Kurt Schwitters, analysis and rating of his value on the art market

If you own a work by or about the artist Kurt Schwitters, and would like to know its value, our state-approved experts and auctioneers will offer you their appraisal services. Our specialists will carry out a free appraisal of your work, and provide you with a precise estimate of its current market value. Then, if you wish to sell your work, we'll guide you towards the best possible arrangement to obtain the optimum price.

Rating and value of works by Kurt Schwitters 

An indissociable figure of the Dada movement, Kurt Schwitters was responsible for an exponential number of interdependent, eclectic works of art. He produced paintings, collages, typography, sculpture, assemblages and sound poetry. The art market abounds with his works, some of which sell for as much as €300 to €15,527,280. In 2022, one of his collages entitled "Mz 255 dromedar " sold for €64,947. 

Order of value from a simple work to the most prestigious 

Style and technique of an eccentric, maverick artist 

Kurt Schwitters mainly produced collages using torn paper and other discarded materials, which he brought together and glued together. He also added painted and drawn interventions. The aim of these interventions is to integrate the materials into the surface of the work. His creations no longer reflect reality in a mimetic way, but present an equivalent of the fragmented, broken reality of the post-war era.

Kurt Schwitters, poet of the Dada movement

Born in 1887, Kurt Schwitters came from a family of merchants. In 1908, he entered the Hanover School of Applied Arts. Declared unfit for combat service in 1917 (probably because he had pretended to be a scatterbrain), Schwitters was assigned as an industrial draughtsman in a metal factory. During this period, he ventured into the twists and turns of Expressionist and Cubist painting, and at the same time wrote poems in the tradition of German Romanticism. In Berlin, he took a liking to Herwarth Walden, the founder of the famous DerSturm newspaper, and in June 1918, Schwitters exhibited two abstract paintings at a group show organized by the gallery of the same name. He thus met the Dadaists and struck up a friendship with those he admired most: Raoul Hausmann and his partner Hannah Höch.

How Kurt Schwitters shaped his era 

Kurt Schwitters, paragon of the Dada movement in Hanover, founded his own artistic movement, positioning himself as leader and sole member, under the strange name of Merz, derived from the inscription "Kommerz- und Privatbank". In 1919, he published his manifesto in the Walden magazine and presented Merz works for the first time at the Der Sturm gallery.

In 1923, the launch of Merz magazine propelled the artist into the limelight. Dedicated to an exceptional tour entitled De Stijl-Dada, the first issue was brilliantly orchestrated by Theo Van Doesburg and Schwitters. The second issue was a revelation and an earthquake in the artistic community: the artist published the "Manifesto of Proletarian Art", which was also signed by such emblematic figures of the time as Franz Arp, Theo Van Doesburg and Tristan Tzara. In this manifesto, the artist insists on the need not to confine himself to the limits of the opposition between proletariat and bourgeoisie, but that art must influence the entire culture, regardless of social categories.

While Dada publications had ceased to circulate in Germany and France, Merz magazine became a prosthetic extension of the movement, not neglecting this heritage until 1932. The magazine established an indestructible link between Dada and constructivism and neo-platonism, as evidenced by its collaboration with El Lissitzky and the layout from which it drew its inspiration. At the same time, Schwitters began his magnum opus, the illustrious Merzbau, which invaded every nook and cranny of his Hanover home, with its sharp angles, sloping columns in which hideaways and grottoes could be found, where he concealed keepsake boxes for his friends.

The impact of Kurt Schwitters' protean and synergistic work is perceptible in a wide range of contemporary artistic creations. Arman's accumulations of objects, Claes Oldenburg's pop art sculptures and Tinguely's meta-matic machines are all bravura pieces that bear the undeniable imprint of Schwitters. The Fluxus movement also drew inspiration from Schwitters.

How to recognize Kurt Schwitters' signature

Kurt Schwitters signs his works, at the bottom of the page when they are two-dimensional, with his full name in a fluid, almost calligraphic script.

How to appraise a work by Kurt Schwitters 

If you happen to own a work by or after Kurt Schwitters, don't hesitate to request a free appraisal using the form on our website. A member of Auctie's will contact you promptly with an estimate of the value of your work, and provide you with all the relevant information. If you're thinking of selling your work, our specialists will also help you find alternative ways of selling it at the best possible price.