Rudolf Kosow
German, Kazakhstani, b. 1972
Like images from a dream, Rudolf Kosow’s Surrealist figurative and still-life paintings and drawings conjure into reality otherworldly and absurdist scenes.
Kosow was born in 1972 in Karaganda, Kazakhstan. From 1994 to 2000, he studied painting at the city’s State Academy of Fine Arts.
Now based in Germany, he divides his time between Stuttgart and the town of Laichingen. He creates oil paintings based on three subjects: humans, animals and landscapes. He invites the viewer to interpret each work’s enigmatic message. For instance, in Contact, an astronaut is seemingly unaware of a colossal cat’s peering eye. In Missing Pieces, Kosow depicts a couple considering the whereabouts of slices taken from a giant Black Forest cake.
Kosow also explores the nature of human relationships in his portraits, such as Couple and Discord. Capture features a large-scale image of a sleeping girl juxtaposed with a miniature soldier standing guard.
“I try to paint things as realistically and as close as possible to enhance the real impression,” Kosow says in his artist’s statement. Although the imagery in his paintings and figurative drawings can be strange and somewhat unsettling, Kosow’s unique interplay of light and shadow creates a sense of “calm, harmony and peace.”
Kosow has exhibited across Germany and France. His works are sought by collectors of 21st-century Surrealist art.
On 1stDibs, find a range of Rudolf Kosow’s paintings, drawings and more.
| Average Sold Price |
| $1,886 |
| Styles |
| Materials |
| Related Artists |
Bobby' Nightmare (pug dog face helicopter vintage surreal oil painting)
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
"Bobby's Nightmare" by Rudolf Kosow is a striking blend of humor and surrealism, juxtaposing an exaggeratedly expressive pug with an intense military scene. The dog's bulging eyes, lolling tongue, and shocked expression contrast sharply with the highly detailed helicopter and soldiers descending from the sky, creating an absurd and unexpected composition.
The painting plays on the idea of a pet's anxiety, turning an ordinary moment of canine surprise into an action-packed, almost cinematic spectacle. The hyperrealistic rendering of the pug’s fur and facial details enhances the surrealism, making the implausible scene feel eerily convincing. With its mix of realism and whimsy, Bobby’s Nightmare captures the chaotic energy of an overactive imagination—whether that of a dog startled by its surroundings or a playful human interpretation of a pet’s exaggerated emotions.
keywords; painting on canvas, surrealist painting, americana...
Category
2010s Surrealist Rudolf Kosow
Materials
Canvas, Oil
H 39.38 in W 31.5 in D 0.99 in
Wrong Place Wrong Time (surreal painting monkey iceberg scale animal chimpanzee
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
Rudolf Kosow’s Wrong Place, Wrong Time is a haunting surrealist composition that juxtaposes disparate elements to create an unsettling yet mesmerizing scene. A colossal chimpanzee, i...
Category
2010s Surrealist Rudolf Kosow
Materials
Canvas, Oil
H 78.75 in W 51.19 in D 0.79 in
Mind Blowing (vintage car surrealist oil painting grey monochrome dessert cake)
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
Two photographic motifs, which can by no means fit together in real life, result in a coherent and at the same time completely absurd image on the painting level. Something that has happened, you can see things clearly in front of you and still do not understand how often in real life what it all means.
keywords; americana, surrealism, rasberry cake, vintage, oil painting, men figurative painting...
Category
2010s Surrealist Rudolf Kosow
Materials
Canvas, Oil
H 39.38 in W 27.56 in D 0.79 in
Malua Rosea Multiplex (drawing paper monochrome Botany girl braids monochrome)
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
keywords; surrealism, portrait, oil painting, earth tones, figurative painting, strangeness, contemporary surrealistic, unsettling, contemporary figurative painting, dreams, symbolic...
Category
2010s Realist Rudolf Kosow
Materials
Color Pencil, Paper
H 16.54 in W 11.62 in D 0.08 in
Vicious Circle (donut cake lady dessert americana vintage surreal painting)
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
A hyperrealistic doughnut dominates Vicious Circle, its glossy chocolate glaze reflecting light with mouthwatering precision. Seated atop it, a young woman in a vintage swimsuit appe...
Category
2010s Surrealist Rudolf Kosow
Materials
Canvas, Oil
H 47.25 in W 59.06 in D 0.99 in
Fragment 9 (dreamy woman back skin female figurative painting soft Earth tones)
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
"Fragment 9" by Rudolf Kosow is a striking miniature painting that employs a minimalist yet impactful use of color and form to convey deep emotional and psychological states. The art...
Category
2010s Post-Impressionist Rudolf Kosow
Materials
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic, Wood Panel
H 7.88 in W 7.88 in D 0.99 in
Hopeful (black labrador, dog pet, woman, vintage, animal, surrealist painting)
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
In this moving piece by Rudolf Kosow, the canvas captures a tender and intimate moment between species. The focus is a deeply expressive black dog, portrayed with a level of detail t...
Category
2010s Surrealist Rudolf Kosow
Materials
Canvas, Oil
H 15.75 in W 15.75 in D 0.99 in
Phenomenon II (oil painting surrealist cat paws men vintage clothing nostalgia)
By Rudolf Kosow
Located in Quebec, Quebec
People encounter a domestic animal that is commonplace and familiar, but the disproportionate scale creates fascination, fright and this perspective renders the human speechless. Similar to the satirical novel "Gulliver's Travels", people are confronted with an inexplicable encounter and do not know how to react to it. Is the situation perplexing because a dog is huge, just taking a nap and does not notice the people around it, or are humans too tiny and do not recognize their "absurd" existence?
keywords; surrealism, animals, cat, oil painting, earth tones, figurative painting, strangeness, contemporary surrealistic, unsettling, contemporary figurative painting, dreams, symbolic composition, cat paw
Category
2010s Surrealist Rudolf Kosow
Materials
Canvas, Oil
H 53.15 in W 59.06 in D 0.79 in
Browse all Art from Rudolf Kosow
Shop NowRudolf Kosow Sale Prices
This data represents a recent sample of sales made on 1stDibs during the specified years. All sales are anonymized.
| Sold Date | Sold Price | Category | Medium | Creation Year | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| $1,886 |
Average sold price of items in the past 12 months |
| $700-$5,000 |
| Sold price range of items in the past 12 months |
Artists Similar to Rudolf Kosow
Rudolf Kosow art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Rudolf Kosow art available for sale on 1stDibs. If you’re browsing the collection of art to introduce a pop of color in a neutral corner of your living room or bedroom, you can find work that includes elements of blue, orange, purple and other colors. You can also browse by medium to find art by Rudolf Kosow in oil paint, paint, canvas and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 21st century and contemporary and is mostly associated with the Surrealist style. Not every interior allows for large Rudolf Kosow art, so small editions measuring 12 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Valton Tyler, Henry David Potwin, and Joseph Broghammer. Rudolf Kosow art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $503 and tops out at $10,000, while the average work can sell for $4,863.