In emphasizing emotion and imagination, romantic art shifted away from the restraint of classicism and neoclassicism that had dominated art in Europe since the Renaissance. Romanticism achieved its greatest popularity in art, literature, music and philosophy between 1780 and 1830, although its expression of individual experiences ranging from awe to passion informed culture in the decades after.
Landscape painting was especially popular during the romantic period, as were nature studies of wild animals and fantasies of exotic lands. Romanticism varied across Europe as it reacted to the rise of industrialization, a more personal relationship with faith that was distanced from the church and the rationalist thinking of the Enlightenment.
British painters such as John Constable and J.M.W. Turner responded dramatically to the light and atmosphere of the natural world, while William Blake conveyed humanity’s connection to the divine in his visionary art. In Germany, the late-18th-century Sturm und Drang, or Storm and Drive, movement, with its probing of the unconscious, inspired a sense of mystery in work by romantic artists such as Caspar David Friedrich and Philipp Otto Runge. In France, where the French Revolution had turned tradition upside down, Théodore Géricault and Eugène Delacroix used lush brushwork to paint monumental canvases with tumultuous scenes of nature and history.
The romantic movement and its subject matter were a significant influence on the Pre-Raphaelites, Symbolists and the American painters of the Hudson River School, as well as on other cultural movements in the 19th and 20th centuries that saw artists build on this perspective in which art was guided by emotion rather than reason.
Find a collection of romantic paintings, sculptures, prints and multiples and more art on 1stDibs.
Twilight River Landscape, Signed 1856 Oil on Canvas, 109 x 78 cm
Located in Stockholm, Stockholm
Twilight landscape with a river and mountains, signed and dated A. de Bylandt 1856, oil on canvas. The present painting depicts a tranquil river landscape in late afternoon or early...
Canvas, Oil
Osvald Lundgren Swedish Gouache Winter Landscape, Vårvinter, 1928
Located in Stockholm, SE
Osvald Lundgren (1888–1977) Sweden Vårvinter (Late Winter), 1928 signed and dated lower right “O. Lundgren 1928” gouache on paper unframed 29.5 × 24 cm (11.6 × 9.4 in) framed 39.5 ...
Paper, Gouache
$6,500
19thC Oil Painting Pastoral Luminist Romantic Highland Cows Paris Ex-Christie's
Located in Portland, OR
A large early 19th century British Romantic School pastoral landscape river scene with highland cattle, by Henry Milbourne (1781-1826), signed and dated Paris, circa 1815, Ex-Christi...
Canvas, Oil
$2,450Sale Price|30% Off
Portrait of a Young Woman, Romantic Oil, Circa 1850
By Sir Thomas Lawrence
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Portrait of a Young Woman, ca. 1850. Oil on antique English millboard, panel measures 20 x 24 inches. Excellent condition with surface stress cracking and paint shrinkage consisten...
Oil, Fiberboard
$2,560Sale Price|20% Off
Twilight in Gibraltar, 19th Century Marine Oil Painting on Canvas
Located in Stockholm, Stockholm
This atmospheric marine painting, Twilight in Gibraltar, is a characteristic work by the Danish artist Lauritz (Laurits) Bernhard Holst (1848–1934), whose oeuvre is closely associate...
Oil, Canvas
$6,500
'River Landscape', American Barbizon School, Providence Art Club Founder
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower right, 'Stetson' for Charles Walter Stetson (American, 1858-1911) and dated 1886. Born in Rhode Island, Charles Stetson opened his first studio in 1878 in Providence an...
Oil, Wood Panel
The Fair Skipper: boating on a mountain lake ca 1830 the Swiss Alps painting
Located in Norwich, GB
Here is an almost two hundred year old painting which is so irresistibly charming that it's crazy! You may have seen painted landscapes, portraits, genre scenes - but how many pretty...
Canvas, Oil
'Young Woman in Costume', Société des Artistes Français
By Georges Antoine Rochegrosse
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed upper left, 'G. Rochegrosse' for George Rochegrosse (French, 1859-1938) and dated 1881. Framed dimensions: 15.5 H x 1.5 D x 13.5 W inches A finely-painted figural oil showin...
Canvas, Oil
Liebeserklärung (Declaration of Love), 1896
Located in Stockholm, SE
Thomas Theodor Heine was a central figure in German fin de siècle culture, best known as one of the leading illustrators of the satirical magazine Simplicissimus, where his sharply o...
Gouache
$3,416Sale Price|25% Off
Orientalist European painter - 19th century Arab city street with caravan
Located in Varmo, IT
Orientalist painter (19th century) - View of an Arab city with caravan. 57 x 47 cm (unframed) - 71 x 62 cm (framed). Original oil on canvas, in a contemporary 19th-century carved a...
Canvas, Oil
$6,056
A Girl Sewing By A Window, Mid-19th-Century German Genre Scene, Oil Painting
Located in Cheltenham, GB
This beautiful mid-19th-century oil painting by German artist Max Kaltenmoser (1842-1887) depicts a young woman sewing by an open window. Kaltenmoser was an academy-trained master of...
Canvas, Oil
$1,371Sale Price|30% Off
Painting of Farm with Geese in the English Countryside by 20th Century Artist
By James Wright
Located in Preston, GB
Painting of Farm with Geese in the English Countryside by 20th Century British Artist, James Wright Signed, Original, Oil on Canvas, housed in a beautiful ornate gold frame. Provenance: Part of the English Heritage Series No.111 Art measures 10 x 8 inches (approx.) Frame measures 15 x 13 inches (approx.) James Wright was born in Peterborough in 1935 and now lives in Lincolnshire. James is a self-taught artist and a leading exponent of the traditional English landscape style. His early work concentrated on the busy fishing villages around the coast of Norfolk, Cornwall and Sussex. More recently, his traditional landscapes mainly feature the East Anglian and Lincolnshire countryside. About the English Heritage Collection From the most powerful to the most humble, from Bronze Age axes...
Canvas, Oil
Seacoast with an Approaching Storm and Several Sailing Vessels, Marine painting
Located in DEVENTER, NL
‘Seacoast with an Approaching Storm and Several Sailing Vessels’, Signed lower right J.C. Schotel (Johannes Christiaan Schotel, 1787–1838), Oil on canvas, In gilt frame. Canvas di...
Canvas, Oil
$1,495
1931, A Pair Of Unique Botanical Flower & Plant Specimen, Herbarium Displays
Located in Frederiksberg C, DK
A pair of unique vintage herbarium sheets featuring original botanical specimens and pressed flowers, collected and created by Marianna Petterson in August 1931 in Sweden. These auth...
Archival Paper, Organic Material
$3,000Sale Price|20% Off
Cheval de Marly, Bronze Equestrian Sculpture by Guillaume Coustou
By Guillaume Coustou
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: After Guillaume Coustou, French (1677-1746) Title: Cheval de Marly Medium: Bronze Sculpture, signature inscribed Size: 22 x 19 x 9 in. (55.88 x 48.26 x 22.86 cm) This be...
Bronze
Boy Sailing Toy Boat in Creek, oil on canvas in gilt frame signed and dated 1897
Located in Hillsborough, NC
A boy wades into the creek preparing to set his sailboat on a journey down the creek in this romantic narrative late Victorian oil painting. This painting tells a story, set in an id...
Canvas, Oil
$214Sale Price|20% Off
French school landscape the stone arch bridge Signed 1922
Located in Zofingen, AG
➡️ Landscape Le Pont ⬅️ ⏩It is signed possibly J Siverton⏪ ⭐Medium:⭐ watercolor on paper ⭐Technique: ⭐Watercolor painting with expressive brushwork. ⭐Size:⭐33x41cm / 12.9x16.1 ...
Gesso, Paper, Watercolor, Stretcher Bars
$900Sale Price|25% Off
Fur Trapper in Winter - Portrait in Oil on Canvas
Located in Soquel, CA
Fur Trapper in Winter - Portrait in Oil on Canvas Majestic full length portrait of a fur trapper standing in the snow by John Pieron. A man stands an...
Oil, Canvas
$3,634
19th Century English Pastoral Landscape Painting with Cattle and Cottage at Suns
Located in GB
A beautifully atmospheric 19th-century English pastoral landscape depicting cattle resting peacefully within an expansive rural setting at sunset. Rich in warmth, light, and idyllic ...
Canvas, Oil
Nach dem Regen Oil Painting, Landscape with Figures, Signed 1873
Located in Stockholm, SE
signed and dated Otto Sinding Karlsruhe 1873 lower right oil on relined canvas framed 59 × 101 cm (23.2 × 39.8 in) unframed 41 × 83.5 cm (16.1 × 32.9 in) Provenance: The collection ...
Canvas, Oil
Country Lane with Trees & Birds in English Countryside by 20th Century Artist
By James Wright
Located in Preston, GB
Country Lane with Trees & Birds in English Countryside by 20th Century British Landscape Artist, James Wright Signed, Original, Oil on Canvas, housed in a beautiful ornate gold frame. Provenance: Part of the English Heritage...
Canvas, Oil
$3,120Sale Price|20% Off
A Fresh Start Rustic Flowers Painting Embellished Giclee on Canvas 40H X 60W
By Irena Orlov
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A Fresh Start Rustic Flowers Painting Embellished Giclee on Canvas 40H X 60W State-of-the-art HAND EMBELLISHED ∽ MUSEUM QUALITY ∽ DISPLAY READY Giclee Reproduction Each limited edit...
Canvas, Varnish, Archival Ink, Acrylic, Digital, Inkjet, Giclée
Kastellet, View of Kastellholmen from Skeppsholmen, Stockholm
Located in Stockholm, SE
signed lower right oil on canvas unframed 37 × 50 cm (14.6 × 19.7 in) framed 51.5 × 63 cm (20.3 × 24.8 in) This painting depicts Kastellholmen as seen from Skeppsholmen, rendered un...
Canvas, Oil
$1,495
Unique Pair Of Vintage Herbarium Displays. A Botanical Flower Press With Frame
Located in Frederiksberg C, DK
A unique pair of vintage herbarium / botanical displays collected and created by S. Lindwald in June 1946 in Sweden. These botanical specimen are preserved behind glass in a new doub...
Archival Paper
$3,000
#5171 by Hiro Yokose Landscape Painting, oil and wax on canvas, Romantic Style
By Hiro Yokose
Located in Phoenix, AZ
oil and wax on canvas over wood panel signature on verso Hiro Yokose paints images of nature composed in subtle, sensuous palettes. Playing with the viewer’s perceptions, his work c...
Canvas, Wax, Oil, Wood Panel
Venus, NeoClassical Bronze Sculpture from Alva Studios
By Alva Studios
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Alva Studios Title: Venus Year: 1928 Medium: Bronze Sculpture Size: 17 in. x 7 in. x 5 in. (43.18 cm x 17.78 cm x 12.7 cm)
Bronze
$1,495
Unique Pair Of Vintage Herbarium Displays. A Botanical Flower Press With Frame
Located in Frederiksberg C, DK
A unique pair of vintage herbarium / botanical displays collected and created by S. Lindwald in June 1946 in Sweden. These botanical specimen are preserved behind glass in a new doub...
Archival Paper
Unique Set Of Vintage French Herbarium Displays, Pressed Flowers
Located in Frederiksberg C, DK
A unique set of vintage French herbarium / botanical displays. These botanical specimen are preserved behind glass in a new double sided glass frame. ...
Archival Paper, Glass, Oak
Portrait of Nils And Stina Tirén Reading Kring Granen och Brasan
Located in Stockholm, SE
This intimate watercolour depicts the artist’s children, Nils Tirén and Stina Tirén, they reading the Christmas annual Kring granen och brasan. The image served as the original illus...
Watercolor, Board
$569Sale Price|79% Off
19e century Holland school Winter scene Oil painting Signed
Located in Zofingen, AG
➡️Winter scene⬅️ Watercolor from Johannes Franciscus HOPPENBROUWERS (1819-1866) (see wikipedia) ⭐Structural Analysis⭐ This painting depicts a winter scene in a rural village, possibly in the Netherlands or a similar European setting. The composition is well-balanced, featuring: A central building with a distinctive thatched roof covered in snow, creating a focal point. A frozen river or canal, with a person ice skating in the middle ground, adding movement and human presence. A windmill and houses in the background, reinforcing a Dutch setting. Figures engaged in daily life, such as the man near the building carrying a walking stick and a bag, adding a narrative element. The overall scene is tranquil yet lively, capturing a nostalgic winter atmosphere. ⭐Color and Light⭐ The palette consists of muted earth tones, including warm browns, ochres, and soft grays, giving a rustic and aged appearance. The sky has an orange-yellow hue, possibly representing a sunrise or sunset, casting a gentle glow over the cold landscape...
Gesso, Watercolor
Gustave de Jonghe, "An Afternoon Visit, " original oil painting
Located in Chatsworth, CA
Gustave de Jonghe An Afternoon Visit Oil on panel Image Size: 32.8 x 25 inches Framed Dimensions: 41.7 x 33.5 Hand signed in lower left corner
Oil
$22,000
"The Nightmare" - Dark Contemporary Realism Baroque Figurative Oil Painting
Located in Carmel, CA
Rizaldy Celi Jr. (American, Filipino-Vietnamese, born 1983) "The Nightmare" 2025 Oil Paint, Canvas, Stretcher Bars The artist signed the side and the back of the painting. We ship al...
Oil, Canvas, Stretcher Bars
$2,523Sale Price|25% Off
Antique English Pastoral Landscape Oil Painting with Cows by H. R. Warburton
Located in GB
Charming antique English pastoral landscape painting by H. R. Warburton, depicting cattle grazing peacefully within a sunlit countryside setting. The composition features a tranquil ...
Canvas, Oil
"Women with Dove" very large colors serigraph with embossing.
By Sunol Alvar
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist: Sunol Alvar Title: Women with dove Year: c.1980 Medium: Colors serigraph with embossing Edition: Numbered E.A. 22/50 in pencil Paper: Wove Artwork (image) size: 36.25 x 27....
Screen
Pair of Hunting Dogs at Rest; artist unknown, French, Mid-19th century
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Pair of Hunting Dogs at Rest; Artist unknown, French, 19th century (monogrammed "JS" Circa 1850 10 x 7 (14 3/8 x 17 1/8 frame) inches This is finely realized portrait of pair of h...
Oil, Wood Panel
$5,804Sale Price|20% Off
Landscape View Florence 18/19th Century Paint Tuscany school Oil on canvas Italy
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
18th-19th century landscape painter Panoramic view of Florence Oil on canvas 32 x 51 cm In gilded frame 42 x 63 cm Hampel: Paintings 19th/20th Jahrhundert, 21.02.2024, lot 99...
Oil
$1,350Sale Price|40% Off
Poppy and Anemone Still Life Floral Study in Oil on Linen
Located in Soquel, CA
Delicate and detailed floral still life by Alfred Broge (Danish, 1870-1955). Three white anemones and one pink poppy, all with stems and leaves, sit against a medium grey background...
Linen, Oil, Board
Serene Mountain Landscape, Watercolor on Paper, Signed 18 x 24 cm
Located in London, GB
Otto Strützel (1855-1930) 'Ruins on the coast of Visby, Gotland, Sweden' Gouache on paper Signed and dated '21 June 1899', lower left 33 x 53 cm A dreamy, poetic moonlight falls o...
Gouache, Paper
Rocky Landscape at Sunset, Oil on Canvas, Signed, Circa 1900
Located in Stockholm, SE
This sunset landscape by Hans Agersnap presents a quiet and ccontemplative view of the Danish countryside at the close of day. The composition is dominated by undulating hills, bathe...
Canvas, Oil
The Joyous Sprites, Romantic Engraving after Gustave Dore
By Gustave Doré
Located in Long Island City, NY
Gustave Dore, After by George C. Finden, French (1832 - 1883) - The Joyous Sprites, Portfolio: Guinevere, Year: 1867, Medium: Engraving, Image Size: 9.5 x 7.25 inches, Size: 16...
Engraving
$420
Romantic Landscape of Scandinavian Enchanted Forest, Large Lake Print Cyanotype
By Kind of Cyan
Located in Barcelona, ES
This is an exclusive handprinted limited edition cyanotype. Lovely scene of a hidden pond in a Scandinavian forest. Details: + Title: Scandinavian Enchanted Forest + Year: 2026 + ...
Photographic Film, Emulsion, Watercolor, Monotype, Photogram
$1,590Sale Price|40% Off
Portrait of a Woman in Front of the Sea, Romantic Oil Painting, Signed
By Gianni Strino
Located in Soquel, CA
Portrait of a Woman in Front of the Sea - Original Romantic Oil Painting Beautifully rendered and realistic portrait by Gianni (Giovanni) Strino (Italian b. 1953.) A woman stands in...
Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars
"Alpine River Landscape"
Located in Edinburgh, GB
Georg Garbe (19th Century) "Alpine River Landscape" This captivating 19th-century oil painting on canvas by Georg Garbe presents a breathtaking Alpine landscape, featuring a rushing ...
Canvas, Oil
$7,744Sale Price|20% Off
Swedish Värmland Landscape With a Red Barn by Hilding Werner, Oil Painting
Located in Stockholm, SE
Hilding Werner, A Värmland artist, was a distinguished Swedish painter and draftsman. Born to landowner Anders Andersson and Inga Maria Johannesdotter, ...
Masonite, Oil
Boats in Moonlight Watercolor on Paper, Swedish Coastal Scene, 1904
Located in Stockholm, SE
Boats in Moonlight (1904) is a watercolor on paper measuring 25.5 × 55 cm (10 × 21.7 in). It depicts a Swedish coastal scene under a luminous moonlit sky., Along the quiet shoreline,...
Paper, Watercolor
Memento Mori Skull, Antique Swedish Charcoal Drawing
Located in Stockholm, SE
Unknown Artist (Sweden, early 20th century) Memento Mori inscribed in Swedish: “Tänk på att Jag har varit såsom Du, och att Du skall bliva såsom Jag.” pencil, charcoal and white he...
Paper, Charcoal, Pencil
Portrait d'Homme Barbu German School oil on pannel
Located in Pasadena, CA
Pretty portrait representing a portrait of an old shepherd from the German school in Dusseldorf . Oil on pannel
Oil
Military Painting Victor ADAM Napoleonic war Soldiers Genre scene 19th
Located in PARIS, FR
Jean-Victor, known as Victor ADAM Paris, 1801 – Viroflay, 1866 A Soldiers' Halt by the Sea, or The Courtier Soldier Oil on canvas 33 x 24.5 cm (42 x 34 cm with frame) Signed and date...
Oil
Seascape at Sunset, Romantic Oil on Canvas, 19th Century, Signed
Located in Genève, GE
Signed "G. Goldberg" This atmospheric seascape captures a tranquil coastal scene at sunset, where the fading light reflects delicately across the surface of the water. The compositi...
Canvas, Oil
'Curious Kittens' by Charles Van Den Eycken (1859 – 1923) Romantic painter
Located in Knokke, BE
Charles Van Den Eycken 1859 – Brussels – 1923 Belgian Painter 'Curious Kittens' Signature: signed lower left and dated 'Ch. Van den Eycken 1900.' Medium: oil on canvas Dimensions:...
Canvas, Oil
$1,722Sale Price|20% Off
A Milkmaid and Cows, Romantic Oil on Canvas, Mid-19th Century, Framed
Located in GB
Henry Brittan Willis (1810–1884) was a British painter celebrated for his pastoral landscapes and depictions of rural life. Born in Bristol, Willis trained under his father, the mini...
Canvas, Oil
1880 Romantic Waterfall Landscape Oil Painting, Monumental Victorian mountain
Located in GB
A dramatic and beautifully executed waterfall landscape dated 1880, depicting a powerful cascade descending through a rocky mountain gorge surrounded by mature woodland and mist-fill...
Canvas, Oil
1931, Unique Pair Botanical Flower & Plant Specimen. Delicate Herbarium Displays
Located in Frederiksberg C, DK
A unique pair of vintage herbarium sheets featuring original botanical specimens and pressed flowers, collected and created by Marianna Petterson in August 1931 in Sweden. These auth...
Organic Material, Archival Paper
$9,250Sale Price|50% Off
"Still Life and Hunting Dogs, 1851" P. M. Guillemin (French, 1800-1874)
Located in SANTA FE, NM
"Still Life and Hunting Dogs, 1851" P. M. Guillemin (French, 1800-1874) Monogrammed "EG" on right side. Oil on cradle board 26 x 21 (36 x 31 frame) inches Stunning example and un...
Oil, Wood Panel
Cherubs and Beauty, Romantic Oil Painting on Canvas, 18th Century
Located in Cotignac, FR
I8th century allegorical oil on canvas, a female figure and cherubs. The work is not signed and is probably an overdoor or trumeau from a larger decorative room scheme. It is present...
Canvas, Oil
Still Life Italian School 19th Century Paint Oil on canvas Italy Art Quality
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Still life with vase of flowers Italian School of the nineteenth century Oil on canvas cm. 74 x 92,5 frame 97 x 112 Beautiful painting representing a rich still life, of great deco...
Oil
$10,340Sale Price|44% Off
Animal Studies, 1814 Charles Towne (British, 1763-1840)
Located in SANTA FE, NM
"Animal Studies, 1814" Charles Towne (British, 1763-1840) Oil on panel Signed and dated Chas. Towne/ Pinxit 1814 (lower right) 15 x 11 3/8 (21 x 17 ¼ frame) inches Provenance: Collec...
Oil, Wood Panel
$164Sale Price|20% Off
Sailing Away From Shore. Oil on Board.
By Boggio
Located in Cotignac, FR
An oil on panel idyllic seascape by Boggio. The painting is signed bottom right. An idealised seascape scene, boats under sail on a tranquil sea moving away from a rocky outcrop all...
Oil, Board
$895
1946, Colourful Framed Vintage Herbarium. Botanical Preserved Flower Specimen
Located in Frederiksberg C, DK
A unique vintage herbarium sheet featuring an original botanical specimen and pressed flower, collected and created by Sonia Lindwall in July 1946 in Sweden. This authentic Swedish h...
Organic Material, Archival Paper
‘Cats Playing around a Mirror’ by Joseph Bail (1862 – 1921), French Painter
By Joseph Bail
Located in Knokke, BE
Joseph Bail Limonest 1862 – 1921 Paris French Painter ‘Cats Playing around a Mirror’ Signature: signed lower right ‘Bail Joseph’ Medium: oil on canvas Dimensions: image size 45,5...
Canvas, Oil