A resurgence of interest in Expressionism, Pop art, Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism and other movements gained steam among artists of the 1970s and ’80s, in part as a reaction to the austerity of the prevailing minimalism and Conceptual art of the era. A decadent, bold and brash art style called Neo-Expressionism saw painters returning to figural representation, creating highly textured works that were imbued with intensely personal narratives.
Neo-Expressionist paintings are sensuous in nature and highly subjective in meaning. Expressive brushwork, highly pigmented colors and layered forms and materials lent sculptural attributes to the work and were used to depict symbolic narratives from history, mythology and the artist’s personal experience.
Prominent figures such as Jean-Michel Basquiat led the Neo-Expressionist movement in the United States with paintings and prints that were raw, emotional and often violent in nature. In Germany, Die Neuen Wilden (the “New Fauves”) was the name given to a group of postwar artists that included the likes of sculptor Georg Baselitz and Gerhard Richter, a painter and photographer who explored the possibilities of both abstraction and realism, sometimes in a single piece. The work of the New Fauves — labeled as such for its return to Fauvism’s textured brushwork and use of vibrant colors — shares commonalities with Neo-Expressionism, and Baselitz was a pioneer of the movement in Europe. In addition, Willem de Kooning’s pulsating action paintings and Julian Schnabel’s experimentation with the materiality of paintings also took shape during this period.
“I was trying to make paintings different from the paintings that I saw a lot of at the time, which were mostly minimal, and they were highbrow and alienating, and I wanted to make very direct paintings that most people would feel the emotion behind when they saw them,” said Basquiat.
Neo-Expressionism generated some polarizing opinions, with some celebrating the revival of personal subjectivity in art while others criticizing the movement for being too commercially driven and nostalgic. But most experts agree that Neo-Expressionism was a huge commercial success and culturally impactful, paving the way for the postmodern work of artists like Richter and Sigmar Polke.
Find original Neo-Expressionist paintings, prints, mixed-media works and other art on 1stDibs.
Forced Entry, Expressionist Etching by Richard Bosman
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Richard Bosman, American (1944 - ) Title: Forced Entry Year: 1983 Medium: Sugar Lift Etching, signed, numbered, and titled in pencil Edition: 10/20 Image Size: 10 x 7 inches...
Etching
$99Sale Price|77% Off
Garfields Muscular Hello
By Olivia Gibb
Located in Kansas City, MO
Title : Sylvester Admiring His Knockers Materials : stamps, ink, crayon,marker,pen Date : 2017 Dimensions : 8.5x11"
Mixed Media
Born to Kill, monochromatic, crime, narrative, high contrast, drama
By Tom Bennett
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Dramatic imagery from FILM NOIR series of black and white monotypes, blending surrealistic mindscapes with stark realism About Tom Bennett: With quick brushstrokes, Tom Bennett crea...
Archival Paper, Monotype
Big bad Wolf, Street Art, Pop Art, Wolf, Wall Street
By Jay-C
Located in München, BY
Edition 5 Big bad Wolf JAY-C – the pseudonym of this innovative young artist known for his subversive use of familiar figures and symbols. Using a distinct and fine British sense of...
Mixed Media, Pigment, Archival Pigment
$13,000
H 25 in W 31.5 in
"Guys and Dolls" Broadway Musical Tony Awards Signed Nathan Lane & Faith Prince
Located in New York, NY
"Guys and Dolls" Broadway Musical Tony Awards Signed Nathan Lane & Faith Prince Al Hirschfeld (1903-2003) "Guys and Dolls" Lithograph on heavy pape...
Paper, Etching, Lithograph
$180
H 5.38 in W 3 in
A Gable in the Grande Rue, Lisieux, Etching, Modern, 1910s
Located in New Orleans, LA
This image is the 3rd etching created by Arms. It was printed byGrederick Reynolds in an edition of 116. Referenced as Fletcher #3 the image is the second in his Gable series. Lis...
Etching
$1,800
H 6.75 in W 7 in
Exclusive invitation with first day cover Jackson Pollock Lee Krasner Foundation
Located in New York, NY
Jackson Pollock Exclusive invitation with first day cover, 1999 Offset lithograph fold out invitation with postmarked first day cover Stamp with official postmark from the US Post Of...
Mixed Media, Offset
$352
H 13.78 in W 11.62 in
"Anime" by Enzio Wenk, 2020 - Blue Watercolor on Paper, Abstract Figurative
By Enzio Wenk
Located in Bresso, IT
Translated title: "Souls". Watercolor on high-quality cotton paper, which is handmade in Italy. This is part of an album. The price refers to the single drawing.
Paper, Watercolor
Richard Wagner
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Richard Wagner Etching, c. 1880 Signed in the plate (see photo) Edition: c. 200 impressions Condition: mint Image/Plate size: 6 5/8 x 4 3/4 inches Sheet size: 14 3/8 x 10 7/8 inches ...
Etching
$5,500
H 11 in W 8.5 in
Kehinde Wiley - Passing/Posing Paintings & Faux Chapel, 18 prints in bespoke box
Located in New York, NY
Kehinde Wiley Passing/Posing, Paintings & Faux Chapel (suite of 18 separate prints), 2004 Portfolio of 18 Separate Color offset lithographs in original black paste board portfoli...
Ink, Mixed Media, Board, Laid Paper, Lithograph, Offset
$1,000
H 14.3 in W 12 in
Oversized illustrated PACE catalogue: Recent Works (Hand Signed by Chuck Close)
By Chuck Close
Located in New York, NY
Chuck Close Chuck Close Recent Works (Hand Signed), 1993 Large Illustrated Exhibition Catalogue Boldly hand signed in black marker on the title page by the artist Published by PACE Gallery, New York 14 3/10 x 12 inches Unframed This oversized illustrated softcover exhibition catalogue with stiff wraps is boldly signed by Chuck Close in black marker on the title page. The catalogue itself has 44 pages and is lavishly illustrated with large full color reproductions. It is extremely scarce when hand signed by the artist. Chuck Close signed...
Mixed Media, Offset, Ink, Lithograph
$180
H 16.15 in W 11.62 in
Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Pre-Raphaelite, portrait etching by Paul Adolphe Rajon
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Rajon began his career as a photographer while studying at Ecole des Beaux-Arts Paris. This original etching of Alma Tadema was etched by Rajon on one of h...
Etching
Femme a la Mantille- Carmen, from "Le Carmen des Carmen"
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
A prolific and tireless innovator of art forms, Pablo Picasso impacted the course of 20th-century art with unparalleled magnitude. Inspired by African and Iberian art and development...
Aquatint
$640
H 10.25 in W 7.5 in D 1.5 in
Book: Chuck Close Life (hand signed by both Chuck Close and Christopher Finch)
By Chuck Close
Located in New York, NY
Chuck Close Life (hand signed by both Chuck Close and Christopher Finch), 2010 Hardback monograph with dust jacket Hand signed by both Chuck Close and Christopher Finch on the title ...
Mixed Media, Permanent Marker, Lithograph, Offset
Carmen, Portrait of a Bull - Original Etching (Cramer #52)
Located in Paris, IDF
Pablo PICASSO Carmen, Portrait of a Bull, 1949 Original burin engraving (Atelier Lacourière, Paris) Unsigned On Montval wove paper 33 x 26 cm (12.9 x 10.2 in) REFERENCES : - Catal...
Etching
Sold
H 18.5 in W 22.25 in
The Universe Mender I by David Salle orange blue and red watercolor stye etching
By David Salle
Located in New York, NY
A delicate, translucent iteration of David Salle's kaleidescopic layers which are usually painted in large scale. Eyes etched in a liquid ocean of blue and orange aquatint form the ground for a nude woman...
Etching, Aquatint
Sold
H 57.49 in W 44.49 in
Hannahs Beine, Georg Baselitz, Neo Expressionism, Contemporary Art
Located in Zug, CH
Georg Baseliz Hannahs Beine, 2022 11-color archival pigment print on 300g cotton paper 146 × 113 cm (57.5 × 44.5 in) Signed and numbered Edition of 100 In excellent condition The art...
Archival Paper
Sold
H 57.49 in W 44.49 in
Hannahs Beine, Georg Baselitz, Neo Expressionism, Contemporary Art
Located in Zug, CH
Georg Baseliz Hannahs Beine, 2022 11-color archival pigment print on 300g cotton paper 146 × 113 cm (57.5 × 44.5 in) Signed and numbered Edition of 100 In excellent condition The art...
Archival Paper
Sold
H 13 in W 11.75 in
The Smoker (Daniel Henri Kahnweiler) by Pablo Picasso, 1964
Located in New York, NY
This original lithograph was created to illustrate a limited-edition book by Werner Spies. Most of the works from the later years were a mixture of styles, as Picasso's means of expr...
Lithograph
Born to Kill 2, black and white, narrative, film noir, monotype
By Tom Bennett
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Dramatic imagery from FILM NOIR series of black and white monotypes, blending surrealistic mindscapes with stark realism About Tom Bennett: With quick brushstrokes, Tom Bennett crea...
Archival Paper, Monotype
Sold
H 12 in W 12 in
Out of the Past, dramatic, narrative, black and white, night, noir
By Tom Bennett
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Dramatic imagery from FILM NOIR series of black and white monotypes, blending surrealistic mindscapes with stark realism About Tom Bennett: With quick brushstrokes, Tom Bennett crea...
Archival Paper, Monotype
The Smoker, Daniel Henri Kahnweiler
Located in New York, NY
This original lithograph was created to illustrate a limited-edition book by Werner Spies. Most of the works from the later years were a mixture of styles, as Picasso's means of expr...
Lithograph
Forced Entry, Expressionist Etching by Richard Bosman
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Richard Bosman, American (1944 - ) Title: Forced Entry Year: 1983 Medium: Sugar Lift Etching, signed, numbered, and titled in pencil Edition: 10/20 Image Size: 10 x 7 inches...
Etching
Life Raft
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Richard Bosman, American (1944 - ) Title: Life Raft Year: circa 1980 Medium: Color Etching, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 17/40 Paper Size:...
Etching
Cain and Abel
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Richard Bosman, American (1944 - ) Title: Cain and Abel Year: 1981 Medium: Woodcut, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 17/25 Image: 4 x 9 inc...
Etching
Sold
H 27.96 in W 21.26 in D 0.04 in
Jewish Yemenite Etching Art Print Israeli Traditional Clothing Judaica Aliyah
By Itamar Siani
Located in Surfside, FL
Itamar Siani, Israeli painter, engraver, born 1941, Yemen "The Magic Carpet" etchings depicting stages in the artist’s life including: Liberation, The Mag...
Etching
Sold
H 27.96 in W 21.26 in D 0.04 in
Jewish Yemenite Fine Art Etching Print Israeli Parting Prayer Judaica Refugees
By Itamar Siani
Located in Surfside, FL
Itamar Siani, Israeli painter, engraver, born 1941, Yemen "The Magic Carpet" etchings depicting stages in the artist’s life including: Liberation, The Mag...
Etching