# Alfred Kubin artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/alfred-kubin/
Profile generated: 2026-05-02T06:44:31.646Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1877-04-10
- Death date: 1959-08-20
- Nationality: Austrian
- Movements: Symbolism, Expressionism
- Common media: pen and ink drawing, lithography, etching, watercolor, wood engraving, oil painting

## About Alfred Kubin

Alfred Leopold Isidor Kubin (1877–1959) was an Austrian illustrator, printmaker, and writer whose darkly imaginative visual language places him among the leading figures of Symbolism and early Expressionism in Central Europe. Active across pen-and-ink drawing, lithography, etching, watercolor, wood engraving, and painting, Kubin built a distinctive oeuvre rooted in fantastical, often macabre imagery drawn from dreams and the subconscious. He is also the author of a single novel, The Other Side, a landmark of surrealist fiction. His work is held by major institutions including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and over a thousand works are documented in museum and research databases. Kubin's graphic art remains a touchstone for collectors of early twentieth-century Austrian and German modernism.

## Common works and media

Kubin commonly worked in pen and ink, lithography, etching, watercolor, and wood engraving on paper. Recurring subjects include grotesque and fantastical figures, dreamlike landscapes, allegorical tableaux, and literary illustrations. Editioned prints from book portfolios and individual drawings appear regularly in the secondary market. Occasional oil paintings and photographic works are also documented.

## Market and appraisal context

Alfred Kubin maintains an active and well-documented secondary market spanning more than two decades. Appraisily auction records index 538 lots, of which 290 carry realized prices, with a first recorded sale in February 2001 and the most recent in April 2026. The price distribution is wide: from as low as €10 for later facsimile editions and small prints to €508,000 for the major unique drawing Der Sturm sold at Christie's in April 2026. The interquartile range runs from approximately €220 (25th percentile) through €700 (median) to €5,250 (75th percentile), reflecting a market where common editioned prints and book illustrations trade at accessible levels while unique Symbolist-period drawings command five- and six-figure sums. Liquidity is moderate: 31 lots appeared in the trailing 12 months, down from 57 in the prior period, which may signal a softening supply of fresh-to-market material. The artist is represented across a broad base of Central European houses—Dorotheum, Grisebach, Karl & Faber, Schmidt Kunstauktionen Dresden, Neumeister—alongside global players such as Christie's and Sotheby's, indicating healthy geographic demand centered in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

## Auction-house-backed market evidence

Alfred Kubin maintains an active and well-documented secondary market spanning more than two decades. Appraisily auction records index 538 lots, of which 290 carry realized prices, with a first recorded sale in February 2001 and the most recent in April 2026. The price distribution is wide: from as low as €10 for later facsimile editions and small prints to €508,000 for the major unique drawing Der Sturm sold at Christie's in April 2026. The interquartile range runs from approximately €220 (25th percentile) through €700 (median) to €5,250 (75th percentile), reflecting a market where common editioned prints and book illustrations trade at accessible levels while unique Symbolist-period drawings command five- and six-figure sums. Liquidity is moderate: 31 lots appeared in the trailing 12 months, down from 57 in the prior period, which may signal a softening supply of fresh-to-market material. The artist is represented across a broad base of Central European houses—Dorotheum, Grisebach, Karl & Faber, Schmidt Kunstauktionen Dresden, Neumeister—alongside global players such as Christie's and Sotheby's, indicating healthy geographic demand centered in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

### Appraisal notes

An Appraisily appraisal for a Kubin work would cross-reference these auction records against the specific piece's medium, dimensions, date of execution, signature presence, condition report, provenance chain, and edition details (for prints). The single most important determinant is whether the work is a unique drawing or watercolor versus an editioned print or book illustration: the Christie's April 2026 results show unique works commanding €38,100–€508,000, while editioned prints and facsimiles in the same period traded as low as €15–€460. Provenance linking the work to Kubin's Zwickledt studio, major collections, or notable illustrated-book commissions adds measurable premium. Condition is especially material for works on paper, where foxing, toning, or acid migration can significantly affect value. For prints, edition number, plate size, paper quality, and whether the impression is signed in pencil or plate-signed are critical comparables factors. The appraiser would weight recent comparable lots from the same medium and period, adjusting for the house tier and sale location.

### Valuation factors

- Medium: unique drawings and watercolors command significantly higher prices than editioned prints, with top-tier unique works reaching six figures at major houses
- Period: early Symbolist works (pre-1910) and pieces from major illustrated-book projects attract the strongest collector interest
- Signature: pencil-signed prints and drawings carry a premium over plate-signed or unsigned impressions
- Condition: paper tone, foxing, margins, and mounting affect value, particularly for works on paper
- Provenance: documented exhibition history, collector provenance, or studio origin supports value
- Edition details: for prints, edition size, impression quality, plate vs. sheet dimensions, and paper type are material
- Subject matter: iconic grotesque and fantastical compositions with strong iconographic complexity tend to outperform generic landscapes or late works
- Auction-house tier: works sold at Christie's, Sotheby's, or Grisebach tend to realize higher prices than regional houses, reflecting both buyer pool and consignment quality

### Collector notes

- Kubin's market offers entry points across a wide range. Editioned prints and book illustrations from the 1920s onward can be acquired for a few hundred euros, making them accessible to new collectors of Central European modernism. Collectors seeking investment-grade material should focus on unique pen-and-ink drawings and watercolors from Kubin's early Symbolist period (roughly 1900–1915), which have demonstrated the strongest price performance—the April 2026 Christie's session realized €508,000, €152,400, and €38,100 for three unique works. The decline in trailing-12-month volume (31 lots vs. 57 the prior year) may indicate tightening supply, which could support values for fresh-to-market quality pieces. Buyers should verify edition numbers, paper condition, and authenticity signatures carefully, as Kubin's prolific output means quality and rarity vary widely. The Central European auction circuit (Dorotheum, Grisebach, Karl & Faber, Schmidt) is the primary sourcing channel, with occasional appearance at Christie's and Sotheby's London or Paris.

### Market caveats

- Price distribution is extremely wide (€10–€525,000); median and quartile figures should not be applied to individual works without medium-specific adjustment.
- Approximately 46% of indexed lots (290 of 538) carry realized prices; unsold lots and estimates-only results are excluded from price statistics.
- Trailing 12-month lot count (31) is down from the prior 12 months (57); a single-year decline does not confirm a trend but warrants monitoring.
- All prices are drawn from Appraisily auction-record aggregation; individual lot details should be verified against the originating auction house catalog.
- Kubin was prolific across graphic media, and his oeuvre includes many posthumous or later facsimile editions that trade at minimal values; buyers should distinguish these from lifetime impressions.
- Currency mix across the data set includes EUR, USD, and AUD; cross-currency comparisons should account for exchange-rate timing.

### Market evidence sources

- undefined: https://appraisily.com/api/scraper-search/artists/alfred-kubin/seo-profile?recentLimit=24&relatedLimit=0
- undefined: https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-alfred-kubin-1877-1959-der-sturm-15-c-07e7e09b29
- undefined: https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-alfred-kubin-1877-leitmeritz-bohmen-zwickledt-1959-opfer-des-satan-victim-of-satan-629-c-7b54a61b70
- undefined: https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-alfred-kubin-das-grab-meiner-mutter-gelandete-leiche-1919-295-c-e67299fd4e
- undefined: https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-alfred-kubin-austrian-1877-1959-body-lying-near-house-lithograph-signed-l-r-frame-16-3-4-x-13-in-42-5-x-33-cm-215-c-410f8c8acf
- undefined: https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-alfred-kubin-1877-1959-intermezzo-pencil-8-x-10cm-77-c-49a713d51e

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine artist identity research with auction records, auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. The identity profile for Alfred Kubin is grounded in museum, library-authority, and research-database sources.

## Sources

- RKD — Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/46708
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/3276
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q558054
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/27076543/
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Kubin
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n80032690