Surrealist Art
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.
1960s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
1980s Surrealist Art
Pastel, Gouache, Carbon Pencil
2010s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Art
Oil
1970s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Art
Paper, Color
2010s Surrealist Art
Archival Paper, Color Pencil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Canvas, Acrylic, Cardboard
1960s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
20th Century Surrealist Art
Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Art
Paper, Color
1970s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
1970s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
1970s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
2010s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Acrylic, Canvas
2010s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Art
Paper, Color
1930s Surrealist Art
Linocut
2010s Surrealist Art
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Gouache, Wood Panel
Artist Comments
In an expressionist style, artist Anna Yoo paints three people in contemplative poses sitting adjacent to each other. She expresses hope through the distinct co...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Mixed Media
2010s Surrealist Art
Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Art
Archival Paper, Inkjet, Archival Pigment
1970s Surrealist Art
Screen
2010s Surrealist Art
Archival Pigment
1970s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
1970s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
Artist Comments
"Bloom is a soft and delicate work filled with pastels colors and round shapes," describes artist Asha Hanna. "This painting is all ...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Acrylic
1970s Surrealist Art
C Print, Photographic Paper
1960s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
2010s Surrealist Art
Paper, Color Pencil
2010s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Surrealist Art
Mixed Media, Lithograph
2010s Surrealist Art
Acrylic, Panel
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Archival Paper
Artist Comments
"Triggered is a work that was slowly developed due to multiple influences changing the meaning of the painting," explains artist Asha Hanna. "The original ins...
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Acrylic
2010s Surrealist Art
Color Pencil, Paper
1980s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Oil
1980s Surrealist Art
Cotton Canvas, Oil
1970s Surrealist Art
Screen
1980s Surrealist Art
Lithograph
1970s Surrealist Art
Aquatint, Etching
2010s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Acrylic
1970s Surrealist Art
Mixed Media, Lithograph
2010s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Acrylic
1980s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Oil
2010s Surrealist Art
Mixed Media
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Archival Paper, Color
1930s Surrealist Art
Tempera
2010s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Art
Acrylic
1990s Surrealist Art
Canvas, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Surrealist Art
Canvas, Oil