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Surrealist Art

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
Figurative Mixed Media Bust Sculpture in Ceramic Oxides and Carved Fir Wood
Figurative Mixed Media Bust Sculpture in Ceramic Oxides and Carved Fir Wood

Figurative Mixed Media Bust Sculpture in Ceramic Oxides and Carved Fir Wood

By Óscar Aldonza Torres

Located in FISTERRA, ES

This figurative mixed media bust sculpture in ceramic, metallic oxides and carved fir wood opens with a strong emphasis on material expression and emotional tension. The work belongs to the Xentes series, a body of sculptures by the Spanish artist Óscar Aldonza Torres that explores the dialogue between individuality and collective identity. The piece combines high-temperature ceramic for the head—treated with oxides and imitation gold leaf—with a tall fir-wood torso...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Metal, Gold Leaf

Leonora Carrington, The Transparent Hen

Leonora Carrington, The Transparent Hen

By Leonora Carrington

Located in Miami, FL

Leonora Carrington The Transparent Hen, 1969 Watercolor and ink on paper 11 x 4 in Provenance: Private Collection, Dr. Salomon Grimberg (Gift from the artist). Private Collection, T...

Category

20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Ink, Watercolor, Laid Paper

Leonor Fini, Untitled, from Parallel, 1969
Leonor Fini, Untitled, from Parallel, 1969

Leonor Fini, Untitled, from Parallel, 1969

By Leonor Fini

Located in Fairfield, CT

This exquisite lithograph by Leonor Fini (1907–1996), titled Sans titre (Untitled), from the folio Parallelement (Parallel), Paul Verlaine, illustre de lithographies originales de Le...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Grayish Pink, Oil Painting
Grayish Pink, Oil Painting

Grayish Pink, Oil Painting

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
The artwork offers a geometric reimagining of a coastal village from a unique perspective with a thoughtful color palette. The high vantage point shifts focus f...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil

A View from the Platform, Oil Painting
A View from the Platform, Oil Painting

A View from the Platform, Oil Painting

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
Artist Benjamin Xu renders the familiar landscape of Venice, Italy, into an idealized, dreamlike painting by exploring color, form, and stillness. A stone moori...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil

Vintage Poster Modern Art Museum - 1977

Vintage Poster Modern Art Museum - 1977

Located in Roma, IT

Vintage Poster Modern Art Museum is a vintage Lithograph and Offset poster realized after Joan Mirò (1893-1983) in 1977. Good conditions. Joan Miró (20 April 1893 – 25 December 198...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Offset, Lithograph

Welcome to the water planet.

Welcome to the water planet.

By Maggie Taylor

Located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA

In 1981 Maggie Taylor (b. 1961) began to photograph while she was a student at Yale University majoring in philosophy. She primarily took photographs of suburban landscapes and stran...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Le Buste (The Bust)

Le Buste (The Bust)

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in OPOLE, PL

Salvador Dali (1904-1989) - Le Buste (The Bust) Drypoint etching with roulette from 1969. The edition 142/145. Dimensions of work: 38 x 28 cm. Hand signed. Publisher: Pierre Arg...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Drypoint, Etching

Untitled - Lithograph by J. Hérold - 1974

Untitled - Lithograph by J. Hérold - 1974

By Jacques Herold 1

Located in Roma, IT

Original artwork realized by Jacques Hérold in 1974. Colored lithograph. Not signed, as issued. Printed by Mourlot , France. Excellent condition.  This lithograph was realized  b...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Spanish Modern Art by Joan Miró - Tres Joans
Spanish Modern Art by Joan Miró - Tres Joans

Spanish Modern Art by Joan Miró - Tres Joans

By Joan Miró

Located in Paris, IDF

This book cover 50 x 74 x 0,2 cm - 19,6 x 29,1 x 0,07 in is a highly successful example of Joan Miró's mature graphic language. It distills many of the qualities that made his late w...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph, Archival Paper

Enormous 1980's French Surrealist Painting Rainbow over Greek Fantasy Landscape
Enormous 1980's French Surrealist Painting Rainbow over Greek Fantasy Landscape

Enormous 1980's French Surrealist Painting Rainbow over Greek Fantasy Landscape

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

The Rainbow French School, signed with monogram and dated 1985 oil painting on canvas, unframed: 77 x 31 inches condition: overall very good, a few very small indents to the giant canvas but no holes, rips or damage. provenance: from a collection in France One of the largest paintings we have available at the moment, this staggering painting is very beautiful with the deep blue sky, the rainbow arching through the landscape, set against the backdrop of a fantasy Greek/ Romanesque landscape with ancient columns...

Category

Late 20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Petals in Reverie II - Framed Botanical Flowers Still Life Acrylic Painting
Petals in Reverie II - Framed Botanical Flowers Still Life Acrylic Painting

Petals in Reverie II - Framed Botanical Flowers Still Life Acrylic Painting

By Carlos Gamez de Francisco

Located in Los Angeles, CA

The figurative surrealistic paintings of Carlos Gamez de Francisco are heavily influenced by his Cuban upbringing in a Russian-governed academic setting. This presence exposed Franci...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

"Fungo Atomico" (Atomic Mushroom) Surrealist Landscape
"Fungo Atomico" (Atomic Mushroom) Surrealist Landscape

"Fungo Atomico" (Atomic Mushroom) Surrealist Landscape

By Luigi Pretin

Located in Houston, TX

Surrealist painting of a white structure in a barren desert titled "Fungo Atomico" by Italian surrealist painter Luigi Pretin, circa 1976. Signed and dated in lower right corner as w...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Acrylic

Another Form
Another Form

Another Form

Located in Zofingen, AG

A mythical creature emerges as a new form of consciousness, born after numerous internal transformations. The human, the animal, and the celestial merge into a single image, where ev...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Leonor Fini, serigraph on Rives paper, circa 1970
Leonor Fini, serigraph on Rives paper, circa 1970

Leonor Fini, serigraph on Rives paper, circa 1970

By Leonor Fini

Located in Saint-Didier, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur

Print handsigned by surrealist artist Leonor Fini, increasingly esteemed with the movement of rediscovering art by women. This silkscreen is in perfect condition and from a series nu...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Paper

Le Chevalet Aux Fleurs Signed Lithograph, Surrealist, Edition 34/50, Mourlot 838
Le Chevalet Aux Fleurs Signed Lithograph, Surrealist, Edition 34/50, Mourlot 838

Le Chevalet Aux Fleurs Signed Lithograph, Surrealist, Edition 34/50, Mourlot 838

By Marc Chagall

Located in Aventura, FL

Hand signed and numbered by the artist. Lithograph in colors on wove paper. Mourlot 838. Sheet size 30.25 x 20 inches. Image size 22.5 x 14.75 inches. Frame size approx 36.5 x 26.5 inches. Edition 34/50. Artwork is in excellent condition. All reasonable offers will be considered. About the Artist: Marc Chagall (French/Russian, 1887–1985) was an artist whose work anticipated the dream-like imagery of Surrealism. Over the course of his career, Chagall developed the poetic, amorphous, and deeply personal visual language evident in paintings like I and the Village...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

Jeune fille
Jeune fille

Jeune fille

By Henri Matisse

Located in OPOLE, PL

Henri Matisse (1869-1954) - Jeune fille Photogravure from 1937. Dimensions of work: 35.5 x 26.4 cm Publisher: Tériade, Paris. The work is in Excellent condition. Fast and secure...

Category

1930s Surrealist Art

Materials

Photogravure

Art Deco Embossed Serigraph by Erte, Signed, 1990, Pearls and Emeralds
Art Deco Embossed Serigraph by Erte, Signed, 1990, Pearls and Emeralds

Art Deco Embossed Serigraph by Erte, Signed, 1990, Pearls and Emeralds

By Erté

Located in Washington, DC

Artist: Erté Title: Pearls and Emeralds Medium: Embossed serigraph Year: 1990 Edition: 265/300 Sheet Size: 41 3/4" x 29 1/4" Image Size: 35 1/4" x 23 1/4" Signature: Stamped signature

Category

1990s Surrealist Art

Materials

Screen

A source - XXI Century, Contemporary Acrylic Architecture Painting, Colorful
A source - XXI Century, Contemporary Acrylic Architecture Painting, Colorful

A source - XXI Century, Contemporary Acrylic Architecture Painting, Colorful

By Marta Rynkiewicz

Located in Warsaw, PL

Marta Rynkiewicz is a young Polish artist born in 1983. She studied painting with Professor Henryk Czenik and graphic arts with Professor Jerzy Krechowicz, at the Faculty of Paintin...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

American Modernist Surreal Beach Scene Framed Figural Original Oil Painting
American Modernist Surreal Beach Scene Framed Figural Original Oil Painting

American Modernist Surreal Beach Scene Framed Figural Original Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Vintage American modernist beach scene oil painting . Oil on board. Signed. Framed. Measuring: 21 by 25 inches overall, and 18 by 22 painting alone. Excellent condition, ready to h...

Category

1930s Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil

Valentines Night - Original Romantic Playful Still Life Collage Artwork on Paper
Valentines Night - Original Romantic Playful Still Life Collage Artwork on Paper

Valentines Night - Original Romantic Playful Still Life Collage Artwork on Paper

By Maria C. Bernhardsson

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Maria C. Bernhardsson is a colorful artist who lives and paints in Sweden. Most of her works are influenced by the architecture and geometry of houses. Bernhardsson travels the world...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media

The House at the End of the Road - Original Framed Blue Floral Artwork on Canvas
The House at the End of the Road - Original Framed Blue Floral Artwork on Canvas

The House at the End of the Road - Original Framed Blue Floral Artwork on Canvas

By Carlos Gamez de Francisco

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Carlos Gamez de Francisco’s "The House at the End of the Road" is a striking blend of hyperrealism, figurative surrealism, and imaginative narrative art. This 12-inch round acrylic p...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Hero

Roman SustovHero

$240Sale Price|20% Off

Hero

By Roman Sustov

Located in Palm Springs, CA

An ex libris print featuring the heroic figure of a man on horseback, in a blend of medieval and fantasy armor, with a vanquished dragon at his feet. Roman Sustov's prints often prov...

Category

Early 2000s Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching, Aquatint

Modern Midden - Critical Masses
Modern Midden - Critical Masses

Modern Midden - Critical Masses

By Marie Cameron

Located in Burlingame, CA

Artist's statement: In my series Critical Masses, I explore the relationship between our species and various small marine creatures to illustrate in symbolic form various narrative...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Pablo Picasso Christian Zervos 33 Volume Books
Pablo Picasso Christian Zervos 33 Volume Books

Pablo Picasso Christian Zervos 33 Volume Books

By Pablo Picasso

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Christian Zervos. Pablo Picasso. Œuvres de 1895 à [1972]. Paris: Éditions Cahiers d'Art, 1949-1986. 33 volumes in 34 (volume 2 in two parts), small folio (325 x 252 mm.), numerous p...

Category

20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Offset

Lady Godiva
Lady Godiva

Lady Godiva

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in OPOLE, PL

Salvador Dali (1904-1989) - Lady Godiva Lithograph from 1970. Edition of 187/256. Dimensions of work: 68 x 50 cm Publisher: Simeon Wajntraub. On B.F.K Rives paper as stated in t...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Please, don't look, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Please, don't look, Painting, Oil on Canvas

Please, don't look, Painting, Oil on Canvas

By Elena Done

Located in Yardley, PA

Please, don’t look. I’m not offering you this moment. I’m not hiding — I’m just not performing. ? I turn away, and in that gesture, I become mine again. Please, D...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil

Discovering New Worlds, Oil Painting
Discovering New Worlds, Oil Painting

Discovering New Worlds, Oil Painting

By Eric Vanasse

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
A large white polar bear lies on a cliff with its eyes closed, while a dodo bird leans beside it. To their side, an easel holds a Rembrandt painting of a stormy...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil

Turtle (Comanche Native American surrealist painting)
Turtle (Comanche Native American surrealist painting)

Turtle (Comanche Native American surrealist painting)

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Turtle, ca. 1975-80. Gouache on Arches rag paper, Sheet measures 23 x 30 inches. Image measures 22 x 29 inches. Signed lower left. Excellent condition. Unframed.

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Gouache, Rag Paper

La Tia - figurative painting, landscape painting
La Tia - figurative painting, landscape painting

La Tia - figurative painting, landscape painting

By Mauricio Vergara

Located in New York, NY

This beautiful surrealist painting by Mauricio comes rolled in a tube and needs to be stretched when received. In his pieces, Mauricio combines his figurative expertise along with su...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Untitled (Surrealist composition)
Untitled (Surrealist composition)

Untitled (Surrealist composition)

By Julio de Diego

Located in Fairlawn, OH

Untitled (Surrealist composition) Wax resist monotype with scraffito, 1947 Signed in scraffito in the image lower right (see photo) Unique image, part a of series of similar works i...

Category

1940s Surrealist Art

Materials

Monotype

La Perruche et la Sirène
La Perruche et la Sirène

La Perruche et la Sirène

By Henri Matisse

Located in OPOLE, PL

Henri Matisse (1869-1954) - La Perruche et la Sirène Lithograph from 1958. Dimensions of work: 78 x 35.5 cm. Publisher: Tériade, Paris. Each copy of this Lithograph was originall...

Category

1950s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

"Night Swim" (2024) Original Oil Painting on Panel
"Night Swim" (2024) Original Oil Painting on Panel

"Night Swim" (2024) Original Oil Painting on Panel

By Nadezda

Located in Denver, CO

Nadezda's beautiful handmade oil on panel painting "Night Swim" (2024) is a portrait of a young girl in a surreal scene, laying in ocean waters while carried by a shiver of sharks. ...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

The Chair by the Window, Superb Large Surrealist oil painting on canvas

The Chair by the Window, Superb Large Surrealist oil painting on canvas

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

The Chair by the Window Surrealist School, circa 1970's signed lower left, indistinctly (see photos) framed: 24 x 30.5 inches provenance: private collection, London Superb Surreali...

Category

Mid-20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Surrealist art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Surrealist 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 blue, orange, purple, red and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Salvador Dalí, Marc Chagall, Joan Miró, and Leonor Fini. Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Lithograph 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 art, so small editions measuring 1 inches across are also available. Prices for art made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $1 and tops out at $1,450,000, while the average work sells for $1,426.