The Lithuanian-American artist Irving Norman was a social Surrealist who painted large-scale and highly detailed critiques of contemporary life with hopes that viewers would consider the consequences of their actions and change their behavior.
Influenced by the dire conditions of the Great Depression, Norman’s massive canvases feature armies of clone-like figures behaving in the clockwork manner in which they have been programmed. He moved from New York to Los Angeles in 1934 before helping to defend the Spanish Republic from the fascist Franco dictatorship.
Norman survived the Spanish Civil War and in 1939 settled on Catalina Island off the Southern California coast, where he began drawing and painting from the atrocities he had witnessed. In 1940, he moved to San Francisco and had a solo exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Art two years later. Norman then traveled to Mexico City and saw the murals of Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros before moving to New York City to study at the Art Students League from 1946 to 1947. He returned to San Francisco in the late 1940s. In 1988, fire destroyed Norman’s home, studio, artwork and personal papers.
Find original Irving Norman paintings and prints on 1stDibs.
(Biography provided by Heather James Fine Art)
How Come, Surrealist Oil on Canvas Painting, 20th Century, Framed
By Irving Norman
Located in Palm Desert, CA
"How Come" is a Modern surrealist oil on canvas painting by Irving Norman in 1968. The artwork is 90 x 60 inches and 91 1/4 x 61 1/2 x 1 5/8 inches with the fram, weighing less than ...
Oil
$100,000
Snapshots
By Irving Norman
Located in Palm Desert, CA
"Snapshots" is a modern surrealist oil on canvas painting by Irving Norman in 1986. The artwork is 40 x 90 inches and 41 3/8 x 91 1/4 x 1 5/8 inches with the frame, weighing less than 50 lbs. It is signed and dated lower right, "I.N. '68". Norman's surrealist paintings transport viewers into dystopian realms where human figures meld with machinery, creating haunting landscapes of industrialized chaos and existential reflection. This painting uses a series of vignettes or "snapshots" of human couples in various states of health and vigor. The grotesque nature of some of the bodies is juxtaposed in the bright swimsuits as children play under an ominous sky...
Oil
Man and Time Surrealist Oil on Canvas Painting, Signed, 20th Century
By Irving Norman
Located in Palm Desert, CA
"Man and Time" is an American surrealist oil on canvas painting by Irving Norman in 1986. The artwork is 58 x 30 inches and 59 1/8 x 31 1/8 x 1 1/2 inches with the frame, weighing le...
Oil
"Salvador Dalí"
By Kyrylo Bondarenko
Located in Edinburgh, GB
I was inspired to paint this picture by girls. on a nudist beach, they froze on the mat. Like a city in the steppe. As a result, I met them, they became my muses, I repeatedly painte...
Oil
$6,500
H 30 in W 18 in
Mid-20th Century Magical Realism, Surrealist Painting, Cleveland School Artist
By Paul Riba
Located in Beachwood, OH
Paul Riba (American, 1912-1977) Untitled Oil on panel Signed lower right 30 x 18 inches 39.25 x 27.25 inches, framed Paul Riba was a painter of Magic Realism. He explored the unrea...
Oil
$15,152
H 15.36 in W 15.36 in D 1.19 in
La Boule de Cristal: Hyperrealist Oil Painting, Late 20th Century
Located in CANNES, FR
Jacques Poirier ( 1928 -2002) " La boule de cristal " . 1980' s Jacques Poirier est un peintre du mouvement trompe l'oeil , Hyper-réaliste et un illust...
Oil
$1,049
H 19.69 in W 15.75 in D 0.4 in
Egg in the Cage, Surrealist Oil Painting, Signed, 1983, 50x40 cm
Located in Roma, IT
Oil on canvas realized in 1983. Signed and dated. A striking and contemplative surrealist composition depicting an empty birdcage suspended before an arched opening overlooking a s...
Oil
"Hemerocallis II" (2022) by Sybiline, Oil Painting, Pink Day Lily
By Sybiline
Located in Denver, CO
Sybiline's (CAN based) "Hemerocallis I" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a portrait of a pink day lily. About the Artist: Sybiline is a Canadian artist based in Q...
Oil, Panel
$2,800
H 24.5 in W 28.5 in
Untitled, Nude Surreal Figures Together Slovenian French Oil Painting
By Heinrich Maryan Frama
Located in Surfside, FL
Genre: Surrealism Subject: Abstract Medium: Oil Surface: Canvas Country: France In this surreal composition by Heinrich M. Frama the artist clumps a group of figures towards the mid...
Canvas, Oil
$1,440Sale Price|20% Off
H 41 in W 30 in D 1 in
Walking Creature: Contemporary Surreal Figurative Abstract, 2005
By Michael William Eggleston
Located in Soquel, CA
Walking Creature, Contemporary Surreal Figurative Abstract by Michael William Eggleston Bold and imaginative contemporary figurative abstract by San Francisco artist Michael William...
Oil, Board
$6,500
H 42.5 in W 29.25 in D 1 in
Soothsayer: framed surrealist oil painting, figures with bird, feathers, spirits
By Rachel Romano
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
This is a signed, original oil painting by PA-based surrealist artist, Rachel Romano. It depicts a central figure wearing feathers with a mourning child and dead bird. Shadowy figure...
Oil, Linen
ShaoHua Nong Surrealist Original Oil Painting "Separate"
By Shaohua Nong
Located in New York, NY
Title: Separate Medium: Oil on canvas Size: 11.5 x 8 inches Frame: Framing options available! Condition: The painting appears to be in excellent condition. Note: This painting is unstretched Year: 2015 Artist: ShaoHua Nong...
Canvas, Oil
"Hemerocallis I" (2022) by Sybiline, Oil Painting, Pink Day Lily
By Sybiline
Located in Denver, CO
Sybiline's (CAN based) "Hemerocallis I" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a portrait of a pink day lily. About the Artist: Sybiline is a Canadian artist based in Q...
Oil, Panel
$350
H 4 in W 4 in
"Hemerocallis III" (2022) by Sybiline, Oil Painting, Pink & White Day Lily
By Sybiline
Located in Denver, CO
Sybiline's (CAN based) "Hemerocallis III" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a portrait of a pink and white day lily. About the Artist: Sybiline is a Canadian artis...
Oil, Panel
$3,900
H 27 in W 22 in D 1 in
Keeper of the Red Thread: framed oil painting, abstract landscape, figure, birds
By Rachel Romano
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
This is a signed, original oil painting by PA-based artist, Rachel Romano. It depicts a central figure in a white cloak surrounded by small white flowers and holding a long, red thre...
Linen, Oil, Panel