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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
Untitled IV (Jörg Remé, Jörg Krichbaum, ~43% OFF - MUST GO)
Untitled IV (Jörg Remé, Jörg Krichbaum, ~43% OFF - MUST GO)

Untitled IV (Jörg Remé, Jörg Krichbaum, ~43% OFF - MUST GO)

By Jörg Remé

Located in Kansas City, MO

Joerg Reme Untitled IV from "von den Stunden" Folio Color Lithograph on handmade paper with deckled edges 1972 Size: 11.75 x 8.325 inches (29.8 × 21.1 cm) Edition: 31 of 250 Signed i...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Portrait of Woman, Figurative Surrealism Original oil Painting
Portrait of Woman, Figurative Surrealism Original oil Painting

Portrait of Woman, Figurative Surrealism Original oil Painting

By Ashot Yan

Located in Granada Hills, CA

Figurative Surrealism Original Painting Artist: Ashot Yan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2023 Style: Surrealism, Title: Sti...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

'European Landscape' —Mid-century American Surrealism
'European Landscape' —Mid-century American Surrealism

'European Landscape' —Mid-century American Surrealism

By Lawrence Kupferman

Located in Myrtle Beach, SC

Lawrence Kupferman, 'European Landscape', drypoint, edition 50, 1942. Signed, dated, titled, and numbered '7/50' in pencil. A superb, finely nuanced impression, on cream wove paper; the full sheet with margins (1 to 1 3/4 inches); in excellent condition. Image size 10 7/8 x 13 3/8 inches; sheet size 13 1/8 x 16 1/2 inches. Archivally matted to museum standards, unframed. An impression of this work is included in the permanent collection of the Syracuse University Art Museum. ABOUT THE ARTIST Lawrence Kupferman (1909 - 1982) was born in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston and grew up in a working-class family. He attended the Boston Latin School and participated in the high school art program at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. In the late 1920s, he studied drawing under Philip Leslie Hale at the Museum School—an experience he called 'stultifying and repressive'. In 1932 he transferred to the Massachusetts College of Art, where he first met his wife, the artist Ruth Cobb. He returned briefly to the Museum School in 1946 to study with the influential expressionist German-American painter Karl Zerbe. Kupferman held various jobs while pursuing his artistic career, including two years as a security guard at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. During the 1930s he worked as a drypoint etcher for the Federal Art Project, creating architectural drawings in a formally realistic style—these works are held in the collections of the Fogg Museum and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. In the 1940s he began incorporating more expressionistic forms into his paintings as he became progressively more concerned with abstraction. In 1946 he began spending summers in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he met and was influenced by Mark Rothko, Hans Hofmann, Jackson Pollock, and other abstract painters. At about the same time he began exhibiting his work at the Boris Mirski Gallery in Boston. In 1948, Kupferman was at the center of a controversy involving hundreds of Boston-area artists. In February of that year, the Boston Institute of Modern Art issued a manifesto titled 'Modern Art and the American Public' decrying 'the excesses of modern art,' and announced that it was changing its name to the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA). The poorly conceived statement, intended to distinguish Boston's art scene from that of New York, was widely perceived as an attack on modernism. In protest, Boston artists such as Karl Zerbe, Jack Levine, and David Aronson formed the 'Modern Artists Group' and organized a mass meeting. On March 21, 300 artists, students, and other supporters met at the Old South Meeting House and demanded that the ICA retract its statement. Kupferman chaired the meeting and read this statement to the press: “The recent manifesto of the Institute is a fatuous declaration which misinforms and misleads the public concerning the integrity and intention of the modern artist. By arrogating to itself the privilege of telling the artists what art should be, the Institute runs counter to the original purposes of this organization whose function was to encourage and to assimilate contemporary innovation.” The other speakers were Karl Knaths...

Category

1940s Surrealist Art

Materials

Drypoint

Visions Surrealiste Coronation of Gala
Visions Surrealiste Coronation of Gala

Visions Surrealiste Coronation of Gala

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in Hollywood, FL

ARTIST: Salvador Dali TITLE: Visions Surrealiste Coronation of Gala MEDIUM: Lithograph SIGNED: Hand Signed by Salvador Dali EDITION NUMBER: EA MEASUREMENTS: 21.37" x 29.75" YEA...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Woman In The Chair
Woman In The Chair

Woman In The Chair

By Elisabeth Sabala

Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL

Woman in the chair, heavy oil impasto on canvas framed. Elisabeth Sabala Abelló (Barcelona, 1956). She studied industrial design at the School of Arts and Crafts in Barcelona ​​and has a degree in Fine Arts, a specialty in painting, from the Central University of the same city. Sabala is a convinced figurative who has given all the prominence of her work to the representation of the human being in its most trivial aspects. At a time when the artistic landscape extols abstract and conceptual art focused on the great universal themes, Sabala continues to focus on the small defects that bring us closer to the collective and the human. The artistic progression of Sabala takes place, at first, from a bleak period to another vitalist and, later, from the representation of isolated characters (In the super, Reading the stories of the paintings) to the recreation of great concentrations of its peculiar individuals characterized in an endless number of situations (The Great Dance, The Girls of the Choir). Sabala's work is vital and touching, as well as scathing and satirical: it confronts its characters in the most varied situations, capturing, at the same time, the viewer's attention with an unusual juxtaposition of colors that do not seek chromatic harmony, but expression and movement through matter. In 1980 he won the first prize of a painting of the City of Castelldefels, and the following year he debuted individually in the Caixa Catalunya room, in Barcelona. In 1984, she was selected for the XXIII Joan Miró Drawing Prize, taking part in a traveling exhibition in Japan. Sabala won the first prize in the International Painting Competition of Pollença (Mallorca) in 1985, and the following year she took part in a collective held at the Martano gallery in Turin. That same year of 1986 she obtained the Scholarship of Plastic Arts of the Generalitat de Catalunya. He continues to hold personal shows in Barcelona, ​​Mallorca, Madrid, and Italy, and in 1989 he debuted in New York with an individual exhibition held at the Scott Alan Gallery. Since then she will reiterate his presence both in that city and in Paris, Berlin, Monaco, Amsterdam, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Hong Kong, etc. His works have been present at Interactive, ARCO, Art Forum, Art Jonction and New Art, as well as in various Spanish museums. • Studies: Fine Arts, University of Barcelona • Industrial Design, School of Arts and Crafts, Barcelona Main exhibitions Spain: • Barcelona: ◦ Arcs & Cracks, 1990, 1992, Anna Benach 1993, Helena Ramos 1993 ◦ Maria Jose Castellvi 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001 “a wedding is a wedding” + Performance “Ella” ◦ 2004, 2006 “Fashion satisfaction” + Performance ◦ 2008 “Women's weapons” • Girona: ◦ Helena Ramos 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995 ◦ Cyprus Art...

Category

1980s Surrealist Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

At The Warehouse - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Woman, Dog
At The Warehouse - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Woman, Dog

At The Warehouse - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Woman, Dog

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

Shipping Procedure FREE Shipping Worldwide 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 Authent...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Joan Miro, Untitled, from Miro, Recent Unpublished Work, 1964
Joan Miro, Untitled, from Miro, Recent Unpublished Work, 1964

Joan Miro, Untitled, from Miro, Recent Unpublished Work, 1964

By Joan Miró

Located in Southampton, NY

This exquisite lithograph by Joan Miro (1893–1983), titled Sans titre (Untitled), from the album Miro, Obra Inedita Recent (Miro, Recent Unpublished Work), originates from the 1964 e...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Nile Jade Justine Guitar 1998 Signed Lithograph Mourlot Paris
Nile Jade Justine Guitar 1998 Signed Lithograph Mourlot Paris

Nile Jade Justine Guitar 1998 Signed Lithograph Mourlot Paris

Located in Rochester Hills, MI

Artist: Nile Jade Title: Guitar, Year: 1998 Lithograph on Arches Archival Paper Paper Size 28.5" x 38.5" inches Signed in pencil and marked 192/299 Printed by Mourlot Paris Nile Ja...

Category

1990s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

"Apollon" from the suite "lArt d'Aimer d'Ovide"
"Apollon" from the suite "lArt d'Aimer d'Ovide"

"Apollon" from the suite "lArt d'Aimer d'Ovide"

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork titled, "Apollon" from the suite, "l'Art d'Aimer d'Ovide" 1976. is an original wood engraving on Japan nacre paper by artist Salvador Dali 1904-1989. It is hand signed...

Category

Late 20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Woodcut

Surreal Landscape by Italian Artist Lanfranco Finocchioli
Surreal Landscape by Italian Artist Lanfranco Finocchioli

Surreal Landscape by Italian Artist Lanfranco Finocchioli

Located in New York, NY

Lanfranco Finocchioli (Italian, b. 20th century) Sognando Capri (Dreaming of Capri), 2003 Oil on canvas 13 3/4 x 19 5/8 in. Framed: 19 1/4 x 23 1/4 x 1 1/8 in. Signed and dated lower...

Category

Early 2000s Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Faust Cavalier et la Mort
Faust Cavalier et la Mort

Faust Cavalier et la Mort

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in Hollywood, FL

ARTIST: Salvador Dali TITLE: Faust Cavalier et la Mort MEDIUM: Etching SIGNED: Hand Signed EDITION NUMBER: 44/95 MEASUREMENTS: 11.4" x 15.3" YEAR: 1969 FRAMED: Yes CONDITION...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching

"just another..." - 1976 Surrealist Lithograph on Paper
"just another..." - 1976 Surrealist Lithograph on Paper

"just another..." - 1976 Surrealist Lithograph on Paper

Located in Soquel, CA

"just another..." - 1976 Surrealist Lithograph on Paper 1976 surrealist lithograph on paper titled "just another..." by Jim Crabb (American, b. 1947). Small lithographic relief, fea...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Laid Paper, Lithograph

Joan Miro, Graphisms, from Derriere le Miroir, 1961
Joan Miro, Graphisms, from Derriere le Miroir, 1961

Joan Miro, Graphisms, from Derriere le Miroir, 1961

By Joan Miró

Located in Southampton, NY

This exquisite lithograph by Joan Miro (1893–1983), titled Graphismes (Graphisms), originates from the April 1961 folio Derriere le Miroir, No. 125-126, published by Maeght Editeur, ...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Mirage (ex Reader's Digest Art Collection) Op Art Surreal renowned female artist
Mirage (ex Reader's Digest Art Collection) Op Art Surreal renowned female artist

Mirage (ex Reader's Digest Art Collection) Op Art Surreal renowned female artist

Located in New York, NY

Edna Andrade Mirage (de-accessioned from the Reader's Digest Art Collection), 1988 Original Collage painting on board Signed, titled & dated on the front; the back bears labels from Marian Locks Gallery & Readers Digest Association with inventory (RDA) number Original frame included with collection and gallery labels verso This is a unique work Exquisite 1980s collage on board painting (framed) titled "Mirage" by renowned female Op artist Edna Andrade...

Category

1980s Surrealist Art

Materials

Mixed Media, Acrylic, Board

Untitled (Two Birds) - Etching by Max Ernst - 1972

Untitled (Two Birds) - Etching by Max Ernst - 1972

By Max Ernst

Located in Roma, IT

Etching and aquatint on Japan paper, realized in 1972. Printed and published by Georges Visat, Paris. Edition of 100, numbered 99/100 and hand signed in pencil.

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching

Un Longue Apres Midi
Un Longue Apres Midi

Un Longue Apres Midi

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork titled "Un Longue Apres Midi" 1984 is an original color etching with aquatint on Arches paper by French artist Jean Solombre, 1948-2005. It ...

Category

Late 20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching, Aquatint

LOVE ISLAND - Original people surrealistic painting-contemporary art
LOVE ISLAND - Original people surrealistic painting-contemporary art

LOVE ISLAND - Original people surrealistic painting-contemporary art

Located in London, Chelsea

We offer complimentary worldwide shipping and cover all tariffs and import taxes for this artwork. This exceptional artwork is currently on display and available for sale at Signet C...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Leanna's Dream
Leanna's Dream

Leanna's Dream

By Johanna Schwarzbeck

Located in Brooklyn, NY

In my appropriation of Henri Rousseau's painting "The Dream," I replaced his nude reclining on the couch with my sister Leanna. I envisioned her magically transported into a lush ju...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Dalia, Surrealist Lithograph by Andre Masson
Dalia, Surrealist Lithograph by Andre Masson

Dalia, Surrealist Lithograph by Andre Masson

By André Masson

Located in Long Island City, NY

Andre Masson, French (1896 - 1987) - Dalia from Je Reve Portfolio, Year: 1975, Medium: Lithograph on Arches, Signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 93/125, Size: 20 in. x 26 in....

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Brotherhood -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Black Men, Acrylic
Brotherhood -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Black Men, Acrylic

Brotherhood -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Black Men, Acrylic

Located in Ibadan, Oyo

Shipping Procedure FREE Shipping Worldwide 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 Authent...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Let's Party
Let's Party

Let's Party

By Ralph Steadman

Located in Hollywood, FL

Artist: Ralph Steadman Title: Let's Party Medium: Two color silkscreen on White Rising Stonehenge Deckle Edge Paper Size: 30 x 22 Inches Edition: of 250 Year: 2006 Notes: Custom Fr...

Category

Early 2000s Surrealist Art

Materials

Screen

Soulmates (brown pet dog, lady, vintage, animal, surrealist oil painting)
Soulmates (brown pet dog, lady, vintage, animal, surrealist oil painting)

Soulmates (brown pet dog, lady, vintage, animal, surrealist oil painting)

By Rudolf Kosow

Located in Quebec, Quebec

Soulmates," a poignant work by Rudolf Kosow, tenderly illustrates the profound bond shared between a dog and a human. In this intimate portrayal, the dog's gaze is imbued with an emotional depth that transcends the boundaries between species. Its eyes, rendered with striking clarity, convey a world of understanding and companionship. The lady, is nestled against the dog's face in a pose that suggests a mutual trust and shared existence. This closeness speaks to a relationship that goes beyond the conventional pet-owner dynamic, hinting at a deeper, spiritual connection—a true meeting of souls. In Kosow's vision, the concept of soulmates expands, encompassing the idea that our most understanding and compassionate partners may not be human at all. The painting's title, "Soulmates," encapsulates the notion that kindred spirits are connected not by words, but by the heart and soul, through gestures of love and moments of silent understanding. With "Soulmates," Kosow invites us to contemplate the essence of connection and the forms it can take. It's a celebration of the unspoken bond that animals and humans can share, an acknowledgment that the purest forms of love and understanding sometimes require no language. This piece serves as a beautiful reminder of the loyalty, comfort, and unconditional acceptance that define the most precious of life's relationships. keywords; painting on canvas, surrealist painting, animal vs human, americana, nature, man, man vs nature, surrealism, giant animal...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Sobreteixims
Sobreteixims

Sobreteixims

By Joan Miró

Located in Austin, TX

Artist: Joan Miro Title: Sobreteixims Galerie Maeght Exhibition Poster Year: 1973 Printer: Arte Paris Publisher: Maeght Medium: Lithographic poster From a limited edition of 7000 Dim...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

For Alberti, For Spain - Etching by Joan Mirò - 1975
For Alberti, For Spain - Etching by Joan Mirò - 1975

For Alberti, For Spain - Etching by Joan Mirò - 1975

By Joan Miró

Located in Roma, IT

For Alberti, For Spain! it's an artwork realized by Joan Mirò in 1975. Etching,  90 x 66 cm.  Hand signed. Edition 62/90. Reference: Dupin 926 Printed on Fabriano paper, Printed ...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching

Revelatum Est - Lithograph - 1964

Revelatum Est - Lithograph - 1964

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in Roma, IT

Color lithograph on heavy rag paper realized in 1964, It is part of Biblia Sacra vulgatæ edition is published by Rizzoli-Mediolani between 1967 and 1969. Signed and dated on plate o...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Aphrodite
Aphrodite

Aphrodite

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in OPOLE, PL

Salvador Dali (1904-1989) - Aphrodite Etching from 1963. Handsigned in two places. The edition 114/150. Dimensions of work: 76 x 56 cm Reference: Michler/Löpsinger 117 Side not...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching

The rescue.

The rescue.

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

Large Scale Surrealist Oil on Canvas, 'At the Watering Hole'.
Large Scale Surrealist Oil on Canvas, 'At the Watering Hole'.

Large Scale Surrealist Oil on Canvas, 'At the Watering Hole'.

Located in Cotignac, FR

Large late 20th century oil on canvas of animals at the watering hole by British artist Derek Carruthers. Signed to the bottom right. A magical, highly colourful and energetic paint...

Category

Late 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.