Fantastical painting for Sale

Fantasy painting is a style of art which explores the supernatural, depicting fantastical elements such as legends, ancient myths and divine figures. Mythical creatures are also prevalent in this genre where elves, fairies, dragons and wizards are often depicted alongside deities, angels and demons.

Fantasy painting grew in popularity after the invention of photography replaced the demand for Realism in the 19th century. The 20th century saw the introduction of new idealistic movements such as Expressionism, Cubism, Abstraction and Surrealism, where artists abandoned portraying subjects truthfully and embraced the implausible and supernatural. Although Fantasy Painting can technically be traced back to antiquity, it wasn't until the 20th century that it became an accepted art form. Artists of the Italian Renaissance were equally inspired by mythological characters in Greek and Roman culture. However, religious mythology was a highly sophisticated and incredibly important topic during the Renaissance, and is therefore not an example of fantasy painting.

Contemporary fantasy art has certainly been influenced by a surge in demand for science fiction and whimsical literary plots. This pushed artists to explore the darker corners of fantasy art, employing vampires and werewolves into their artwork. In 1923 the first all-fantasy fiction magazine was created called “Weird Tales", which helped bring fantasy painting onto a contemporary platform. As a result, fantasy painting became a powerful tool in the marketing of fantasy literature and film. Robert E. Howard's comic book hero “Conan the Barbarian" was a prominent feature in Weird Tales magazine. However, when the stories were re-released in 1960 with cover art by notable fantasy painter, Frank Frazetta, over 10 million copies were sold. This success lead to the creation of other fantasy art magazines. French magazine, “Métal Hurlant" (howling metal) was created in 1974. Due to its huge readership and demand, it was translated and republished in the United States as “Heavy Metal" in 1977. The late 70s also saw a boom in computer games and blockbuster films, which only furthered the popularity of fantasy painting. Hugely successful films like Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, The Hobbit and Twilight were paramount in fantasy painting's not only rise to prominence, but also increasing acceptance as an art form.

Despite the skill of artists that produce fantasy paintings, it is still not considered canonical. Since it is not an example of “high art", the genre is generally not exhibited in galleries or taught in art schools, which many claim is due to the popularity of fantasy literature and film. However, as fantasy painting's reputation grows, so does the acceptance for a wider variety of art forms. Therefore, we can't eliminate the possibility that this massively prominent genre won't be considered highbrow one day.

Discover our selection of original paintings by contemporary artists and painters who have been inspired by all things supernatural, mythical and divine.

Search by Image

Save your search and find it in your favorites

Songe du grand Duc

Vincent Pompetti

Painting - 34 x 50 cm Painting - 13.4 x 19.7 inch

$1,429

La mort en fete dans le forêt profonde

Anne-Marie Vesco

Painting - 33 x 25 x 3 cm Painting - 13 x 9.8 x 1.2 inch

$1,786

Magie noire

Anne-Marie Vesco

Painting - 25 x 37 x 4 cm Painting - 9.8 x 14.6 x 1.6 inch

$1,667

La clé des songes

Anne-Marie Vesco

Painting - 34 x 26 x 3 cm Painting - 13.4 x 10.2 x 1.2 inch

$1,786

bal masqué au village

Jean-Louis Mendrisse

Painting - 50 x 50 x 3 cm Painting - 19.7 x 19.7 x 1.2 inch

$4,286

Un teatime extrêmement renversant

Philippe Loubat

Painting - 81 x 60 x 2 cm Painting - 31.9 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch

$2,262

Very Long Dog

Inga Makarova

Painting - 205 x 60 x 3 cm Painting - 80.7 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch

$5,357

Georgia is Here

Nino Nasidze

Painting - 120 x 100 x 2 cm Painting - 47.2 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch

$3,214

My Angels

Isabelle Hirtzig

Painting - 24 x 30 x 0.1 cm Painting - 9.4 x 11.8 x 0 inch

$185

Ukumami

Melayna

Painting - 91.4 x 120 x 3 cm Painting - 36 x 47.2 x 1.2 inch

$4,524

My Diuna v2

Dariusz Witold Mierzwa

Painting - 60 x 80 x 5 cm Painting - 23.6 x 31.5 x 2 inch

$1,488

Magritte's apple

Tom Miller

Painting - 61 x 50.8 x 3.8 cm Painting - 24 x 20 x 1.5 inch

$1,436

En espera

Dariusz Witold Mierzwa

Painting - 50 x 70 x 2 cm Painting - 19.7 x 27.6 x 0.8 inch

$1,131