Karel Appel

(Dutch, 1921–2006)

Karel Appel was an influential Dutch painter whose figurative abstractions employed expressive colors and forms. Like Jean Dubuffet, Appel found inspiration in the artwork of children and the rejection of sophisticated aesthetic tastes. “Painting, like passion, is an emotion full of truth and rings a living sound, like the roar coming from the lion's breast,” he reflected. “To paint is to destroy what preceded. I never try to make a painting, but a chunk of life.” Born on April 25, 1921 in Amsterdam, Netherlands, he went on to study at the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten and had his first solo exhibition in 1946. Inspired by the work of Paul Klee and Joan Miró, Appel began experimenting with a rudimentary approach of describing subject matter reminiscent of folk art. In 1948, he helped form the CoBrA group (an acronym for the cities the artists were from: Copenhagen, Brussels, and Amsterdam), along with Asger Jorn, Constant, Corneille and others who were united in their rejection of rationalism and geometric abstraction. Following the dissolution of CoBrA in 1952, Appel joined Art Informel, another collection of abstract artists which included Michel Tapié and Henri Michaux. Through the following decades the artist continued his engagement with painterly expression and was the subject of several solo exhibitions. He died on May 3, 2006 in Zürich, Switzerland. Appel’s works are presently held in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.

Most Expensive Artwork Sold at Auction

Two birds and a Flower, 1951
Sold price: 1,098,772 USD

Karel Appel Artworks

Karel Appel (11,953 results)

Animal, 1977

Karel Appel

Sale Date: May 23, 2008

Auction Closed

Abstract compositions (2 works)

Karel Appel

Abstract compositions (2 works)

Sale Date: May 23, 2008

Auction Closed

Dans l'action ils ont montré la source de..., 1968

Karel Appel

Dans l'action ils ont montré la source de..., 1968

Sale Date: July 20, 2008

Auction Closed

Karel Appel, painter (bk by H. Claus w/1 work,...

Karel Appel

Karel Appel, painter (bk by H. Claus w/1 work,...

Sale Date: May 20, 2008

Auction Closed

Sans titre, 1960

Karel Appel

Sans titre, 1960

Sale Date: July 7, 2008

Auction Closed

Smile again, 1969

Karel Appel

Smile again, 1969

Sale Date: July 7, 2008

Auction Closed

Manathan Savings Bank, 1984

Karel Appel

Manathan Savings Bank, 1984

Sale Date: June 17, 2008

Auction Closed

Pink nose pussy, 1971

Karel Appel

Pink nose pussy, 1971

Sale Date: June 29, 2008

Auction Closed

Blue eyed creature, 1971

Karel Appel

Blue eyed creature, 1971

Sale Date: June 29, 2008

Auction Closed

Untitled (Figure)

Karel Appel

Untitled (Figure)

Sale Date: June 29, 2008

Auction Closed

Untitled (Female figure), 1960

Karel Appel

Untitled (Female figure), 1960

Sale Date: June 29, 2008

Auction Closed

Vol d'oiseaux

Karel Appel

Vol d'oiseaux

Sale Date: June 20, 2008

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1969

Karel Appel

Untitled, 1969

Sale Date: July 1, 2008

Auction Closed

Drole de drame, 1960

Karel Appel

Drole de drame, 1960

Sale Date: June 29, 2008

Auction Closed

2 hibon rouge, 1969

Karel Appel

2 hibon rouge, 1969

Sale Date: June 20, 2008

Auction Closed

Creature

Karel Appel

Sale Date: June 20, 2008

Auction Closed

Visages, 1974

Karel Appel

Visages, 1974

Sale Date: June 13, 2008

Auction Closed

Oiseau et garçon, 1962

Karel Appel

Oiseau et garçon, 1962

Sale Date: July 2, 2008

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1955

Karel Appel

Untitled, 1955

Sale Date: July 2, 2008

Auction Closed

Tête dans l'espace, 1960

Karel Appel

Tête dans l'espace, 1960

Sale Date: July 2, 2008

Auction Closed

The family, 1989

Karel Appel

The family, 1989

Sale Date: June 30, 2008

Auction Closed

Personnage

Karel Appel

Sale Date: June 30, 2008

Auction Closed

Sunshine people (from the Sunshine People..., 1974

Karel Appel

Sunshine people (from the Sunshine People..., 1974

Sale Date: June 14, 2008

Auction Closed

Sunshine people (from the Sunshine People..., 1974

Karel Appel

Sunshine people (from the Sunshine People..., 1974

Sale Date: June 14, 2008

Auction Closed

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