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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
Period: 19th Century
Marc Chagall "Dédicace"
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Marc Chagall (French/Russian, 1887-1985) "Dédicace" 1968 Color lithograph signed and numbered 28/50 in pencil Image: 17 7/8 x 15 1/4 inches. Framed: 38 x 34 1/4 x 2 1/4 inches. ...
Category

Mid-19th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Ma fille! Monsieur Cabanel - Drypoint by Félicien Rops - 1850s
Located in Roma, IT
Etching Héliogravure and drypoint. Signed with artist's monogram. Hand titled. Second state.  Good condition. Ref. Rouir 905; Exteens 411. 
Category

1850s Surrealist Art

Materials

Drypoint

Bords de L'Oise - Etching by Charles-François Daubigny - Late 19th Century
Located in Roma, IT
Signed and titled on plate. Etching and aquatint print. Good condition.
Category

Late 19th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching

Corps Perdu - Rare Book Illustrated by Roman Orné - 1926
Located in Roma, IT
Edition of 990 copies including illustrations by Roman Orné and 2 drypoint of Jean Lurcat. Copy on velin Montgolfier. Very good conditions, partially uncut, cover browned. Philippe S...
Category

1890s Surrealist Art

Materials

Paper

Louis Legrand, peintre-graveur - Rare Book Illustrated by Louis Legrand - 1896
Located in Roma, IT
Edition of 250 copies including 8 original lithographs and many b/w illustrations of graphic works by Louis Legrand. One of 200 copies on Papier Vélin. Original editorial softcover ...
Category

1890s Surrealist Art

Materials

Paper

Revolverate - Rare Book Illustrated by Gian Pietro Lucini - 1909
Located in Roma, IT
Revolverate , con una prefazione futurista di F.T. Marinetti. With a Futurist preface by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti and an inscription dated 1917. Hardcover drew by Ardengo Soffici. S...
Category

1890s Surrealist Art

Materials

Paper

'Vague Lumineuse' (Luminescent Wave) — Late 19th Century Surrealism
Located in Myrtle Beach, SC
Théophile Pierre Wagner, 'Vague Lumineuse' (Luminescent Wave), lithograph, edition not stated but small, c. 1895. Signed and titled in pencil. Initialed in the stone, lower left. A f...
Category

1890s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Pablo Picasso "Femme assise" (Dora Maar)
Located in Los Angeles, CA
(After)Pablo Picasso (Malaga 1881-1973 Mougins) "Femme Assise" (Dora Maar). 1955 Lithograph in colors after the painting "Dora Maar" from 1944. Czwiklitze...
Category

Mid-19th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph, Paper

Ancient Views of Yokohama - Vintage Albumen Prints - 1890s
Located in Roma, IT
Ancient Views of Yokohama is a set of 4 original vintage albumen prints on single cardboard: 26 x 34 cm. They were realized in the 1890s. Good conditions except for being aged. Ca...
Category

1890s Surrealist Art

Materials

Cardboard, Photographic Paper

Ancient View of Lago Maggiore - Lithograph on Paper - Mid-19th Century
Located in Roma, IT
Ancient View of Lago Maggiore is an original modern artwork realized in Italy in the first half of the 19th Century. Original Lithograph on Ivory Paper...
Category

1850s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Ancient Views of Yokohama - Vintage Albumen Prints - 1890s
Located in Roma, IT
Ancient Views of Yokohama is an original vintage albumen print on single cardboard: 34 x 26 cm. It was realized in the 1890s. Good conditions except for being aged. Caption in Ita...
Category

1890s Surrealist Art

Materials

Cardboard

Assassinat - Etching by James Ensor - 1888
Located in Roma, IT
Assassinat is an original etching on the Japanese paper, realized by James Ensor in 1888, signed on the plate and dated, with the second signature on the reverse. In good conditions...
Category

1880s Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching

Le Roi Peste (The Plague Kings) - Etching by James Ensor - 1895
Located in Roma, IT
The Plague Kings is an original etching on the Japanese paper, realized by James Ensor in 1895, signed on the plate and dated, unique state, with the second signature on the reverse ...
Category

1890s Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching

Abstract 19th Century Kundalini Yantra Spiritual Hindu Tantra Painting
Located in Houston, TX
Small 19th Century Tantra Art displayed in a clear acrylic case. Gouache painting of an orange and yellow uncoiled snake (kundalini) rising from a body of w...
Category

19th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Gouache

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Salvador Dali - Nude at the Window - Original Handsigned Lithograph
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Salvador Dali - Nude at the Window - Original Handsigned Lithograph Dimensions: 76.5 x 57 cm 1970 Signed in pencil and numbered Edition : /CXX References : Field 70-8 Salvador Dali Salvador Dali was born as the son of a prestigious notary in the small town of Figueras in Northern Spain. His talent as an artist showed at an early age and Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dali received his first drawing lessons when he was ten years old. His art teachers were a then well known Spanish impressionist painter, Ramon Pichot and later an art professor at the Municipal Drawing School. In 1923 his father bought his son his first printing press. Dali began to study art at the Royal Academy of Art in Madrid. He was expelled twice and never took the final examinations. His opinion was that he was more qualified than those who should have examined him. In 1928 Dali went to Paris where he met the Spanish painters Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro. He established himself as the principal figure of a group of surrealist artists grouped around Andre Breton, who was something like the theoretical "schoolmaster" of surrealism. Years later Breton turned away from Dali accusing him of support of fascism, excessive self-presentation and financial greediness. By 1929 Dali had found his personal style that should make him famous the world of the unconscious that is recalled during our dreams. The surrealist theory is based on the theories of the psychologist Dr. Sigmund Freud. Recurring images of burning giraffes and melting watches...
Category

1970s Surrealist Art

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Lithograph

Liquid and Gaseous Television (Michler/Löpsinger 824; Field 75-11C), S. Dali
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Salvador Dali (1904-1989) Title: Liquid and Gaseous Television (Michler/Löpsinger 824; Field 75-11C), Imagination and Objects of the Future Portfolio Year: 1975 Medium: Drypo...
Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

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Salvador Dali - The Wine Casks
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Salvador Dali - The Wine Casks - Original Lithograph Joseph FORET, Paris, 1957 PRINTER : Delorme. SIGNATURE : plate signed by Dali. LIMITED : Total edition of 233 SIZE : 41 x 33 cm ...
Category

1950s Surrealist Art

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Salvador Dali - Nude with Raised Arms - Lithograph
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Salvador Dali - Nude with Raised Arms - Original Handsigned Lithograph Dimensions: 77 x 55 cm 1970 Signed in pencil and numbered Edition : /CXX References : Field 70-8(Page 158)
Category

1970s Surrealist Art

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Lithograph

Salvador Dalí, Dante's Confession, La Divine Comédie (M/L.1039-1138; F.189-200)
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Salvador Dali (1904-1989) Year: 1963 Medium: Wood engraving in colors on Rives BFK paper Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued Edition: 4765 in French; 3188 in Ital...
Category

1960s Surrealist Art

Materials

Engraving

Surrealist Salvador Dali Large Pochoir Etching Drypoint Lithograph Chariot Rider
Located in Surfside, FL
Salvador Dalí (1904-1989) – Spanish painter, graphic artist and sculptor. Drypoint with etching and pochoir on Japon paper "Elijah and the Chariot," 1975, (Horse and rider) from the "Our Historical Heritage" suite. Pencil signed along the lower right and numbered 53/250 along the lower left. Literature: Field 75-4 J Framed; Height: 29 in x width: 35 in. Mat opening 19.5 X 25.5. The Spanish artist’s extensive oeuvre not only includes watercolors, drawings and sculptures but also tapestries; here a fine example from the limited edition ‘The Twelve Tribes of Israel’ The tapestry was created after an etching by Salvador Dalí from 1973 with the title ‘The Tribe of Judah’, which the artist created as part of a suite to mark the 25th anniversary of the State of Israel, and in which he represented the twelve tribes of Israel. This vintage French tapestry is an impeccable textile re-creation of a rare Dali etching. This is a flat weave Aubusson style tapisserie. The edition size was 500. The tapestry is inscribed with woven ‘Salvador Dalí’ lower right Genre: Surrealism Subject: people, architecture rendering Medium: textile Salvador Dali (Spanish, 1904-1989) Salvador Dali is considered as the greatest original artist of the surrealist art movement and one of the greatest masters of art of the twentieth century. Dali began to study art at the Royal Academy of Art in Madrid. He was expelled twice and never took the final examinations. His opinion was that he was more qualified than those who should have examined him. In 1928 Dali went to Paris where he met the Spanish painters Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro. He established himself as the principal figure of a group of surrealist artists grouped around Andre Breton, who was something like the theoretical "schoolmaster" of surrealism. Years later Breton turned away from Dali accusing him of support of fascism, excessive self-presentation and financial greediness. By 1929 Dali had found his personal style that should make him famous - the world of the unconscious that is recalled during our dreams. The surrealist theory is based on the theories of the psychologist Dr. Sigmund Freud. Recurring images of burning giraffes and melting watches became the artist's surrealist trademarks. Along with Rene Magritte his is considered the greatest of the Surrealists. His great craftsmanship allowed him to execute his paintings in a nearly photo realistic style. No wonder that the artist was a great admirer of the vintage Italian Renaissance painter Raphael. Meeting Gala was the most important event in the artist's life and decisive for his future career. She was a Russian immigrant and ten years older than Dali. When he met her, she was married to Paul Eluard. In 1933 Salvador Dali had his first one-man show in New York. One year later he visited the U.S. for the first time supported by a loan of US$500 from Pablo Picasso. To evade World War II, Dali chose the U.S.A. as his permanent residence in 1940. He had a series of spectacular exhibitions, among others a great retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He has worked in paining, sculpture, tapestry, Daum glass and prints. Dali became the darling of the American High Society. Celebrities like Jack Warner or Helena Rubinstein gave him commissions for portraits. His artworks became a popular trademark and besides painting he pursued other activities - jewelry and dated clothing designs for Coco Chanel or film making with Alfred Hitchcock. In 1948 Dali and Gala returned to Europe, spending most of their time either in their residence in Ligate/Spain or in Paris/France or in New York. Dali developed a lively interest in science, religion and history. He integrated things into his art that he had picked up from popular science...
Category

1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Drypoint, Etching, Lithograph

'Fantasia Americana - 1880' — Mid-Century American Surrealism
Located in Myrtle Beach, SC
Lawrence Kupferman, 'Fantasia Americana – 1880', drypoint etching with sandground, 1943. Signed, titled, and annotated 'Series A, 1971 2/6' in pencil. A superb, richly-inked impression, on heavy, cream wove paper, with full margins (2 1/2 to 3 1/2 inches); the paper slightly lightened within the original mat opening, otherwise in excellent condition. One of only 6 impressions printed in 1971, with the added sandground grey background tint. Image size 11 13/16 x 14 3/4 inches; sheet size 18 x 20 1/4 inches. Archivally matted to museum standards, unframed. Collections: National Gallery of Art, Zimmerli Art Museum (Rutgers University). 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...
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1940s Surrealist Art

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Birthday
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Dorothea Tanning, American (1910 - 2012) Title: Birthday (Self Portrait at age 30, 1942) Year: circa 1970 Medium: Lithograph on Arches, signed and numbered in pencil Edition:...
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1970s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Jean Cocteau - Under the Fire Coat - Original Lithograph
Located in Collonge Bellerive, Geneve, CH
Jean Cocteau - Under the Fire Coat - Original Lithograph Signed "Jean" in the plate and dated 1954 in the plate. Joseph Forêt Editions Dimensions: 41 x 33 cm...
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1950s Surrealist Art

Materials

Lithograph

"Man with Cup, " Ceramic Figure
Located in Chicago, IL
Although this whimsical sculpture by Allan Winkler has the look of outsider art, this ceramic work stems from the art school-trained artist’s interest in...
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21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art

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Ceramic, Acrylic

Salvador Dalí – La Botte violette – hand watercolored drypoint etching – 1969
Located in Varese, IT
hand watercolored drypoint etching on extremely fine Japanese paper, edited in 1969 limited edition of 145 copies water-colored , numbered in lower left corner ea ( artist proof ) si...
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1960s Surrealist Art

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Une Jeune Femme Presente Avec Grace, from Les Enfants Trouves
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "" Une Jeune Femme Presente Avec Grace" from the suite" Les Enfants Trouves created in 1953 and printed/published in 1968 in an...
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Mid-20th Century Surrealist Art

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Previously Available Items
"Joseph and His Brothers" 5/100 Etching from the Biblical series
Located in Austin, TX
Aquired from the collection of Mark Chagall's son. This stunning etching by Marc Chagall, titled Joseph and His Brothers, was created in 1958. It is an e...
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Mid-19th Century Surrealist Art

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Ink, Watercolor, Archival Paper, Etching, Aquatint

Pablo Picasso "Femme assise" (Dora Maar)
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pablo Picasso (Malaga 1881-1973 Mougins) Femme assise (Dora Maar). 1955 Lithograph in colors after the painting "Dora Maar" from 1944. Czwiklitzer 104. Ro...
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Mid-19th Century Surrealist Art

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Lithograph

Apollinaire “Woman with Guitar”, Original Hand-colored Copper Etching
Located in Austin, TX
Apollinaire “Woman with Guitar”, Original Hand-colored Copper Etching 115/145 This work comes with a Certificate of Authenticity from West Chelsea Contemporary. Additional Info: th...
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19th Century Surrealist Art

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Copper

On the Balcony
Located in Los Angeles, CA
RICHARD KIRK "ON THE BALCONY" OIL ON CANVAS, SIGNED AMERICAN, C.1950 24 X 36 INCHES Richard Kirk American, 2oth Century Richard Kirk is a mystery, h...
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1860s Surrealist Art

Materials

Oil, Canvas

On the Balcony
H 24 in W 36 in D 3 in
Fantastic Composition - Original Etching by Wifredo Lam -
Located in Roma, IT
Fantastic Composition is an original print (colored etching and aquatint) signed in pencil by Wifredo Lam. Image dimensions: 26.3x36 cm. This is a wonderful artist's proof, as report...
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Late 19th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Etching

"American Clock" from the "Time" Suite
Located in Houston, TX
Surrealist print of a clock that has similar features to the Statue of Liberty hanging from a tree done in red, white, blue, and yellow by Salvador Dali from his "Time" suite. Editio...
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Crouching Woman
By Walter Peregoy
Located in Los Angeles, CA
WALTER PEREGOY "CROUCHING WOMAN" GOUACHE AND GRAPHITE, ESTATE LABEL CALIFORNIA, CIRCA 1960 48 X 24 INCHES Walter Peregoy 1925-2015 Alwyn Walter ...
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1850s Surrealist Art

Materials

Granite

The Minotaur
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist: Salvador Dali (Spanish surrealist, 1904-1989) Title: Le Minotaure Year : Created 1934, published 1981 Medium: Bronze sculpture with green patina and gold plating Ed...
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Mid-19th Century Surrealist Art

Materials

Bronze

The Minotaur
The Minotaur
H 10.15 in W 3.5 in D 3.5 in
Abstract
Located in Los Angeles, CA
HAN BURKHARDT "SURREAL STILL LIFE" PASTEL, SIGNED AMERICAN, DATED 1944 17 X 23 INCHES Hans Burkhardt 1904-1994 Hans Burkhardt was born in Basel, Switzerland in 19...
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1840s Surrealist Art

Materials

Pastel

BEHIND THE CURTAIN
By Hank Gross
Located in Los Angeles, CA
HANK GROSS BEHIND THE CURTAIN MIXED MEDIA ON PANEL, SIGNED AMERICAN, DATED 1967 40 X 30 INCHES Hank Gross Born 1939 Hank Gross was born in 1939 in the Bronx, New York. He was a writer and editor for over 40 years, beginning in New York City in the 60's. He freelanced for various magazines and worked as an editor at the National Examiner tabloid newspaper. He also did research and writing for the Reader's Digest. He had novels and non-fiction published by major publishers such as Ballantine, World, Arbor House, Peter Pauper Press, and William Morrow, as well as many short stories and articles in major national publications, such as "The Boy Who Ate New York" in the National Lampoon...
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1860s Surrealist Art

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Mixed Media

The Walker
By Leonora Carrington
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This bronze is in the manner of Leonora Carrington, it is from the 1960s, purchased in Mexico with another sculpture by Carrington.
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1860s Surrealist Art

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Portrait of a Young Woman
By Martin Maddox
Located in Los Angeles, CA
MARTIN MADDOX "PORTRAIT OF A WOMAN" OIL ON CANVAS, SIGNED AMERICAN, C.1980 36 X 48 INCHES Martin Maddox 1954-1997 Maddox was a resident of Galesbu...
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1880s Surrealist Art

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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.

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