Browse our selection of contemporary Expressionist art for sale. On Rise Art, we showcase some of the best painters working in the Expressionist style today, with our collection ever-evolving to ensure you find something.
Expressionism is a modernist style whose influence resonates through twentieth- and twenty-first-century art. Expressionist paintings typically distort reality through non-naturalistic forms and a vivid use of colour.
Loose brushstrokes and a heavy application of paint create a textured effect on the canvas. This freer method allowed artists to create paintings infused with a sense of immediacy and pure expression of emotion. This effect can notably be seen in the work of Vincent van Gogh.
If you are not sure where to start, you can explore our popular Expressionistic-style portraits, reminiscent of artists such as Egon Schiele. Schiele was known for his expressive use of line, which he created by maintaining constant eye contact with his models, channelling a more intense emotional experience in contrast with the loose, undulating line.
On the other hand, our contemporary Expressionist landscapes are characterised by flattened forms, vivid colours, and bold, distorted viewpoints.
You can also find a selection of Expressionist still life paintings – vibrant, dynamic pieces, which express the powerful feelings of a moment. These abstract Expressionistic oil paintings can all be explored in our online gallery.
Famous Expressionist Nude Drawings
One element of the Expressionist style is the nude figure as an allegory for primal emotional power. The Expressionists' drive to represent inner experience led them to study the ways that bodily gestures, postures, and facial expressions could communicate essential states of being.
Egon Schiele famously worked with untrained models to access real emotional impact and transcended the traditional confines of portraiture through brazen nude self-portraits. Schiele’s work explored themes of sexuality, masculinity and innocence and has impacted many contemporary expressionists working today.
While Edvard Munch is best known for The Scream (1893), the artist also created intimate nude portraits of emotional turmoil. Throughout the early 20th century, Munch painted a series of kneeling weeping women as an expression of pure emotional feeling. The swirling colours, sickly tones and loose application of paint invoke a deep sense of foreboding in the viewer.
Expressionistic Paintings for sale on Rise Art
Grigorii Pavlychev is a Russian Expressionist painter whose work focuses on portraiture and abstraction. In Her Silhouette (Female Nude View from the Left) (2023), Pavlychev’s quick, gestural brushstrokes distort the woman with thick and textural layers of paint. Loose contours suggest the female form, while erratic shapes and vibrant colours imbue the painting with a sense of movement.
Likewise, Syrian artist Khaled Alkhani foregrounds the anonymous female form. The artist’s foreboding women stand, often alone, in desolate landscapes, draped in brilliant colour. These figures function as powerful allegories for the artist’s emotional state and the violence that forced him to flee his country. Pieces like Passion et Violence (2022), reference these complex emotions.
Lilia Orlova-Holmes’ expressionist paintings blend vibrant colours and fluid brushstrokes, evoking emotional depth. Inspired by Japanese calligraphy and Impressionism, her work captures spontaneous movement and spiritual reflection. Recent pieces, like The Water-Lily Pond. Floating Reflections (2022), showcase her shift toward intuitive compositions, offering a powerful exploration of nature’s complexity.
Nathan Chantob is a young French painter, whose work explores body language and authenticity. One example is Lumières volées (2024) – an Expressionistic study of a series of people walking through the rain. Each figure either makes eye-contact with the viewer or averts their eyes, creating intimate portraits of fleeting interactions.
You can explore these artists and find similar affordable Expressionist artworks from emerging artists on Rise Art.
