Josef Albers

German · 1888–1976 · Painter, Printmaker

Josef Albers was a German-born American artist and educator who is considered one of the most influential 20th-century art teachers in the United States. Born in 1888 in… (Wikipedia)

$1,316,000≈ £1,025,481≈ €1,195,711Sign uprecord price · incl. premiumHomage to the Square: Silent GrayPhillips791lots offered2001–2026years recorded97%sold (716)$4.5kSign up free to seemedian price

1 work by Josef Albers with an auction history (offered more than once) →

1 work by Josef Albers coming up at auction · bid with the house ↓

Record prices

  1. Homage to the Square: Silent Gray by Josef Albers, 1955, oil on Masonite, sold Nov 2019Homage to the Square: Silent GrayPhillips · $1,316,000≈ £1,025,481≈ €1,195,711Sign up to see
  2. Study for Homage to the Square: Bright by Josef Albers, 1962, oil on Masonite, sold May 2023Study for Homage to the Square: BrightPhillips · $844,550≈ £674,776≈ €776,169Sign up to see
  3. Homage to the Square by Josef Albers, 1962, oil on Masonite, sold Oct 2023Homage to the SquarePhillips · £609,600≈ $742,371≈ €705,408Sign up to see

Josef Albers’s highest prices recorded at auction, ranked in US dollars at each sale-date exchange rate and shown in the currency of the sale (with the buyer’s premium where the house publishes it).

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  1. SP-J by Josef Albers, 1971, Silkscreen in colors, sold Dec 2017
    SP-J, 1971
    Screenprint · Other support · ed. edition of 150
    32.2 x 32.2 cm (12.6 x 12.6 in)
    Ketterer Kunst · · Lot 321
    €4,500≈ $5,284≈ £3,939Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €3,000–View at Ketterer Kunst ↗
  2. Auktion 404, Los 402 by Josef Albers, 1965, Farbserigrafie auf Velin, mittig gefalzt, sold Dec 2017
    Auktion 404, Los 402, 1965
    Screenprint · Paper · ed. 22/125
    Van Ham · · Lot 402
    €1,548≈ $1,829≈ £1,367Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €800–View at Van Ham ↗
  3. Auktion 404, Los 403 by Josef Albers, 1966, Farbserigrafie auf Bristol-Karton, sold Dec 2017
    Auktion 404, Los 403, 1966
    Screenprint · Board · ed. 141/350
    Van Ham · · Lot 403
    €1,161≈ $1,372≈ £1,026Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €700–View at Van Ham ↗
  4. Concord“ / „Silent“ / „Opalesdent by Josef Albers, 1965, 3 Farbserigrafien, jeweils auf Velin (gefalteter Doppelbogen), sold Dec 2017
    Concord“ / „Silent“ / „Opalesdent, 1965
    Screenprint
    27,9 × 28 cm
    Grisebach · · Lot 1327
    €6,250≈ $7,428≈ £5,507Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €1,800–2,400View at Grisebach ↗
  5. Chrysoprase“ / „Attic“ / „O - G“. 1965 / 1967 by Josef Albers, 3 Farbserigrafien, jew. auf Velin (2 Blatt auf einem gefaltetem Doppelbogen), sold Dec 2017
    Chrysoprase“ / „Attic“ / „O - G“. 1965 / 1967
    Screenprint
    27,9 × 27,9 cm
    Grisebach · · Lot 1328
    €7,500≈ $8,914≈ £6,609Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €1,800–2,400View at Grisebach ↗
  6. Study to Homage to the Square: Warm Welcom by Josef Albers, 1953/1955, Oil on Masonite, sold Dec 2017
    Study to Homage to the Square: Warm Welcom, 1953/1955
    Oil · Board
    56 x 56 cm
    Lempertz · · Lot 611
    €285,200≈ $338,960≈ £251,305Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €250,000–300,000View at Lempertz ↗
  7. Study for Homage to the Square: Decided by Josef Albers, 1957, oil on masonite, sold Nov 2017
    Study for Homage to the Square: Decided, 1957
    Oil · Board
    24 x 24 in. (61 x 61 cm.)
    Phillips · · Lot 117
    $555,000≈ £421,444≈ €468,750Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $450,000–650,000View at Phillips ↗
  8. Two works of art by Josef Albers, Germany/USA, sold Nov 2017
    Two works of art
    Germany/USA
    Rago Auctions · · Lot 519
    $2,625≈ £1,990≈ €2,252Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $2,000–View at Rago Auctions ↗
  9. Embossed Linear Construction (ELC) 1-A and 1-B by Josef Albers, Germany/USA, sold Nov 2017
    Embossed Linear Construction (ELC) 1-A and 1-B
    Germany/USA
    Rago Auctions · · Lot 520
    $2,250≈ £1,706≈ €1,931Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $1,500–View at Rago Auctions ↗
  10. Golden Gate and Emeraude from Soft Edge п Hard Edge by Josef Albers, Germany/USA, sold Nov 2017
    Golden Gate and Emeraude from Soft Edge п Hard Edge
    Germany/USA
    Rago Auctions · · Lot 570
    $1,500≈ £1,137≈ €1,287Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $1,600–View at Rago Auctions ↗
Also offered, result not published (52)

Lots by Josef Albers that were offered at auction where the house did not publish whether they sold. Not counted in any statistics.

Josef Albers paintings (51)Josef Albers oil paintings (51)Josef Albers works on paper (33)Josef Albers watercolors (16)Josef Albers drawings (9)Josef Albers prints (607)Josef Albers engravings (4)Josef Albers lithographs (83)Josef Albers screenprints (488)Josef Albers woodcuts & linocuts (8)Josef Albers multiples (5)Josef Albers photographs (4)

Josef Albers signature

359 catalogued lots by Josef Albers record a signature line. The most common placement is lower right (82% of lots that state a placement). Most often: signed.

Placement

  • lower right41
  • in the margin4
  • along the bottom3
  • on the reverse2

Form

  • signed174
  • monogrammed106
  • initialled54
  • signed and dated18
  • signed in pencil7
  • Inscribed and dated ‘I-S k hc 31/35' lower left; signed with the artist’s signature and dated ‘’73’ lower right — Homage to the Square I-S K, Phillips, May 20, 2026
  • Monogrammiert und datiert unten rechts (in die nasse Farbe eingeritzt): A69. Betitelt, signiert und datiert verso oben rechts: Study for Homage to the Square "Morning Sight" Albers 1969. Hier zudem mi — Study for Homage to the Square "Morning Sight", Van Ham, Dec 3, 2025
  • Incised with the artist's monogram and date "A 63" lower right; signed, titled, variously inscribed and dated "Study for Homage to the Square "Ripening" Albers — Study for Homage to the Square: Ripening, Phillips, Nov 21, 2025

Josef Albers signature: all forms and examples →

About Josef Albers

Josef Albers was a German-born American artist and educator who is considered one of the most influential 20th-century art teachers in the United States. Born in 1888 in Bottrop, Westphalia, Germany, into a Roman Catholic family with a background in craftsmanship, Albers received practical training in diverse skills like engraving glass, plumbing, and wiring during his childhood. He later worked as a schoolteacher from 1908 to 1913 and received his first public commission in 1918 and moved to Munich in 1919.

From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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Related artists — German, born 1863–1913

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