 1932–2020), capturing the luminous charm of Saint‑Tropez with the artist's signature blend of color, rhythm, and Mediterranean warmth. The composition unfolds across a hillside of red‑roofed houses descending toward the harbor, where sailboats rest against a backdrop of rolling hills and expressive skies. Dilley's confident brushwork and saturated palette infuse the scene with movement and sunlit vitality. The painting is presented in its original Montparnasse‑style gilded wood frame, richly carved and perfectly suited to the work's spirited Provençal character. The reverse bears the handwritten inscription "St‑Tropez, rue de la Citadelle, 6/1/85", anchoring the piece to a precise moment and place in the artist's career. A compelling addition for collectors of French modern painting and Mediterranean landscapes, this piece offers both decorative appeal and strong provenance. A highly decorative and collectible artwork for interiors seeking French Riviera charm, vintage coastal art...

Category

20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Board, Oil

Companionship -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Women, Birds, Interior
Companionship -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Women, Birds, Interior

Companionship -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Women, Birds, Interior

By Achike Miracle Anayo

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity (Issued by the Gal...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Snow-Covered Underwood by Ernest Voegeli - Oil on Canvas 46x55 cm
Snow-Covered Underwood by Ernest Voegeli - Oil on Canvas 46x55 cm

Snow-Covered Underwood by Ernest Voegeli - Oil on Canvas 46x55 cm

By Ernest Voegeli

Located in Geneva, CH

Ernest Voegeli is an artist who has found his path through a combination of solid technique and a clear, insightful approach to color, form, and composition. While his work is primar...

Category

Mid-20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

They Thunder forth from Their Clouds-Lithograph by George Grosz - 1922
They Thunder forth from Their Clouds-Lithograph by George Grosz - 1922

They Thunder forth from Their Clouds-Lithograph by George Grosz - 1922

By George Grosz

Located in Roma, IT

They Thunder forth from Their Clouds is an original lithograph, realized by George Grosz in 1922, from Die Raüber, edition Malik Verlag in 100 prints, plate n°8 da Die Raüber, hand-signed in pencil. "They thunder forth from their clouds about gentleness and forbearance, while they sacrifice human victims to the God of love." (Da donnern sie Sanftmut und Duldung aus ihren Wolken und bringen dem Gott der Liebe Menschenopfer.)" Sheet dimension: 61,5 x 42 cm. In very good conditions. Here representing a man in front of cross miserably praying, below of his feet laid down many dead bodies and ruined part of the city. here is one of his artwork affected by consequences drama of war. George Grosz (1893 -1959) was a German artist known especially for his caricatural drawings and paintings of Berlin life in the 1920s. He was a prominent member of the Berlin Dada and New Objectivity group during the Weimar Republic. He studied drawing at the Dresden Academy 1909-11 and at the School of Arts and Crafts in Berlin 1912-14, He was in the army 1914-15 and again for a short time in 1917, but spent the rest of the war in Berlin where he made violently anti-war drawings...

Category

1920s Expressionist Art

Materials

Lithograph, Paper

Nature Morte
Nature Morte

Nature Morte

By Paul Aizpiri

Located in Boca Raton, FL

Paul Aizpiri was a painter and sculptor born in 1919 in Paris, France to an Italian mother and a father from the Basque Country, Spain. Aizpiri was an optimistic person since birth, ...

Category

Mid-19th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Performer Expressionist Oil Painting
Performer Expressionist Oil Painting

Performer Expressionist Oil Painting

By Nicola Simbari

Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL

Performer Artist signed lower right, canvas 28"x31"75 Nicola Simbari was born in Italy and grow up in Rome. He studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma, and in the 1940s he beg...

Category

1970s Expressionist Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

Fantasy with Flowers 63
Fantasy with Flowers 63

Fantasy with Flowers 63

Located in Zofingen, AG

"Fantasy with Flowers" (series of 200+ pictures)   paper 59x42cm  On the paper acrylic, oil pastel, felt-tip pen, ink, gold leaf, pencils, silver,mixed media. Flowers are a smile of ...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Archival Paper

Fantasy with Flowers 57
Fantasy with Flowers 57

Fantasy with Flowers 57

Located in Zofingen, AG

"Fantasy with Flowers" (series of 200+ pictures)   paper 59x42cm  On the paper acrylic, oil pastel, felt-tip pen, ink, gold leaf, pencils, silver,mixed media. Flowers are a smile of ...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Archival Paper

La Hage, Pyrenees , France original etching by J.J. Regal
La Hage, Pyrenees , France original etching by J.J. Regal

La Hage, Pyrenees , France original etching by J.J. Regal

Located in Paonia, CO

La Hage, Pyrenees , France  by French artist J.J. Regal is an original signed, limited edition aquatint etching printed on BFK Rives paper. This is a very bold design with an or...

Category

20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Etching

"Shining"
"Shining"

"Shining"

By Oleksandr Khrapachov

Located in Edinburgh, GB

"The painting ""SHINY"" transports us to a quiet and cozy corner of Transcarpathia, when Hungary influenced the architectural appearance of the region. Here, a picturesque house with...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Never Back Down - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Women, Africa
Never Back Down - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Women, Africa

Never Back Down - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Women, Africa

By Awofadeju Solomon

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

It ain't easy in the rase of success Sometimes I feel tired Sometimes I feel depressed Sometimes I feel like giving it up But I know If I quit, I will never win. So no matter how I f...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Equestrian Love lithograph by Marcel Vertes
Equestrian Love lithograph by Marcel Vertes

Equestrian Love lithograph by Marcel Vertes

By Marcel Vertès

Located in Paonia, CO

Equestrian Love is from Vertes's circus series. Two lovers are embracing in a passionate kiss a few feet away from a majestic stallion drawn in sepia on yellowish paper. Original Lithograph in good condition, backed on original paper and signed in plate. Marcel Vertes...

Category

Mid-20th Century Expressionist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Mispa
Mispa

Mispa

By Kum Cletus

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist Born in 1993 in...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec painting copy. 2000. Oil on сanvas, 73x60 cm
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec painting copy. 2000. Oil on сanvas, 73x60 cm

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec painting copy. 2000. Oil on сanvas, 73x60 cm

Located in Riga, LV

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec painting "La Goulue, together with two women" Moulin Rouge "" copy - Unknown artist, oil on сanvas, 73x60 cm

Category

Early 2000s Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Fantasy with Flowers 9
Fantasy with Flowers 9

Fantasy with Flowers 9

Located in Zofingen, AG

"Fantasy with Flowers" (series of 200+ pictures)   paper 59x42cm  On the paper acrylic, oil pastel, felt-tip pen, ink, gold leaf, pencils, silver,mixed media. Flowers are a smile of ...

Category

2010s Expressionist Art

Materials

Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Archival Paper

Thy Brother's Keeper
Thy Brother's Keeper

Thy Brother's Keeper

By Eniafe Gbenga

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

"Thy Brother's Keeper" describes a time in every man's life. When he is kept and entrusted with a refiner (a person that keeps them before they become their greatest self). I read th...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Kostume, Plakate, und Dekorationen, "Schlange (Snake)"
Kostume, Plakate, und Dekorationen, "Schlange (Snake)"

Kostume, Plakate, und Dekorationen, "Schlange (Snake)"

By Walter Schnackenberg

Located in Palm Beach, FL

Walter Schnackenberg’s style changed several times during his long and successful career. Having studied in Munich, the artist traveled often to Paris where he fell under the spell of the Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s colorful and sensuous posters depicting theatrical and decadent subjects. Schnackenberg became a regular contributor of similar compositions to the German magazines Jugend and Simplicissimus before devoting himself to the design of stage scenery and costumes. In the artist’s theatrical work, his mastery of form, ornamentation, and Orientalism became increasingly evident. He excelled at combining fluid Art Nouveau outlines, with spiky Expressionist passages, and the postures and patterns of the mysterious East. In his later years, Schnackenberg explored the unconscious, using surreal subject matter and paler colors that plainly portrayed dreams and visions, some imbued with political connotations. His drawings, illustrations, folio prints, and posters are highly sought today for their exceedingly imaginative qualities, enchanting subject matter, and arresting use of color. SCHNACKENBERG: KOSTUME, PLAKATE UND DEKORATIONEN, a cardboard bound art book consisting of 43 prints of work by Walter Schnackenberg, 30 of which are color lithographs that are signed and some are titled and dated in the plate, as well as black and white prints and photographs with accompanying text by Oskar Bie; lithographs printed at Kunstanstalt Oskar Consee in Munich, other images printed by Gesellschaft Pick & Co. in Munich, the text and cover with color images by Schnackenberg front and verso printed by R. Oldenbourg in Munich; published by Musarion Verlag, Munich, 1920. The majority of Walter Schnackenberg’s artistic output was destroyed by bomb attacks in Munich in 1944. The highly publicized 2013 auction in New York of the recovered pre-war poster collection once belonging to German poster aficionado, Hans Sachs has reintroduced the world to Walter Schnackenberg’s graphic genius and priceless ephemeral art from a lost era. Besides the museum world, designer Karl Lagerfeld is one of the most prodigious collectors of Schnackenberg. Flipping through the pages of Kostume, Plakate und Dekorationen, it becomes quite clear that Schnackenberg’s collection is ground zero at the crossroads of early modern fashion where the cult of celebrity meets up with dance, music, theater and cabaret, film and the graphic medium. Berlin and Munich under Germany’s Weimar Republic in the first quarter of the 20th century produced just the atmosphere to feed this burgeoning industry. Rising inflation sparked a recklessness to live large for the moment and heightened a desire for escapism. An influx of Indian and East Asian dancers and musicians added to the artsy bohemian cultural mix. A new decadence and tolerance resulted. Film boldly featured provocative subject matter. Cabarets became popular venues giving rise to the demi-monde in which people from all social stations mixed more freely in a thriving underground economy and culture where there was a blurring of boundaries and of social codes. Noted art historian and cultural doyen, Oskar Bie astutely observes in his introduction to Schnackenberg’s publication that what unites the images is fantasy and advertisement. Schnackenberg uses the eye as an instrument to brilliantly construct and convey this double message. His personages never directly confront the viewer. Their eyes gaze off in the distance like those of the screenplayer and film star Hedamaria Scholz in Schnackenberg’s “Die Rodelhexe” movie poster. Their eyes follow the path of a dance composition or become a transfixed and ogling male gaze such as the iconic 1911 Odeon Casino poster...

Category

1910s Expressionist Art

Materials

Lithograph

"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

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.