While “expressionist” is used to describe any art that avoids naturalism and instead employs a bold use of flattened forms and intense brushwork, Expressionist art formally describes early-20th-century work from Europe that drew on Symbolism and confronted issues such as urbanization and capitalism. Expressionist artists experimented in paintings and prints with skewed perspectives, abstraction and unconventional, bright colors to portray how isolating and anxious the world felt rather than how it appeared.
Between 1905 and 1920, Austrian and German artists, in particular, were inspired by Postimpressionists such as Paul Gauguin and Vincent van Gogh in their efforts to strive for a new authenticity in their work. In its geometric patterns and decorative details, Expressionist art was also marked by eclectic sources like German and Russian folk art as well as tribal art from Africa and Oceania, which the movement’s practitioners witnessed at museums and world’s fairs.
Groups of artists came together to share and promote the themes now associated with Expressionism, such as Die Brücke (The Bridge) in Dresden, which included Erich Heckel, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff and investigated alienation and the dissolution of society in vivid color. In Munich, Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider), a group led by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc, instilled Expressionism with a search for spiritual truths. In his iconic painting The Scream, prolific Norwegian painter Edvard Munch conveyed emotional turmoil through his depiction of environmental elements, such as the threatening sky.
Expressionism shifted around the outbreak of World War I, with artists using more elements of the grotesque in reaction to the escalation of unrest and violence. Printmaking was especially popular, as it allowed artists to widely disseminate works that grappled with social and political issues amid this time of upheaval. Although the art movement ended with the rise of Nazi Germany, where Expressionist creators were labeled “degenerate,” the radical ideas of these artists would influence Neo-Expressionism that emerged in the late 1970s with painters like Jean-Michel Basquiat and Francesco Clemente.
Find a collection of authentic Expressionist paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs.
women Camelias
Located in London, London
Stained Glass Opalescent Glass Leaded Glass / Copper Foil Hand-Blown Glass "The dimensions listed are for the pictured panel. This design can be custom-scaled and fabricated to...
Glass, Blown Glass
$3,080Sale Price|20% Off
Violinist - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Women, Musical
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
$4,280Sale Price|20% Off
Garden of Tenderness - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Women
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
$2,280Sale Price|20% Off
Solitude - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Modern Men
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
$2,124
Oil on canvas Expressionist “Cabins of French Brittany”, after Georges Laporte
Located in Valladolid, ES
Exceptional oil on canvas depicting a coastal landscape with small cabins and fishing boats characteristic of French Brittany, signed Ronald, an artist from the second half of the 20...
Canvas
$3,500Sale Price|30% Off
Nude in Venice: Large Oil/Canvas Contemporary Art 55x40in Unstretched inFlorida
Located in Forest Hills, NY
"Nude in Venice" - original large art by Paula Craioveanu - Contemporary Expressionism Original, large, unique painting, oil on canvas, 55x40in / 140x102cm. Shipped rolled in a tube...
Canvas, Oil
Happy corner. Calm, blue, village, landscape, small, framed, gift, houses, rural
Located in Oslo, NO
A silent landscape lies in blue, mint and orange, as if dusk has softly drifted into a dream. The hills melt into each other like a slow breath, and the air feels light and the life ...
Canvas, Oil
$4,850
Ready to Swim -21st Century, Contemporary Figurative Portrait, Children, Africa
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique; it is not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Arti...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
$3,850
Who Cares If I'm Waiting -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Horse
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique; it is not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Arti...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Night at the Fair Oil on Board, Mid-Century Modernist Scene
Located in Genève, GE
Dimension with frame : 43,8 x 58,8 x 3,4 cm. Signed "A. Carducci" in the lower right corner. This oil on board depicts a lively evening promenade at a brightly illuminated fairgroun...
Cardboard, Oil
$3,305Sale Price|26% Off
Venice Palace and Gondola Mooring Colorful Impasto Canal View Oil Painting Italy
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Venice Palace and Gondola Mooring, Colorful Impasto Canal View Artist: Ulpiano Carrasco Title: Palacio y embarcadero en Venecia Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: 60 × 73 cm / 23.6 ×...
Oil
$2,951Sale Price|26% Off
Expressive Castilian Landscape Oil Painting with Olive Trees and Impasto Spain
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Expressive Castilian Landscape Oil Painting with Olive Trees and Impasto Artist: Ulpiano Carrasco Title: Verano en Castillejo Year: 1998 Technique: Oil on canvas Artwork dimensions: 54 × 65 cm / 21.26 × 25.59 in Framed dimensions: 78 × 89 cm / 30.71 × 35.04 in Signature: Signed and dated on the reverse Inscription: Titled “Verano en Castillejo” on the reverse Framing: Framed Condition: Good overall condition, with rich original impasto and visible pictorial texture Description A vibrant expressive landscape by Spanish artist Ulpiano Carrasco, titled Verano en Castillejo and dated 1998 on the reverse. This oil on canvas represents a powerful Castilian landscape, built through dense impasto, energetic brushwork and a luminous palette of greens, yellows, blues, whites and earthy reds. The composition captures an open rural panorama with olive trees, rolling cultivated fields and distant hills, transforming the Spanish countryside into an intense chromatic experience. Carrasco does not approach landscape as simple topography. His painting turns nature into matter, rhythm and emotion. The fields appear almost sculpted with paint, while the olive trees emerge as dark, expressive forms against the vibrating surface of the land. The result is a landscape full of movement, heat and Mediterranean-Castilian atmosphere. The work is especially attractive for collectors of Spanish contemporary landscape painting, expressive impasto painting, Mediterranean landscapes, olive tree paintings...
Oil
Cerne Abbas, Original painting, landscape, contemporary
Located in Deddington, GB
Cerne Abbas is an Original Oil painting by Eleanor Woolley. Focusing in on the Valley of Cerne Abbas, this painting depicts the sloping hills climbing away from the village towards t...
Canvas, Oil
$3,000
Expectancy - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Floral, Women
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
$885
Happy house. Childhood, memory, home, happy, sun, landscape, house, family
Located in Oslo, NO
This is a story of a "Happy house", it feels as if it has grown from the landscape itself. Its bright walls and strange proportions belong to a world remembered from childhood, a pla...
Canvas, Oil
What Does The Future Hold 1 -21st Century Contemporary, Portrait, Modern Fashion
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity (Issued by the Gal...
Canvas, Oil
Large French Expressionist Floral Still Life Oil Painting
Located in AIGNAN, FR
Expressionist floral on a grand scale! This large and colourful modern oil painting on canvas is by French artist Colette Chasseigneaux (1925-2017). A gorgeous array of colour, but ...
Oil
$850
African Woman 2 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, People, Black
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Bey...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
$3,305
Large contemporary expressionist figurative still life painting "Floral pause"
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
"Floral Pause" is a contemporary still life painting by French artist Natalya Mougenot, celebrated for her colorful floral art and expressive compositions that capture the simple poe...
Canvas, Acrylic, Linen
$2,080Sale Price|20% Off
Aurora Over a Northern Lake, Expressionist Oil on Canvas, Framed, 1916
Located in Stockholm, Stockholm
Aurora over a Northern Lake, signed and dated “G Claeson 1916”, oil on canvas. This evocative landscape, executed in an expressionist manner, and on the same time almost modern, cap...
Canvas, Oil
North West. Richard K Blades. Oil painting of the sea and sky Turner influence.
Located in Coltishall, GB
North West - a tumultuous seascape beneath a dramatic sky. Blades' textured brushstrokes that merge shades of deep indigo and soft pink, suggest an impending storm. The transition fr...
Oil, Board
$850
African Woman 1 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, People, Black
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Bey...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
On the same wave. Couple painting, love, blue, sea, man and a woman, fish, large
Located in Oslo, NO
A man and a woman float in gentle harmony, surrounded by flying fish moving through soft turquoise and deep blue. The scene is calm yet surreal, a space between dream and sea, presen...
Canvas, Oil
$4,000
Aduke and Her Pets - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Animal
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
$554
"Red blooms" Contemporary expressionist still life floral acrylic painting
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
Original Contemporary Floral Still Life Painting, 29.7 × 42 cm (11.7 × 16.5 inches), Acrylic Paint and Acrylic Pen on Heavyweight Professional Acid-Free Paper, Varnished, by French A...
Paper, Acrylic
$2,478
Shadow marshes. Richard K Blades. Painting of sea at sunset. Turner influence.
Located in Coltishall, GB
A warm sunset over Norfolk's Cromer beach. Between Thoughts is a sublime oil painting that captures the mesmerizing tranquility of a sunset over thw North Sea. The horizon is ablaze...
Oil, Board
$3,350
Aimasiko - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Africa, Women
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Yoruba proverb says, "Adániwáyè ò gbagbé enikan; àimàsikò lóndààmú edá", meaning "The Creator does not forget anyone; ignorance of divine timing troubles humans". Difficult times may...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
"Pleasantries" (2025) Still Life of Fruit and Ceramic, Acrylic/Charcoal Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Leigh Ann Van Fossan's "Pleasantries" is a charming acrylic and charcoal painting, created on canvas, which depicts slices of mango resting on a plate Van Fossan was born in Vail, C...
Canvas, Charcoal, Acrylic
Woven Identities 1 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Africa
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Woven Identities is a body of work that explores the intersection of indigenous African heritage and modern global culture. In these paintings, I focus on hairstyle, tribal marks, dr...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Hope Not Lost - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Balloon
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
$3,000
Ray of Hope - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Floral, Women
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
$3,350
Don't Rush Life 2 - 21st Century Contemporary Figurative, Portrait, Africa, Men
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Where am from Bandana was once a common style, we called it Big Boy Style, then it's seem to me like a style or fashion only, because our elder brothers only allowed to used it but n...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
$1,580
Poppies and Wildflowers, Figurative Triptych, Large Botanical Landscape on Paper
Located in Barcelona, ES
This original painting by Romina Milano presents a lyrical field of poppies and wildflowers, where gestural brushwork and simplified forms create a vivid, contemporary botanical comp...
Acrylic, Watercolor, Handmade Paper
$448
Abstract Expressive woman's portrait acrylic on paper "What she holds within"
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
This contemporary abstract expressionist woman's portrait "What she holds within "was created by the French artist Natalya Mougenot. With her hand gently resting against her chin and...
Paper, Acrylic
Between Thoughts. Richard K Blades. Painting of sea at sunset. Turner influence.
Located in Coltishall, GB
A warm sunset over Norfolk's Cromer beach. Between Thoughts is a sublime oil painting that captures the mesmerizing tranquility of a sunset over thw North Sea. The horizon is ablaze...
Oil, Board
Villiers le Bel
Located in Paris, FR
PRESSEMANE Joseph 'Villiers le Bel'. Oil on board. Signed. 47 x 21 cm. Titled and signed on the back. Biography Born Jozef Presman in 1904 in Berestechko, Ukraine, he studied at th...
Oil
Bullfighting Scene Oil on Canvas, Expressionist, Circa 1960, Unframed
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Title: Bullfighting Scene Artist: José María Tuser Vázquez (1919-1986) Technique: Oil on canvas Dimensions: 16.1 x 13 inches (unframed) Date: c. 1950-1960 Condition: Good Provenance:...
Canvas, Oil
$497Sale Price|60% Off
Sailors in Nice: Mixed Media Gouache and Pastel on Paper, 1950s
Located in London, GB
'Sailors in the Port of Nice', mixed media - gouache, pastel and oil on paper, by Alfred Salvignol (circa 1950s). The Port of Nice is one of the key hubs of Nice and, in fact, of the entire French Riviera, standing out as one of the main harbours for the boats which sail across the Mediterranean Sea. It accommodates both the ships operated by ferry companies and the private yachts of visitors who come to Nice by sea. The artist here depicts a group of crusty sailors watching...
Paper, Pastel, Oil, Gouache
$3,480Sale Price|20% Off
Gentleman 1 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Abstract, Mixed Media
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity (Issued by the Gal...
Canvas, Charcoal, Pastel, Acrylic
$1,159Sale Price|40% Off
The Parade Ring at the Races, Gouache and Pastel, Signed, 1970s
By Maurice EMPI
Located in London, GB
'The Parade Ring at the Races', gouache and pastel on art paper, by Maurice Empi (circa 1970s). The Parade Ring, otherwise known as the paddock, is the pla...
Paper, Pastel, Gouache
$708
Girl in a whited dress. Love, friendship, pet, landscape, kind, small, framed
Located in Oslo, NO
This oil painting is a nice story of love and friendship, about a young girl in a white dress and her goat pet, it captures a rural landscape dominated by mountains and houses that ...
Canvas, Oil
$2,240Sale Price|20% Off
Beauty We Carry 1, - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Floral
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
This piece begins a new body of work that asks a simple question: What if becoming never required us to leave ourselves behind? For me, growth should never come at the cost of ident...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Pasión flamenca - Técnica mixta - Firmado y enmarcado
Located in Sant Celoni, ES
Firmado por el artista en la parte inferior Se presenta enmarcada la obra Medidas obra: 65 cm. de altura x 50 cm. de ancho Medidas marco: 86 cm. de altura x 72 cm. de ancho Buen ...
Mixed Media, Watercolor
$1,200Sale Price|20% Off
Woman with Red Hair
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Baron Robert Heinrich Freiherr von Doblhoff (1880 Vienna - 1960 ibid.) Woman with Red Hair Ink and watercolor on paper, image measures 6.25 x 7.25 inc...
Ink, Watercolor
Portrait of a Lady - Antque French Expressionist Ecole de Paris Oil Painting
Located in Sevenoaks, GB
A beautiful early 20th century French expressionist Ecole de Paris oil on panel portrait of a standing lady wearing a yellow jacket and fur stole. This excellent quality depiction o...
Oil, Panel
Portrait of a Man - Early 20th Century Antique French Expressionist Oil Painting
Located in Sevenoaks, GB
A superb large early 20th century French expressionist oil on canvas depicting a seated man. Very similar to the work of Chaïm Soutine (1893-1943). Excellent quality depiction of th...
Oil, Canvas
$3,960Sale Price|55% Off
French Expressionism "A Vase of Flowers" Gen Paul (French, 1895-1975)
By Gen Paul
Located in SANTA FE, NM
"A Vase of Flowers" Eugene Paul aka Gen Paul (French, 1895-1975) Oil crayon on paper 20 1/2 x 14 (28 x 21 1/2 frame) inches "Gen Paul is undoubtedly the greatest representative, and...
Oil Crayon, Paper
$897Sale Price|20% Off
Camargue, French Oil Painting on Canvas, Framed, 1960s Landscape
Located in Genève, GE
Modern Mediterranean Figurative Painting – Red Fishing Boat and Female Figure – Textured Oil on Canvas Signed G. Girard This original painting signed G. Girard captures a poetic and ...
Oil
Hoopoe Bird Oil Painting on Canvas, Expressionist Style, Unframed
By Elena Lukina
Located in Zofingen, AG
"Hoopoe: The Crowned Messenger" is a definitive masterpiece by Elena Lukina, capturing the regal and ancient essence of one of nature’s most enigmatic archetypes. Part of the artist’...
Canvas, Oil, Cardboard
$3,350
One Mind With Many Thoughts - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Women
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Sometimes, our thoughts can be the enemy. We need to be careful about our thoughts because we can lose ourselves. Life can be tough, filled with challenges and difficulties, but it's...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
$1,750
Togetherness - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Africa, Love
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
Spring came!
By Elena Lukina
Located in Zofingen, AG
In this oil painting, I embraced the raw vitality of expressionism to capture the essence of renewal. The figurative approach intertwines with the soft vintage touch, conveying a fin...
Canvas, Oil, Linen
$450
Quiet Strength 2 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Portrait, Oil, Modern, Fashion
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity (Issued by the Gal...
Canvas, Oil
$790
Nature-Inspired Painting, Tropical Flora in Brown and Green, Modern Nature Forms
Located in Barcelona, ES
This painting explores an intimate and imaginative relationship with nature, transforming tropical flora into expressive, living forms. Rather than depicting a specific landscape, th...
Paper, Wax Crayon, Acrylic
Melanin - 21st Century Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Fashion
By Gobe Joseph
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Gob...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic, Mixed Media
Funfair - 1950's French Expressionist Mid Century Oil on Canvas Painting
By André Beaucé
Located in Sevenoaks, GB
A wonderful 1950's French expressionist oil on canvas depicting figures at a busy funfair, by Parisian artist André Beaucé. Excellent quality work painted with thick impasto brush work. Signed lower centre. Artist: André Beaucé (French, 1911-1974) Title: Funfair Medium: Oil on canvas Size: 25.5 x 21 inches (65 x 54 cm) André Beaucé was a French painter born on May 23, 1911 in Rennes and died on January 2, 1974 in Paris . A pupil of the School of Fine Arts in Rennes, a graduate of the National School of Decorative Arts where he was admitted in 1932, André Beaucé was a pupil in the workshops of André Lhote and Simon, with Yves Brayer . He won the Abd-el-Tif prize in 1946 and was a regular at the Salon d'Automne. After having lived for several years in Algeria, and in particular at Villa Abd El Tif where he was a scholarship holder from 1946 to 1948, André Beaucé returned to France in 1949 and resumed his teaching at the Schools of Paris. His painting is then powerfully expressionist, free from any system. In the 1950s, we notice vigorous, uncompromising, intense portraits, captured in an almost caricatural way. The tones, always very mounted, are opposed with force in a composition cut with vigor. After the dark years of the war, Beaucé’s art reflects a violent vision of a certain reality that is always brutal and yet magnificent. Exhibitions Paris, 1936 to 1945, Salon of the National Society of Fine Arts . Tunis, 1946, Exhibition of French Africa. Algiers, 1947, Abd-el-Tif. Paris, 1948, Letourneur gallery. Paris, from 1950 to 1960, Salon d'Automne and Salon Comparaisons . Paris, 1962, Roy's gallery. Paris, May 1963, Exhibition organized on the occasion of the Estates General on Disarmament , Cercle Volney. First Salon Biarritz - San Sebastian: School of Paris - Painting, sculpture: André Beauce, Georges-André Klein , Adrienne Jouclard , Jean Joyet , Robert Lotiron , Roland Bierge , Andrée Bordeaux-Le Pecq , Henri Hayden , Franck Innocent , Germaine Lacaze...
Canvas, Oil
$3,350
GenZ Lovers -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Abstraction, Africa, Couple
By Olajide Kuti
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure 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 Authenticity. About Artist Ola...
Canvas, Acrylic
$2,600Sale Price|50% Off
“The Horse Race" #50 A Pierre Bosco (Italy/France, 1909-1993) circa 1950s
By Pierre Bosco
Located in SANTA FE, NM
“The Horse Race" #50 A Pierre Bosco, (1909-1993) Oil n canvas Signed lower right 12 x 15 inches “The savage art of Bosco bears its rudeness and its mystery. It is an art of pure ex...
Canvas, Oil
Woven Identities 4 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Africa
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Woven Identities is a body of work that explores the intersection of indigenous African heritage and modern global culture. In these paintings, I focus on hairstyle, tribal marks, dr...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Snowman with a flashlight 30X25
By Elena Lukina
Located in Zofingen, AG
In my painting, I've poured my soul into capturing the whimsical joy and innocent warmth of winter's magic. Brushstrokes of oil dance across the canvas, framing a cheerful snowman as...
Oil