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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 GrayPhillips781lots offered2001–2026years recorded97%sold (706)$4.6kSign 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. Beaker by Josef Albers, 1929, Sandblasted opaque flashed glass, sold Dec 2022
    Beaker, 1929
    Sandblasted opaque flashed glass
    29 x 37 cm
    Lempertz · · Lot 39
    €365,400≈ $385,059≈ £313,719Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €300,000–400,000View at Lempertz ↗
  2. I-S Va 2 (from the Six Variants portfolio) by Josef Albers, 1969, screenprint in colors on Arches, sold Nov 2022
    I-S Va 2 (from the Six Variants portfolio), 1969
    Screenprint · Paper
    21⅜ h x 29¾ w in (54 x 76 cm)
    Toomey & Co. · · Lot 337
    $5,000≈ £4,201≈ €4,802Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $2,000–View at Toomey & Co. ↗
  3. Hommage au Carré (Tribute to the Square): three plates (D. 160.1, 160.10, 160.11) by Josef Albers, 1965, Three screenprints in colors, on J. Perrugot Arches Special MBM paper, with margins, trimmed at the sheet edges, sold Oct 2022
    Hommage au Carré (Tribute to the Square): three plates (D. 160.1, 160.10, 160.11), 1965
    Screenprint · Paper · ed. 33/125
    all I. 11 x 11 in. (27.9 x 27.9 cm) two S. 14 3/4 x 15 in. (37.5 x 38.1 cm) one S. 15 1/4 x 15 in. (38.7 x 38.1 cm)
    Phillips · · Lot 175
    $11,340≈ £10,023≈ €11,512Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $3,000–5,000View at Phillips ↗
  4. Concord; and Chrysoprase, from Die Oberfläche (The Surface) (D. 167.1, 167.4) by Josef Albers, 1965, Two screenprints in colors, on Mohawk Superfine Bristol paper, with full margins, sold Oct 2022
    Concord; and Chrysoprase, from Die Oberfläche (The Surface) (D. 167.1, 167.4), 1965
    Screenprint · Paper · ed. 112/120
    both I. 11 x 11 in. (27.9 x 27.9 cm) both S. 12 1/8 x 12 1/8 in. (30.8 x 30.8 cm)
    Phillips · · Lot 176
    $4,788≈ £4,232≈ €4,860Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $2,000–3,000View at Phillips ↗
  5. I-S LXXIIIb (D. 219) by Josef Albers, 1973, Screenprint in colors, on German Etching paper, with full margins, sold Oct 2022
    I-S LXXIIIb (D. 219), 1973
    Screenprint · Paper · ed. HC
    I. 17 1/2 x 17 1/2 in. (44.5 x 44.5 cm) S. 28 x 28 in. (71.1 x 71.1 cm)
    Phillips · · Lot 177
    $5,292≈ £4,677≈ €5,372Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $1,000–1,500View at Phillips ↗
  6. The Interaction of Color by Josef Albers, 1963, The set of 75 screenprints in colors (lacking plates IV-3; VIII-1; VIII-2; XI-1; and XVI-1), on wove paper, with full ma, sold Oct 2022
    The Interaction of Color, 1963
    Screenprint · Paper
    all I. various sizes unfolded S. 13 x 20 in. (33 x 50.8 cm) slipcase 14 1/2 x 11 x 5 1/2 in. (36.8 x 27.9 x 14 cm)
    Phillips · · Lot 178
    $3,024≈ £2,673≈ €3,070Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $2,000–4,000View at Phillips ↗
  7. Homage to the Square, Soft Edge - Hard Edge (D. 165) by Josef Albers, 1965, the complete set of 10 screenprints in colors, on Rives BFK paper, with full margins, the colors bright and fresh, each , sold Oct 2022
    Homage to the Square, Soft Edge - Hard Edge (D. 165), 1965
    Screenprint · Paper · ed. edition of 50
    all I. 11 x 11 in. (27.9 x 27.9 cm) all S. 17 x 17 in. (43.2 x 43.2 cm) slipcase 18 1/4 x 17 3/4 x 1 1/4 in. (46.4 x 45.1 x 3.2 cm)
    Phillips · · Lot 22
    $16,380≈ £14,478≈ €16,628Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $12,000–18,000View at Phillips ↗
  8. WLS XIII (from White Line Squares (Series II)) by Josef Albers, 1966, lithograph in colors on Arches Cover, sold Oct 2022
    WLS XIII (from White Line Squares (Series II)), 1966
    Lithograph · Paper
    15½ h x 15½ w in (39 x 39 cm)
    Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) · · Lot 160
    $10,000≈ £8,894≈ €10,193Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $8,000–View at Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) ↗
  9. I-S a by Josef Albers, 1968, screenprint in colors on German Etching, sold Oct 2022
    I-S a, 1968
    Screenprint
    13¾ h x 13¾ w in (35 x 35 cm)
    Rago Auctions · · Lot 187
    $10,625≈ £9,615≈ €10,947Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $6,000–View at Rago Auctions ↗
  10. I-S e by Josef Albers, 1970, screenprint in colors, sold Oct 2022
    I-S e, 1970
    Screenprint
    13⅝ h x 13⅝ w in (35 x 35 cm)
    Rago Auctions · · Lot 195
    $4,750≈ £4,299≈ €4,894Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $1,500–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 (598)Josef Albers engravings (4)Josef Albers lithographs (82)Josef Albers screenprints (481)Josef Albers woodcuts & linocuts (7)Josef Albers multiples (5)Josef Albers photographs (4)

Josef Albers signature

353 catalogued lots by Josef Albers record a signature line. The most common placement is lower right (81% of lots that state a placement). Most often: signed.

Placement

  • lower right38
  • in the margin4
  • along the bottom3
  • on the reverse2

Form

  • signed169
  • monogrammed106
  • initialled53
  • 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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