Joseph Beuys

German · 1921–1986 · Painter, Printmaker

Joseph Heinrich Beuys was a German artist, teacher, performance artist, and art theorist whose work reflected concepts of humanism and sociology. With Heinrich Böll, Johannes… (Wikipedia)

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1,311lots offered2001–2026years recorded90%sold (1,155)$2kSign up free to seemedian price

5 works by Joseph Beuys with an auction history (offered more than once) →

Record prices

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Unbetitelt (Feld)Phillips · Oct 2018£465,000≈ $606,872≈ €527,439Sign up to see
ErdtelephonGrisebach · Dec 2017€450,000≈ $534,825≈ £396,519Sign up to see
Entwurf für PlastikGrisebach · Jun 2015€450,000≈ $504,810≈ £329,274Sign up to see

Joseph Beuys’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).

ArtSell has recorded 1,283 auction results for Joseph Beuys between 2001 and 2026, of which 1,155 sold (90%). A further 28 lots were offered at auction without a published result. Recorded sale prices range from $85Sign up free to see to $607kSign up free to see. The highest price recorded is $607kSign up free to see for Unbetitelt (Feld) at Phillips in October 2018. Most results come from Van Ham (505), Lempertz (243) and Phillips (184).

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1,283 results · page 1 of 33

Taucherin (The Female Diver) [from Suite Zirkukationszeit- 'Circulation Time']
Etching · Paper
Image: 6.75" h x 6.25" w
Clarke Auction Gallery · Sep 13, 2026 · Lot 77
$250≈ £185≈ €216HammerSign up free to seeEst. $300–500View at Clarke Auction Gallery ↗
Kunst = KAPITAL, 1979
20 Deutschemark banknote from 1970
2¾ h x 5½ w in (7 x 14 cm)
Wright · Aug 6, 2026 · Lot 211
$3,072≈ £2,281≈ €2,662Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $2,000–View at Wright ↗
New York Subway Poster (Creativity=Capital) (S. 470), 1983
Lithograph · Paper · ed. 15/120
S. 11 x 27 3/4 in. (27.9 x 70.5 cm)
Phillips · Jun 24, 2026 · Lot 136
$4,515≈ £3,431≈ €3,981Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $4,000–6,000View at Phillips ↗
Mit dem Ende der modernen Kunst fängt die Kunst erst an (Fotografie von Werner Krüger), 1979
Photograph
255 x 125 cm (100.3 x 49.2 in)
Ketterer Kunst · Jun 13, 2026 · Lot 265
€56,760≈ $65,654≈ £48,988Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €40,000–View at Ketterer Kunst ↗
Zwei Fräulein mit leuchtendem Brot (Two Young Women with Shining Bread), from dé-coll/age/5, happenings pieces musical scores (B. 2, S. 2), 1966
Lithograph · Paper
S. 28 x 8 1/4 in. (71.1 x 21 cm)
Phillips · Apr 22, 2026 · Lot 274
$3,354≈ £2,484≈ €2,859Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $800–1,200View at Phillips ↗
Abonnez-vous POUR (S. 144), 1974
Stamped order form, with full margins
I. 7 1/4 x 9 3/4 in. (18.4 x 24.8 cm) S. 8 1/4 x 11 5/8 in. (21 x 29.5 cm)
Phillips · Apr 22, 2026 · Lot 275
$1,096≈ £812≈ €934Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $300–500View at Phillips ↗
Zirkulationszeit, from Suite Zirkulationszeit (Circulation Time, from Suite Circulation Time) (B. 426, S. 438), 1982
Etching · Paper · ed. 25/75
I. 16 1/4 x 11 7/8 in. (41.3 x 30.2 cm) S. 25 7/8 x 19 3/4 in. (65.7 x 50.2 cm)
Phillips · Apr 22, 2026 · Lot 276
$1,548≈ £1,147≈ €1,319Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $1,000–2,000View at Phillips ↗
Drawings for Codices Madrid by Leonardo da Vinci, 1975
ed. 69/100
(each) 11.75" h x 9.50" w
Clarke Auction Gallery · Feb 8, 2026 · Lot 36
$650≈ £476≈ €547HammerSign up free to seeEst. $800–1,200View at Clarke Auction Gallery ↗
"Ein-Stein-Zeit"
Screenprint · ed. 208/500
Auktionshaus Mehlis · Dec 18, 2025 · Lot 3508
€600≈ $703≈ £525HammerSign up free to seeView at Auktionshaus Mehlis ↗
Für Braun-Raum, 1977
Oil · Panel
25 x 11.5 x 9.5 cm (9.8 x 4.5 x 3.7 in)
Ketterer Kunst · Dec 6, 2025 · Lot 298
€12,900≈ $15,022≈ £11,258Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €18,000–View at Ketterer Kunst ↗

Also offered, result not published (28)

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

Joseph Beuys paintings (68)Joseph Beuys oil paintings (41)Joseph Beuys mixed media (12)Joseph Beuys works on paper (245)Joseph Beuys watercolors (9)Joseph Beuys gouaches (4)Joseph Beuys drawings (158)Joseph Beuys prints (664)Joseph Beuys etchings (61)Joseph Beuys aquatints (22)Joseph Beuys lithographs (176)Joseph Beuys screenprints (159)Joseph Beuys woodcuts & linocuts (11)Joseph Beuys multiples (42)Joseph Beuys photographs (61)Joseph Beuys sculpture (29)

Joseph Beuys: quick facts

What is the highest price paid for a work by Joseph Beuys at auction?

$606,872Sign up free to see, for Unbetitelt (Feld) at Phillips (October 2018) — the highest price in ArtSell’s records.

What is a typical auction price for Joseph Beuys?

The median sale price is $2kSign up free to see across 1,155 priced sales. Prices vary by medium, size and date — see the price chart & statistics.

How many works by Joseph Beuys have sold at auction?

1,155 of 1,283 recorded lots sold between 2001 and 2026. 28 further lots were offered with no published result and are not counted.

Which auction houses sell Joseph Beuys?

Van Ham, Lempertz and Phillips account for the most recorded results. Van Ham · Lempertz · Phillips

Joseph Beuys signature

647 catalogued lots by Joseph Beuys record a signature line. The most common placement is on the reverse (65% of lots that state a placement). Most often: signed.

Placement

on the reverse54
lower right9
lower centre6
lower left6
in the margin4
upper right2

Form

signed544
signed and dated63
signed in pencil37
initialled2
monogrammed1

Signed 'Joseph Beuys' upper right — Untitled, Phillips, Nov 23, 2023
Betitelt und signiert mittig: ich ernähre mich durch Kraftvergeudung Joseph Beuys. Verso nummeriert: 110/120 — ich ernähre mich durch Kraftvergeudung, Van Ham, Sep 29, 2021
Signiert verso: Joseph Beuys — Holzpostkarte, Van Ham, May 19, 2021

Joseph Beuys signature: all forms and examples →

About Joseph Beuys

Joseph Heinrich Beuys was a German artist, teacher, performance artist, and art theorist whose work reflected concepts of humanism and sociology. With Heinrich Böll, Johannes Stüttgen, Caroline Tisdall, Robert McDowell, and Enrico Wolleb, Beuys created the Free International University for Creativity & Interdisciplinary Research (FIU). Through his talks and performances, he also formed The Party for Animals and The Organisation for Direct Democracy. He was a member of a Dadaist art movement Fluxus and singularly inspirational in developing of Performance Art, called Kunst Aktionen, alongside Wiener Aktionismus that Allan Kaprow and Carolee Schneemann termed Art Happenings.

From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.