Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
ACADEMIC STYLE
During the Renaissance, the first European fine art academies were established in Italy and would guide the style and standards of visual culture in the following centuries. Academic art became dominant across the continent in the 17th century, with artists coming together to offer instruction in this style of painting and sculpture.
The academic art period represented a significant change from the previous era when painters, sculptors and other artists were part of guilds and seen more as artisans than purveyors of culture. While patronage from the elite and the church remained pivotal, young artists were able to support themselves for the first time through academic exhibitions and an independent marketplace. The leading academies included the French Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture founded in Paris in 1648 (which became the Académie des Beaux-Arts after the French Revolution) and the London Royal Academy of Arts formed in 1768 under the inaugural leadership of painter Joshua Reynolds.
Academy students sketched drawings based on prints, sculptures and, finally, live models. Movements including neoclassicism and romanticism were particularly popular in these art schools and institutions where the influence of Raphael and Nicolas Poussin was prominent. Beaux Arts architecture and furniture design drew on these movements, too, and, as they also originated at the Académie des Beaux-Arts, the disciplines share common ground with academic painting and sculpture.
Although academic art was a major shift for artistic status when it began, by the middle of the 19th century it was viewed as stodgy and resistant to new ideas, with the subject matter of artists such as William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Jean-Léon Gérôme generally limited to allegorical or mythological themes. Impressionism, realism and the other movements that engaged with contemporary issues that followed were direct reactions to the academic tradition, although it continued to inform the avant-garde as artists like Gustav Klimt and Pablo Picasso started their practices as academic realists.
Find a collection of academic paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs.
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Style: Academic
Returnable Items Only
Boats at the Dock
By Stephen Seymour Thomas
Located in Dallas, TX
gouache with pen and ink
signed "Seymour Thomas" at lower right
Category
20th Century Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Gouache, Pen, Ink
Morning moments - Pencil drawing - circa 1914
Located in Paris, FR
Georges CONRAD (1874-1936)
Morning moments
Original India ink drawing
Signed with the stamp of atelier
On paper 26.5 x 20 cm (c. 10,4 x 7.8 in)
Very good condition, paper lightly y...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
India Ink
French 19th Century Romantic Period 1830s Parisian Lady Portrait Madame Seguin
Located in Norwich, GB
A stunning portrait of a Parisian beauty from the romantic period by Adele Grasset (active ca 1830-1850). With her intelligent eyes and determined look, doesn't this lady bear great resemblance to Chopin's paramour George Sand?
The sitter is Jeanne Marie Vidal, wife of Claude Auguste Seguin, from a prominent family in Avignon, as the family tree attached to the back for the frame indicates. Research in old annals has also revealed that Madame Seguin was a modern and independent lady: she worked in lady's fashion in Paris, and patented wrapping mechanism that protected lady's hats during their transport!
As often with woman artists of the 18th and 19th century, there is little biographical information available on the artist, Adèle Grasset. We do know however, that she had studied with the highly prominent artist François Gérard (1770-1837) , known also as the Baron Gérard...
Category
1830s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Charcoal
Venitien
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Pen and ink.
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
French fashion has influenced men and women, kings and queen, rich and poor throughout time. Tumultuo...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Ink, Paper, Pen, Plexiglass, Rag Paper, Archival Paper, Archival Tape
Naked woman facing a little devil - Pencil drawing - circa 1914
Located in Paris, FR
Georges CONRAD (1874-1936)
Naked woman facing a little devil
Original pencil drawing
Signed with the stamp of atelier
On paper 26.5 x 20 cm (c. 10,4 x 7.8 in)
Good condition, paper...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pencil
J.Jacques Berne-Bellecour (1874-1939), North African Horseman, 1915, watercolor
Located in Paris, FR
Jean-Jacques Berne-Bellecour (1874-1939)
A North African Horseman in the forest,
Watercolor on paper
signed and dated 1915 lower right, 32 x 27.5 cm
In a modern frame : 53 x 48 cm
...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor
Study for Alyssa II
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
A charcoal portrait drawing of a young woman.
"The emotional intensity found in Bauman’s figurative work is astounding. A hallmark of Bauman’s character portraits is that, somehow,...
Category
2010s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Tribute to Degas Ballerina : Sitting female nude - Ink drawing - circa 1916
Located in Paris, FR
Georges CONRAD (1874-1936)
Tribute to Degas Ballerina : Sitting female nude
Original India ink and pencil drawing
Signed with the stamp of atelier
On...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
India Ink, Pencil
French Woman with Japanese Inspired Gown - Pencil drawing - circa 1916
Located in Paris, FR
Georges CONRAD (1874-1936)
French woman with Japanese inspired gown
Original pencil drawing
Signed by stamp of atelier
On paper 26.5 x 20 cm (c. 10,4 x 7.8 in)
Good condition, pap...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pencil
Ballroom Dancers - Charcoal, Figurative, Fabric, Movement, Human Form, British
By Trudy Good
Located in Knowle Lane, Cranleigh
Ballroom Dancers by Trudy Good. Original Charcoal & Pastel onto paper.
Trudy Good is a British figurative painter who has exhibited in numerous plac...
Category
Early 2000s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pastel, Charcoal
Nineteenth-century Coachman - Ink drawing - 1916
Located in Paris, FR
Georges CONRAD (1874-1936)
Nineteenth-century Coachman
Original India ink and pencil drawing
Signed with the stamp of atelier
On paper 26.5 x 20 cm (c. 10,4 x 7.8 in)
Very good co...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
India Ink
"Woman Carrying Purse, " Watercolor & Graphite on Paper by Hannah de Rothschild
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Woman Carrying Purse" is an original watercolor and graphite drawing by Hannah de Rothschild. This artwork features a woman with a handbag. She is wearing a blue dress, and her face...
Category
1860s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Graphite, Watercolor
"Kathy - Figure Study, " Pastel on Mauve Paper by Janice-Korinek Niedzialkowski
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Kathy - Figure Study" is an original pastel drawing on mauve paper by Janice-Korinek Niedzialkowski. The artist signed the piece center left. It features a nude woman seated on a cl...
Category
1990s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pastel
“Boy with Orange”
By Guiseppe Gelanze
Located in Southampton, NY
Watercolor on cardboard of a young boy in a straw hat peeling an orange by the Italian artist, Guiseppe Gelanze. Signed middle right, Gelanze, along with “Napoli” or Naples. Circa ...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Cardboard, Watercolor, Gouache
Ras
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Pen and ink.
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
French fashion has influenced men and women, kings and queen, rich and poor throughout time. Tumultuo...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pen, Plexiglass, Archival Paper, Rag Paper, Archival Tape, Ink, Paper
Ballroom Dancers II - Charcoal, Figurative, Fabric, Movement, Human Form
By Trudy Good
Located in Knowle Lane, Cranleigh
Ballroom Dancers II by Trudy Good. Original Charcoal & Pastel onto paper.
Trudy Good is a British figurative painter who has exhibited in numerous pla...
Category
Early 2000s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Charcoal, Pastel
Libertine Carnaval in Venice - Ink drawing - circa 1916
Located in Paris, FR
Georges CONRAD (1874-1936)
Libertine Carnaval in Venice
Original India ink and color pencil drawing
Signed with the stamp of atelier
On paper 26.5 x 20 cm (c. 10,4 x 7.8 in)
Very ...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
India Ink, Color Pencil
Fagin Teaching Boys to Steal, Original Illustration from Oliver
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Marshall Goodman, American XXth
Title: Fagin Teaching Boys to Steal (Oliver) I
Year: circa 1960
Medium: Watercolor on Paper, signed in ink
Size: 17 x 23 inches
Frame: 21.5 x ...
Category
1960s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor
"Self Portrait Conte Sketch" rare Ben Fenske work on paper - academic study
By Ben Fenske
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
A colorful self-portrait from Ben Fenske, staring at the viewer straight-on. Hues of red dominate.
Unframed.
Ben Fenske (b. 1978) although a native of Minnesota, and has been worki...
Category
Early 2000s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Conté
Night Fishing at Saint Maurice
By Emile Noirot
Located in Dallas, TX
signed "Emile Noirot 1893" at lower right
overall dimensions, including frame, are 19 3/4 x 23 5/8 inches
Category
1890s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Ink
Rieuse
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Watercolor over pencil.
Some with gold or silver leaf highlights
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
Evening dresses, 1926.
French fashion has influe...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Plexiglass, Rag Paper, Archival Paper, Silk, Archival Tape, Watercolor, ...
Anne Faure, Portrait of a Gentleman, 1946, Pastel
By Anne Faure
Located in Paris, FR
Anne Faure (born in 1878)
Portraits of a Gentlaman, 1946
Signed and dated lower right
Pastel on paper
40 x 31 cm,
Original frame with glass 60 x 51 cm
Anne Faure was born Anne F...
Category
1940s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pastel
Secretary in the Subway - Pencil drawing - circa 1913
Located in Paris, FR
Georges CONRAD (1874-1936)
Secretary in the Subway
Original pencil and color pencils drawing
Signed with the stamp of atelier
On paper 26.5 x 20 cm (c. 10,4 x 7.8 in)
Good conditio...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Carbon Pencil, Color Pencil
“View of Pyramid Cestius, Rome”
Located in Southampton, NY
Brown ink and wash drawing with touches of watercolor and gouache by the French artist, Francois-Marius Granet. Signed lower left. Condition: Good. Provenance: Christie’s London sale 1993. Matted but unframed.
The Pyramid of Cestius (in Italian, Piramide di Caio Cestio or Piramide Cestia...
Category
1810s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Ink, Paper, Watercolor, Gouache
Hindou
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Pen and ink.
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
French fashion has influenced men and women, kings and queen, rich and poor throughout time. Tumultuo...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Plexiglass, Archival Paper, Rag Paper, Archival Tape, Ink, Paper
“View of Porta San Paolo, Rome”
Located in Southampton, NY
Brown ink and wash drawing with touches of watercolor and gouache by the French artist, Francois-Marius Granet. Signed lower left. Condition: Good. Pr...
Category
1810s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Watercolor, Ink, Gouache
Belcolor
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Pen and ink.
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
French fashion has influenced men and women, kings and queen, rich and poor throughout time. Tumultuo...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pen, Plexiglass, Archival Paper, Rag Paper, Archival Tape, Ink, Paper
Pimpante
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Watercolor over pencil.
Some with gold or silver leaf highlights
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
Evening dresses, 1926.
French fashion has influe...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pen, Plexiglass, Rag Paper, Archival Paper, Silk, Archival Tape, Waterco...
“Home Life”
Located in Southampton, NY
Watercolor on paper by the Swiss artist, Simon Daniel Lafond. Signed and dated lower right, 1820. In very good condition, wth minor toning. Colors are strong with incredible detail ...
Category
1820s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor, Paper
Tam-Tam
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Watercolor over pencil.
Some with gold or silver leaf highlights
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
Evening dresses, 1926.
French fashion has influe...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Archival Paper, Archival Tape, Ink, Paper, Plexiglass, Rag Paper, Silk, ...
Delices
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Watercolor over pencil.
Some with gold or silver leaf highlights
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
Evening dresses, 1926.
French fashion has influe...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pen, Plexiglass, Rag Paper, Archival Paper, Silk, Archival Tape, Waterco...
"Warm Evening Solitude"
By John P. Nicolson
Located in Southampton, NY
For your consideration here is a wonderful original watercolor by the Scottish born artist John P. Nicolson also known as John Nicolson. Executed circa 1915 in the style of Winslow H...
Category
1910s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Watercolor
Vertide
Located in Florham Park, NJ
House of Bernard
Founded 1905.
Watercolor over pencil.
Some with gold or silver leaf highlights
Paris, France.
Coats, 1923.
Evening dresses, 1926.
French fashion has influe...
Category
1920s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Silver
Edouard Detaille (1848 1912) Soldier and riders, 1881, original signed Drawing
Located in Paris, FR
Edouard Detaille (1848-1912)
A soldier and riders, 1881
Signed, dated and dedicated "à Monsieur de Themines, bien cordialement Edouard Detaille Juillet 1881"
15.3 x 300 cm
Pen and i...
Category
1880s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Ink
Disegno accademico. Un grande bozzetto - studio di figura femminile. XIX secolo.
Located in Firenze, IT
Un grande bozzetto- studio di figura femminile.
XIX secolo.
La giovane donna è rappresentata nuda , con con la mano che sembra richiamare l'attenzione.
La figura inserita in una nicc...
Category
19th Century Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pencil, Paper
“Crossing the Bridge”
Located in Southampton, NY
Delicate sepia, watercolor and gouache drawing of a lush landscape with two figures and a donkey crossing a bridge in the background. Circa 1830. Condition is very good; no issues....
Category
1830s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Ink, Watercolor, Gouache
“The Race”
By Henry Alken
Located in Southampton, NY
Graphite and watercolor attributed to the well known British artist, Henry Thomas Alken. Circa 1825. Unsigned. Condition: Good. Provenance: Christie’s London, 1993. Matted but presently unframed.
Alken was born on 12 October 1785 in Soho, Westminster, and baptised on 6 November at St James's Church, Piccadilly. He was the third son of Samuel Alken, a sporting artist. Two of his brothers were George and Samuel Alken the Younger, also an artist. In 1789, the Alken family moved from Soho to 2, Francis Street East, Bedford Square.
Young Henry first studied under his father and then with the miniature painter John Thomas Barber...
Category
1820s Academic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Watercolor, Graphite
Academic figurative drawings and watercolors for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Academic figurative drawings and watercolors available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 20th Century, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add figurative drawings and watercolors created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, purple and other colors. Frequently made by artists working with Archival Paper, and Archival Tape and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Academic figurative drawings and watercolors, so small editions measuring 2.56 inches across are also available. Prices for figurative drawings and watercolors made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $11 and tops out at $288,500, while the average work sells for $747.