# Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/lucien-levy-dhurmer/
Profile generated: 2026-05-12T10:19:01.847Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1865-09-30
- Death date: 1953-09-24
- Nationality: French
- Movements: Symbolism, Art Nouveau
- Common media: oil painting, pastel, drawing, ceramics, lithography, sculpture, furniture and interior design

## About Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer

Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer (1865–1953) was a French painter, sculptor, ceramicist, lithographer, and pastelist regarded as a leading exponent of fin-de-siècle Symbolism and Art Nouveau. His creative output spanned paintings, drawings, pastels, ceramics, lithographs, furniture, and interior design, making him a distinctive figure who bridged fine art and the applied arts. Lévy-Dhurmer established his reputation through decorative and ceramic work before dedicating himself increasingly to painting and pastel from the 1890s onward. His compositions are noted for their atmospheric, often dreamlike quality, drawing on mythological and allegorical subjects alongside portraiture and landscape. He maintained connections with the Netherlands, working there in 1902 and 1911. His work is represented in major institutional collections, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York. With over 400 documented auction appearances, Lévy-Dhurmer remains a significant presence in the Symbolist and Art Nouveau art market.

## Common works and media

Collectors and appraisers most commonly encounter Lévy-Dhurmer as oil paintings on canvas or panel, pastels on paper or board, charcoal and graphite drawings, lithographic prints, and stoneware or earthenware ceramics. His subjects include allegorical and mythological figures, female portraits, coastal and Mediterranean landscapes, and floral or botanical motifs. Pastel portraits and Symbolist figure compositions are among the most frequently traded works at auction. Earlier decorative ceramics from his formative period also appear regularly.

## Market and appraisal context

Lévy-Dhurmer's auction footprint covers paintings, pastels, drawings, ceramics, decorative objects, and prints. Key appraisal factors include medium, with oils and pastels generally commanding the strongest results; period, with Symbolist-era works from the 1890s–1910s particularly sought; subject, as allegorical compositions attract more collector interest; provenance quality; and condition. Ceramics and decorative pieces appear in separate auction categories and appeal to a distinct collector base. The artist's use of multiple name variants (L. Levy-Dhurmer, Lucien Lévy, L. L. Dhurmer) means auction records may be fragmented, so thorough variant searching is advisable when establishing comparables.

## 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. This page draws on library authority files (Getty ULAN, VIAF, Library of Congress, RKD), museum collection records (MoMA), and public biographical sources for Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer.

## Sources

- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q727940
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucien_L%C3%A9vy-Dhurmer
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500001100
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/29526784/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/nr93028855
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/6672
- RKD (Netherlands Institute for Art History): https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/49775