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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
At the destination - Contemporary Acrylic Painting, Vibrant colors, Landscape
At the destination - Contemporary Acrylic Painting, Vibrant colors, Landscape

At the destination - Contemporary Acrylic Painting, Vibrant colors, Landscape

By Marta Rynkiewicz

Located in Warsaw, PL

*Painting will be available after 6.06.2021* Marta Rynkiewicz is a young Polish artist born in 1983. She studied painting with Professor Henryk Czenik and graphic arts with Profes...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

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

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

Dancing Lovers
Dancing Lovers

Dancing Lovers

Located in Zofingen, AG

In this oil painting, I've blended abstract, figurative, and surreal elements to capture the fluid motion and raw emotion of an intimate dance. The intertwining forms, awash in shade...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil

Obra Inèdita Recent IX
Obra Inèdita Recent IX

Obra Inèdita Recent IX

By Joan Miró

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Joan Miró (1893-1983) is one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. He is renowned internationally as a painter, sculptor, printmaker, and ceramicist. Miró’s works, which wer...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Happy People in Pink - Lithograph (Maeght)
Happy People in Pink - Lithograph (Maeght)

Happy People in Pink - Lithograph (Maeght)

By Paul Klee

Located in Paris, IDF

Paul KLEE (1879 - 1940) Happy character Color photolithograph after a painting Signed in the plate On vellum 83 x 60 cm (c. 32 x 24 in) Excellent condition

Category

Early 20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Watercolor, Lithograph

The Tub, Oil Painting
The Tub, Oil Painting

The Tub, Oil Painting

By Keith Thomson

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
This painting is a modern reinterpretation of the English nursery rhyme "Rub-a-dub-dub, Three Men in a Tub," first published in Mother Goose's Melody in 1798. I...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil

Playing with Symbols Inside a Red Theatrical Space
Playing with Symbols Inside a Red Theatrical Space

Playing with Symbols Inside a Red Theatrical Space

By Marina Skvortsova

Located in Oslo, NO

“Playing with Symbols” is built on a combination of theatricality, artificiality, and ritual gesture. A figure with an almost doll-like face emerges from a saturated red space, surro...

Category

2010s Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic, Watercolor, Pencil

Saint Peter to Dante - Woodcut - 1963
Saint Peter to Dante - Woodcut - 1963

Saint Peter to Dante - Woodcut - 1963

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in Roma, IT

Saint Peter to Dante -  "The Divine Comedy" - Song 27 -  Paradise is a woodcut print realized in 1963 for a series illustrating the Medieval poem of the "Divine Comedy" by Dante Alig...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Woodcut

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

Hard Margins - Lithograph - 1964
Hard Margins - Lithograph - 1964

Hard Margins - Lithograph - 1964

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in Roma, IT

La divina Commedia - Hard Margins is a Color Wood-cut on heavy rag paper realized in 1964. It is part of Biblia Sacra vulgatæ edition is published by Rizzoli-Mediolani between 1967 a...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Italian Surrealist Colorful Metal Enamel Plaque Painting Wall Hanging Art Luigi
Italian Surrealist Colorful Metal Enamel Plaque Painting Wall Hanging Art Luigi

Italian Surrealist Colorful Metal Enamel Plaque Painting Wall Hanging Art Luigi

Located in Surfside, FL

Biomorphic Surrealism. Signed Luigi, Enamel on metal (probably copper). Mounted to a plexi or acrylic purple mounting. I am assuming it is Italian as it is signed Luigi but it might ...

Category

20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Enamel

Untitled
Untitled

Untitled

By Jean Solombre 1

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork "Untitled" 1982 is an original color etching with aquatint on Arches paper by French artist Jean Solombre, 1948-2005. It is hand signed, dat...

Category

Late 20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching, Aquatint

1970’s French Surrealist Signed Oil Painting Abstract Robotic Figure
1970’s French Surrealist Signed Oil Painting Abstract Robotic Figure

1970’s French Surrealist Signed Oil Painting Abstract Robotic Figure

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Tristan Fabris 1970's, French Surrealist artist Abstract Surrealist Figurative study oil on canvas, unframed inscribed verso canvas: 32 x 24 inches private collection, France The pai...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

René Magritte - LE DOMAINE D'ARNHEIM Limited Surrealism French Contemporary
René Magritte - LE DOMAINE D'ARNHEIM Limited Surrealism French Contemporary

René Magritte - LE DOMAINE D'ARNHEIM Limited Surrealism French Contemporary

By (after) René Magritte

Located in Madrid, Madrid

René Magritte - LE DOMAINE D'ARNHEIM, 1962 (THE DOMAIN OF ARNHEIM) Date of creation: 2010 Medium: Lithograph on BFK Rives Paper Edition number: 155/275 Size: 60 x 45 cm Condition: Ne...

Category

Mid-20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

Lithographs II (1043), Modern Lithograph by Joan Miro

Lithographs II (1043), Modern Lithograph by Joan Miro

By Joan Miró

Located in Long Island City, NY

Joan Miro was a Spanish Surrealist artist, world-renowned for his unique art style that blended surrealist fantasy and modern life. This lithograph is part of the series "Lithographs...

Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Salvador Dali "Raspberry Bush"
Salvador Dali "Raspberry Bush"

Salvador Dali "Raspberry Bush"

By Salvador Dalí­

Located in Boston, MA

Artist: Dali, Salvador Title: Raspberry Bush Series: Flors Dali (The Fruits) Date: 1969 Medium: Lithograph with original drypoint remarques Framed Dimensions: 37" x 29.5" Signa...

Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Drypoint, Lithograph

Mythological Oil Painting Depicting a Mystical Scene with Figures French 20th C
Mythological Oil Painting Depicting a Mystical Scene with Figures French 20th C

Mythological Oil Painting Depicting a Mystical Scene with Figures French 20th C

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Mystical Scene with Figures by Guy Nicod (French 1923 - 2021) signed oil on canvas laid on board, framed Framed: 35.5 x 27 inches Canvas: 32.5 x 24 inches Provenance: private collec...

Category

Mid-20th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil

Tennis Player
Tennis Player

Elisabeth SabalaTennis Player, 1990

$2,400Sale Price|20% Off

Tennis Player

By Elisabeth Sabala

Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL

Tennis Player 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 she won the first prize of a painting of the City of Castelldefels, and the following year she 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. He won the first prize of the International Painting Competition of Pollença (Mallorca) in 1985, and the following year he 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. Sabala continues to hold personal shows in Barcelona, ​​Mallorca, Madrid, and Italy, and in 1989 she 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

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

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.