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Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

Dutch, 1921-2006
Karel Appel was a founding member of COBRA, an art movement originating in Germany that strived to replicate and invoke the child’s approach to art. Within this movement he created abstracted and simplified figures, often monsters and fractured depictions of people.
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Artist: Karel Appel
Karel Appel Colorful Expressionist Hand Painted Wood Cobra Sculpture Pop Art
Karel Appel Colorful Expressionist Hand Painted Wood Cobra Sculpture Pop Art

Karel Appel Colorful Expressionist Hand Painted Wood Cobra Sculpture Pop Art

By Karel Appel

Located in Surfside, FL

This is an original wooden sculpture with hand painting on both sides. it does not appear to be signed or numbered and does not currently have any label. I believe this might be the ...

Category

1970s Abstract Expressionist Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Wood, Paint

Clown Cat - Limited Edition Sculpture 9/10
Clown Cat - Limited Edition Sculpture 9/10

Clown Cat - Limited Edition Sculpture 9/10

By Karel Appel

Located in AMSTERDAM, NL

Discover the Essence of Joy: Karel Appel's "Clown Cat" 9/10 Limited Edition Sculpture in Acrylic on wood. Crafted from the finest wood, its playful contours and vibrant hues captiva...

Category

1970s Abstract Expressionist Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Wood, Acrylic

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Materials

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Israeli Abstract Expressionist Dina Recanati Cosmos Painting, Sculpture in Metal

Israeli Abstract Expressionist Dina Recanati Cosmos Painting, Sculpture in Metal

By Dina Recanati

Located in Surfside, FL

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Early 2000s Abstract Expressionist Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Liz Sweibel, Untitled (Scrapings #1), 2016, Wood, Paint, Found Objects
Liz Sweibel, Untitled (Scrapings #1), 2016, Wood, Paint, Found Objects

Liz Sweibel, Untitled (Scrapings #1), 2016, Wood, Paint, Found Objects

By Liz Sweibel

Located in Darien, CT

The freestanding sculptures in this portfolio are made from the “sticks”: a pile of found wood that Sweibel has been pulling from to make new works since about 2002. The pile consisted of more than a dozen four- to seven-foot lengths of hardwood, each an uneven inch in depth and width. The sticks were warped, with worn yellow paint on one side and raw wood on the other three. Over the years she has painted the raw sides of the sticks, cut the wood into shorter lengths, and sliced paint off – and kept the residue from these actions. Sweibel has also made sculptures ranging from full-length sticks to tiny stick splinters. She built these sculptures using sliced-off paint. Timeworn materials and objects have an intelligence that the artist looks for and listens to. Shaping and reshaping material to find new form and elicit new insights in the material itself is the territory she is mining. The limitations of the process are its strengths. Her work is concerned with fragility, precariousness, adaptability, and strength. It is a visual response to powerful yet unseen forces - like wind and thoughts - that threaten, propel, ruin, and protect. Liz Sweibel is a multidisciplinary artist working in drawing, sculpture, installation, and digital photography and video. Her spare, personal language of abstraction transforms ordinary materials into statements about connectedness and responsibility: every action has an impact, the effects persist in space and over time, and we are accountable. By drawing attention to simple, ordinary “stuff of life” and referencing both shared and personal history, Sweibel’s work explores and reflects back fundamental experiences in response to our world and relationships. Her intention is to reinvigorate viewers’ awareness of the everyday – in its raw beauty and precariousness – in hopes that they might bring heightened senses of sight and care to their daily lives. Sweibel has participated in solo, two-person, and group exhibits in New York, Massachusetts, Maine, Connecticut, Michigan, and Tennessee since 1998. In 2016, Sweibel’s work was in the group shows Lightly Structured at Sculpture Space NYC, Precarious Constructs at the Venus Knitting Art...

Category

2010s Abstract Expressionist Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Wood, Paint, Found Objects

Previously Available Items
Karel Appel Colorful Expressionist Hand Painted Wood Cobra Sculpture Pop Art
Karel Appel Colorful Expressionist Hand Painted Wood Cobra Sculpture Pop Art

Karel Appel Colorful Expressionist Hand Painted Wood Cobra Sculpture Pop Art

By Karel Appel

Located in Surfside, FL

This is an original wooden sculpture with hand painting on both sides. it does not appear to be signed or numbered and does not currently have any label. I believe this might be the proof, There was an edition of these and this is a unique variant. All done by hand. It is on a base and revolves and rotates easily as there are ball bearings. It is very well made. Christiaan Karel Appel (1921-2006) was a Dutch artist, painter, sculptor, and poet. Born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, he died in Zurich, Switzerland. He started painting at the age of fourteen and studied at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam in the 1940s. He was one of the founders of the avant-garde movement Cobra in 1948. He was also an avid sculptor and has had works featured in MoMA, the Stedelijk and other museums worldwide. At fourteen, Appel produced his first real painting on canvas, a still life of a fruit basket. For his fifteenth birthday, his wealthy uncle Karel Chevalier gave him a paint set and an easel. An avid amateur painter himself, Chevalier gave his namesake some lessons in painting. From 1940 to 1943, during the German occupation, Appel studied at the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten in Amsterdam, and it was there he met the young painter Guillaume Corneille and, some years later, Constant; they became close friends for years. Appel had his first show in Groningen in 1946. In 1949 he participated with the other CoBrA artists in the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam; this generated a huge scandal and many objections in the press and public. He was influenced by Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and the French brute-art artist Jean Dubuffet. In 1947 he started sculpting with all kinds of used materials (in the technique of assemblage) and painted them in bright colors: white, red, yellow, blue, and black. He joined the Experimentele Groep in Holland together with the young Dutch painters Anton Rooskens...

Category

1970s Abstract Expressionist Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Wood, Paint

Karel Appel, Floating Family
Karel Appel, Floating Family

Karel Appel, Floating Family

By Karel Appel

Located in Chatsworth, CA

This piece is an original hand-painted multiple stone sculpture created by Karel Appel in 1976. It was published by Editions Press of San Francisco. This piece is hand signed by th...

Category

1970s Modern Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Stone

Multiple Stone Sculpture #350
Multiple Stone Sculpture #350

Multiple Stone Sculpture #350

By Karel Appel

Located in Atlanta, GA

Polychrome decorated original multiple stone sculpture also known as "Floating Family Stone Sculpture." Edition AP 1/13 Signed and dated lower right “Appel 76” One of the found...

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1970s Modern Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

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Stone

Jumping Fox Green Virgin
Jumping Fox Green Virgin

Karel AppelJumping Fox Green Virgin, 1976

Sold

H 19 in W 24 in D 2.5 in

Jumping Fox Green Virgin

By Karel Appel

Located in Buffalo, NY

You are viewing a fantastic original hand painted carved wood sculpture created by Karel Appel. This piece executed by the artist in 1976 is a very rare H.C. edition acquired dir...

Category

1970s Abstract Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures

Materials

Acrylic, Wood

Karel Appel abstract sculptures for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Karel Appel abstract sculptures available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Karel Appel in paint, stone, wood and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1970s and is mostly associated with the modern style. Not every interior allows for large Karel Appel abstract sculptures, so small editions measuring 28 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Peter Voulkos, Varujan Boghosian, and Jan Maarten Voskuil. Karel Appel abstract sculptures prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $12,500 and tops out at $22,000, while the average work can sell for $17,250.
Questions About Karel Appel Abstract Sculptures
  • 1stDibs ExpertJanuary 19, 2025
    Karel Appel is famous for his influence on the world of fine art. He was a founding member of CoBrA, an art movement originating in Germany that strived to replicate and invoke a child’s approach to art. Within this movement, he created abstracted and simplified figures, often monsters and fractured depictions of people. Shop an assortment of Karel Appel art on 1stDibs.