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.
$7,120Sale Price|20% Off
Salvador Dali "Raspberry Bush"
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...
Drypoint, Lithograph
$20,042Sale Price|20% Off
Two Figures 1939 - British Surrealist art figurative painting
Located in Hagley, England
This superb British 1930's modern art tempera Surrealist painting is by noted interwar artist Blair Hughes-Stanton. Painted in 1939 it is entitled two Figures 1939 verso and may rela...
Tempera
$80Sale Price|20% Off
Antonio Monasterio – Woman with a Large Hat and Table with Vase. Nr.2
Located in Firenze, IT
Antonio Monasterio – Woman with a Large Hat and Table with Vase. Nr.2 • Technique: Mixed media on paper (pastels, wax, and red pen) • Dimensions: 56 x 44 cm • Signature: Lower ri...
Paper, Crayon, Wax Crayon, Wax, Pen
$2,400
The Custody is as Barbarous as The Crime, Etching by Francisco de Goya
Located in Long Island City, NY
Francisco de Goya, Spanish (1746 - 1828) - The Custody is as Barbarous as The Crime, Year: circa 1810, Medium: Etching and burin on cream laid paper, Image Size: 3.75 x 3 inches, Si...
Etching
Gathering of Sad Clowns, Surrealist Lithograph by Marcel Marceau
Located in Long Island City, NY
Marcel Marceau, French (1923 - 2007) - Gathering of Sad Clowns, Portfolio: Le Troisieme Oeil (The Third Eye), Year: 1981, Medium: Lithograph on Arches Paper, signed and numbered i...
Lithograph
Untitled Lithograph by Wifredo Lam, Surrealist, 1970s, Edition 49/150
By Wifredo Lam
Located in Roma, IT
Untitled is a modern artwork realized by Wifredo Lam in 1970s Mixed colored lithograph. Handmonogrammed on the right lower margin with original dry stamp by Galleria Nuovo Sagittar...
Lithograph
Nautical Vintage Voyage of Yesteryear, Painting, Oil on Canvas
By Grace Diehl
Located in Yardley, PA
For this unique, original a ceramic egg was merged into a seascape for a surreal styled painting. The egg features nostalgia of jubilant sailor boys on their travels in a hot air bal...
Oil
$8,400Sale Price|20% Off
Picasso: Un Billet Pur la Glorie, Salvador Dali
Located in Fairfield, CT
Title: Picasso: Un Billet Pur la Glorie Year: 1974 Medium: Engraving on Arches paper Edition: F.122/195, plus proofs Size: 25.75 x 19.75 inches Condition: Good Inscription: Signed an...
Engraving
$2,304Sale Price|20% Off
Case II (Surrealist Oil Painting on Canvas, Banana peel, Unframed)
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
In "Case", banal, everyday things meet in this painting to create an unusual, strange, absurd and ironical situation derived by the disproportional scale size of things. Rudolf Kos...
Canvas, Oil
"Smoking Lady" (2024) By Nadezda, Original Oil Painting on Panel
By Nadezda
Located in Denver, CO
Nadezda's beautiful new oil on panel painting "Smoking Lady" (2024) is an abstract portrait of a woman wearing a black dress smoking inside of her brightly colored house, she is stan...
Oil, Panel
"Salvador Dalí"
Located in Edinburgh, GB
I was inspired to paint this picture by girls. on a nudist beach, they froze on the floor, like trees. As a result, I met them, they became my muses, I repeatedly painted them naked ...
Canvas, Oil
Old City of Warsaw
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Old City of Warsaw" 1994 is an original color serigraph by Ukrainian/American artist Anatole Krasnyansky, 1930-2023. It is hand signed, titled and numbered 117/...
Screen
$500Sale Price|30% Off
Grey Bust in Cement fusion of portrait sculpture and architectural abstraction
By Jose Perozo
Located in FISTERRA, ES
A striking fusion of portrait sculpture and architectural abstraction, LarA 008 by José Perozo reimagines the human figure as an inhabited form. Cast in pale gray cement with subtle ...
Concrete
$779
Animal Painting Surrealist Royal College of Art LGBTQ+ artist Circle Life Orange
By Isabel Rock
Located in Norfolk, GB
Isabel Rock is a creator of contemporary fairy tales. A graduate of the Royal College of Art in London, her work is an explosion of strange occurrences while a surreal narrative takes the audience on a journey into the imagination. Hugely inspired by Paula Rego, Isabel Rock is part of a formidable group of women artists (Leonora Carrington and Eileen Agar amongst others) working with Surrealism. In October 2023 Isabel won the Evelyn Williams...
Paint, Mixed Media, Archival Paper, Pen
Vanilla
Located in Sante Fe, NM
Maggie Taylor's digital creations are emblematic, afterimages that invite, transport, and are unforgettable. Taylor's images are built, layer by layer and object by object, through a...
Archival Pigment
Appareil et Main - Lithograph after Salvador Dalì - 1974
Located in Roma, IT
Appareil et Main is an artwork realized after a painting by the Surrealist Catalan artist Salvador Dalí (Figueres, 1904-1989). This is a color lithograph on wove paper, properly e...
Lithograph
Arquitectura Alfabetizada (custom framed, hand signed serigraph)
Located in Aventura, FL
Serigraph in colors on paper. Hand signed lower front by Pedro Friedberg. Hand numbered 29/42 lower front. Image size: 9.5 x 25.5 inches. Framed as pictured in the signature Frie...
Paper, Screen
Cactus Flower, Oil Painting
By Duane Brown
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
A woman poses as a cactus flower, her form creating both balance and tension. The surreal positioning draws attention to the connection between humans and nat...
Oil
Pablo Picasso, "Sculpteur et Modele debout, " etching, hand signed
Located in Chatsworth, CA
Artist: Pablo Picasso Title: Sculpteur et Modele debout Year: 1933 Medium: Original etching Edition: hand signed in pencil from an edition of 250 on small margins Size: Frame: 27 x 2...
Etching
$9,500
American Yachting Scene Salvador Dali Currier & Ives series lithograph 1971
Located in Paonia, CO
American Yachting Scene is a vibrant explosion of ocean blue , whitecaps and strong yellow slashes to describe the ships sailing to their destination. There is an insert of a Currier and Ives print of sailing ships that Dali used as his inspiration. This original lithograph is from the series “The World Of Currier...
Lithograph
Beyond Reach
Located in Zofingen, AG
Beyond Reach From the series «1000 and 1 Night» In this work, love unfolds as a form of invisible closeness — a presence without touch. The space between two people is not empty; ...
Canvas, Acrylic
Man in Yellow and Red - Surrealist Original Etching
Located in Paris, IDF
Ossip ZADKINE Man in Yellow and Red, 1965 Original etching Printed signature in the plate On Arches vellum 38 x 28 cm (c. 15 x 11 in) INFORMATION : Edited for the portfolio Les Pe...
Etching
Salvador Dali Pencil Signed Nude on a Rhinoceros Horn
Located in San Francisco, CA
Salvador Dali: 1904-1989. One of the most famous artist of the 20th century. A master surrealist, whose auction prices are well into the millions. This image of a nude on a rhinocero...
Etching
$4,400Sale Price|20% Off
Locomotion paradisiaque intra-utérine (Michler/Löpsinger 822-831; Field 75-13)
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Salvador Dali (1904-1989) Title: Locomotion paradisiaque intra-utérine (Michler/Löpsinger 822-831; Field 75-13), Imaginations et Objets du Futur (Paradise intrauterine locomo...
Mixed Media, Drypoint, Lithograph, Screen
$4,532
The Big Closed Gate - Contemporary, Kid, Gate, Figurative Painting, Blue, Brown
By Mihai Florea
Located in Baden-Baden, DE
The Big Closed Gate, 2019 Oil on canvas 51 3/16 H x 39 3/8 W in. 130 H x 100 W The artwork was part of the solo show ONIRIX. ONIRIX is a project about how we remember and interpre...
Canvas, Oil
Destiny's Path, Hawaii - Surreal Mid Century Hawaiian Figurative Abstract
Located in Soquel, CA
Destiny's Path, Hawaii - Surreal Mid Century Hawaiian Figurative Abstract Symbolistic and romantic 1940s surreal figurative of pastel orange figure...
Linen, Oil
La Tia - figurative painting, landscape painting
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...
Canvas, Oil
Ripe Sky, Surrealist Aquatint Etching by Hank Laventhol
Located in Long Island City, NY
Hank Laventhol, American (1927 - 2001) - Ripe Sky, Year: circa 1980, Medium: Aquatint Etching, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 300, Image Size: 16 x 24 inches, Size: 22 ...
Etching, Aquatint
The Hero, Figurative Surrealism, Original oil Painting, Handmade artwork
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: 2018 Style: Figurative Surrealism, ...
Canvas, Oil
Army Of Caine Large Oversize Pop Art Print Signed Limited Edition
By BATIK
Located in London, GB
Army Of Caine by B A T I K Pop art work featuring multiples of Michael Caine in Get Carter mode - possibly his most iconic movie role. Archival pigment pop art print signed & ...
Black and White, Archival Pigment
Fleurs Surrealistes Gala's Bouquet
Located in Hollywood, FL
ARTIST: Salvador Dali TITLE: Fleurs Surrealistes Gala's Bouquet MEDIUM: Lithograph on Japon Paper SIGNED: Hand Signed by Salvador Dali PUBLISHER: Levine & Levine for DALART EDIT...
Lithograph
Hollywood : Mr and Mrs Woodman - Original Handsigned Gelatin Silver Print
By Man Ray
Located in Paris, IDF
Man Ray (Emmanuel Radnitsky, called) Hollywood : Mr and Mrs Woodman, 1970 Original gelatin silver print Handsigned on the back Authenticated with the artist stamp "Epreuve originale...
Silver Gelatin
$7,500
Offering - Symbolic Landscape Painting, Waterfall, Anselm Kiefer Inspired Art
Located in New York, NY
This captivating painting features a dynamic interplay between nature and man-made objects, with cascading waterfalls forming a serene backdrop for symbolic objects in the foreground...
Plaster, Wood Panel, Pigment
$2,042Sale Price|32% Off
Urashima Taro, Original Drypoint Etching, Surrealist, 1974, Signed
Located in OPOLE, PL
Salvador Dali (1904-1989) - Urashima Taro Drypoint etching with stencil from 1974. The edition of XVII/LXXV on Richard de Bas paper. Dimensions of work: 66 x 52 cm. Hand signed. ...
Drypoint, Etching
Rabbit in Hat, Surrealist Screenprint by Igor Galanin
By Igor Galanin
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Igor Galanin Title: Rabbit in Hat Date: Circa 1985 Medium: Screenprint, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 175, AP 30 Paper Size: 40.5 x 30 ...
Screen
Salvador Dalí (1904–1989) - Elijah - Handcolored drypoint etching - 1975
Located in Varese, IT
Hand-colored drypoint etching on extremely fine Japanese paper, edited in 1975. Limited edition, numbered in lower left corner as HC (horse commerce). Signed in pencil by artist in l...
Etching, Paper
$4,400Sale Price|20% Off
Le Girafe en Feu (Field 76-2-A; Michler & Lopsinger 1449), Salvador Dali
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Salvador Dali (1904-1989) Title: Le Girafe en Feu Year: 1976 Medium: Lithograph on Arches paper Edition: CXLII/CCL; 250 Roman Numerals, plus proofs...
Lithograph
$60Sale Price|20% Off
Borderland State Offset Print, Surrealist, 2016, Unframed, 33.5x23.5
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This museum poster, created for the 96 NYE VÆRKER exhibition at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Humlebæk, Denmark, features Borderland State by Alex Da Corte, an artist known f...
Offset
Et Cognoverunt Eum in Fractione Panis - Lithograph - 1964
Located in Roma, IT
Et Cognoverunt Eum in Fractione Panis is a Color lithograph on heavy rag paper realized in 1964, It is part of Biblia Sacra vulgatæ edition is published by Rizzoli-Mediolani between ...
Lithograph
Bulb of Africa 3, Surrealist Acrylic Painting, 21st Century, Unframed
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Bulb of Africa was not just a hairstyle; it was a celebration of African heritage and a testament to the resilience of its people. Passed down through generations, it represented strength, beauty, and the rich tapestry of African traditions. The Bulb showcased the natural texture and volume of African hair, transforming it into an intricate masterpiece of braids, twists, and coils. The Bulb of Africa became a symbol of empowerment, reminding people of their strength, resilience, and the beauty of their shared heritage. It served as a reminder that hair was more than a physical attribute; it was a connection to something greater—a connection to their ancestors, their community, and celebrating the beauty within themselves. Beyond their physical beauty, African women possess an immeasurable inner strength that resonates through "Bulb of Africa." Odunayo masterfully captures this strength, highlighting the resilience and determination that have defined African women throughout history. The women depicted in the artwork emanate confidence, wisdom, and a sense of purpose. Their gaze speaks volumes, embodying the stories of countless African women who have overcome adversity, shattered barriers, and carved out their own paths to success. In "Bulb of Africa," Iyiola Odunayo...
Acrylic
Grand Collection, Huge Original Painting on Canvas, Hand Signed, Picasso Miro
By Ferjo, Fernando de Jesus Oliveira
Located in Aventura, FL
Original oil painting on canvas. Hand signed lower front by Ferjo. Canvas image size 40 x 60 inches. Canvas is not stretched. Artwork is in excellent condition. Certificate of au...
Canvas, Oil
$779
Animal Painting Surrealist Royal College of Art LGBTQ+ artist Birds Circle Life
By Isabel Rock
Located in Norfolk, GB
Isabel Rock is a creator of contemporary fairy tales. A graduate of the Royal College of Art in London, her work is an explosion of strange occurrences while a surreal narrative takes the audience on a journey into the imagination. Hugely inspired by Paula Rego, Isabel Rock is part of a formidable group of women artists (Leonora Carrington and Eileen Agar amongst others) working with Surrealism. In October 2023 Isabel won the Evelyn Williams...
Paint, Mixed Media, Archival Paper, Pen
A 1930s Modern Surreal Abstract Drawing "Ladder Forms" by Hananiah Harari
Located in Chicago, IL
A Striking, 1930s Modern Surrealist Abstract Drawing, "Ladder Forms" by Notable New York Avant Garde Artist, Hannah Harari (Am. 1912-2000). Graphite on paper, dating from 1936. A...
Paper, Graphite
$6,000
Italian Modernist Surrealist Architecture Landscape Oil Painting Lazzaro Donati
Located in Surfside, FL
Lazzaro Donati (Italian, 1926-1977) Oil on board. Colorful Architectural Italian Landscape. Porto Azzurro, 1964 Hand signed upper right. signed, titled on back of panel. Dimensions:...
Oil, Panel
"Moon Glow, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Sara Scribner's (US based) "Moon Glow" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a realistic portrait of a feminine form holding a full moon in ...
Oil, Panel
Meeting point
Located in Zofingen, AG
In 2023, the painting was part of the exhibition project “Cosmonia of Senses” at the Korsaks Museum of Contemporary Ukrainian Art in Lutsk, Ukraine. Among 300 artists, my painting “M...
Canvas, Acrylic
$775
Magritte at Galerie Alexandre Iolas, Milan, Italy, Offset lithograph poster
Located in New York, NY
René Magritte Magritte at Galerie Alexandre Iolas, Milan, Italy, ca. 1980 Offset lithograph lettering and silkscreen poster on thin wove paper ...
Lithograph, Offset, Screen
Red Sea - Handsigned Original Lithograph
By Raoul Ubac
Located in Paris, IDF
Raoul UBAC Red Sea Original lithograph Handsigned in pencil On Japan paper, 40,5 x 31,5 cm (c. 15,9 x 12,4 inch) Excellent condition
Lithograph
Mont. St. Michel
Located in Greenwich, CT
Mont St. Michel is a lithograph on paper with an image size of 3 x 3 inches, initialed 'FMB' lower right and annotated lower left, framed in a contemporary silver and dark gray frame...
Paper, Lithograph
Large Modernist Italian Oil Painting Surrealist Abstract Figures
Located in Surfside, FL
Marco Cingolani was born in Como in 1961 and moved to Milan at a very young age, in 1978. He began to frequent the underground creative environment, where art was mixed with fashion ...
Paper, Oil
Original Marc Chagall Peintures Bibliques Recentes Jacob's Ladder exhibition
Located in Spokane, WA
Marc Chagall, Vintage Exhibition Poster (1977) — 30 × 20.5 in — Very Good, A- Lithography poster (Mourlot workshop). Expertly printed in Paris by the renowned Mourlot Printers. Engra...
Lithograph
The Cubist Angel, Bronze Sculpture, Surrealist, 1980, Signed
Located in OPOLE, PL
Bronze, hand-patinated and partially polished cast in 1982 using the lost-wax (""à cire perdue"") technique bearing the foundry stamp ""Strehle Kunstguss"" height (including base): 5...
Bronze
$6,000Sale Price|20% Off
queens
Located in Santa Monica, CA
oil/ink
Acrylic
$3,459
Psychoanalysis : Tribute to Freud - Original handsigned lithograph (Field #72-3)
Located in Paris, IDF
Salvador Dali (1904-1989) Psychoanalysis : Tribute to Freud, 1972 Original coloured lithograph Handsigned in pencil Numbered 984/ 1000 On Arches Vellum 35 x 26" (87 x 64 cm) Ref...
Lithograph
"Austrian accession"
By Valery Tatar
Located in Edinburgh, GB
Once my Austrian comrade came to visit me. He asked me if I know who Augustus Gruber is ? At the time, I had no idea about this character. It turned out that August Gruber was a supp...
Canvas, Oil
Forest - Woodcut - 1963
Located in Roma, IT
Forest - "The Divine Comedy" - Song 28 - Purgatory is a woodcut print realized in 1963 for a series illustrating the Medieval poem of the "Divine Comedy" by Dante Alighieri. Plate ...
Woodcut
$2,040
Anagrom
By Leonor Fini
Located in Columbia, MO
Leonor Fini was born in Argentina in 1907 but travelled and lived in Europe with her mother from a young age. By 1931, she was in Paris, in the full swing of the Surrealist movement....
Paper, Etching
Ruth glaneuse
By Marc Chagall
Located in Paris, FR
Original lithograph by Marc Chagall from The Bible of 1960 Ruth glaneuse Unsigned 35 x 26 cm Excellent condition
Lithograph
Surrealist Lithograph of Rhinoceros, Signed, Edition 163/275, 1970
Located in Roma, IT
Lithograph on wove paper, after drypoint etching. Image dimension 36.5x49.5. Edition of 163/275. Hand signed and numbered in pencil. Browned. Ref. Michler-Lopsinger 450.
Lithograph
$6,000
Hommage a Picasso (Cannes / Cote d'Azur) Signed Etching, F. Hunter Authenticated
Located in Aventura, FL
Executed in Cannes, France when Dali learned of Picasso's death. Etching on Arches wove paper. Hand signed lower right by Salvador Dali. Hand numbered 57/200 lower left. Unframed...
Paper, Etching