Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Encompassing centuries of change in Europe between 1300 and 1800, from booms of prosperity to bloody revolutions, Old Masters describes a wide range of artists. The informal term was derived from the title of an artist who trained in a guild long enough to become a master, such as Leonardo da Vinci, who studied in a Florence painters’ guild. However, Old Masters paintings, prints and other art is now used to refer to work made by any artist with a high level of skill in painting, drawing, sculpture or printmaking who worked during this era.
The 15th century’s expansive trade and commerce spread culture across borders. A vibrant period of art emerged, bolstered by studies of anatomy and nature that influenced a new visual realism. From Raphael and Michelangelo in the Renaissance to Rembrandt van Rijn and Johannes Vermeer in the Dutch Golden Age, artists expressed emotion, naturalism, color and light in new ways. El Greco and Paolo Veronese were leaders in the dramatic style of Mannerism, while Caravaggio and Peter Paul Rubens demonstrated the movement and meticulous detail of Baroque art.
Historically, most attention was concentrated on male artists, but recent research and exhibitions have elevated the impactful work of women such as Rachel Ruysch and Artemisia Gentileschi. In late-18th-century France, female artists like Adélaïde Labille-Guiard and Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun were prominent names. Nevertheless, access to the academies and guilds was highly restricted for women, and even those able to establish practices were expected to adhere to portraits and still lifes rather than the grand history paintings being created by men.
Find a collection of Old Masters prints, paintings, drawings and watercolors and other art on 1stDibs.
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Crayon
16th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor, Archival Paper
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Color Pencil, Ink, Watercolor
16th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Laid Paper, Pen
Mid-17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor, Vellum, Pencil
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk, Laid Paper
Late 18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Gouache
Late 18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor, Archival Paper
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Gouache, Ink
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Graphite
1790s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
India Ink
Late 17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
15th Century and Earlier Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Vellum
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Washi Paper, Color Pencil
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil, Watercolor
16th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
1760s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
Mid-17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor
1620s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk, Charcoal
Late 18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
Late 18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Etching, Paper
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor, Archival Paper
1640s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk, Laid Paper
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
1740s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Pencil
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor, Archival Paper
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor, Archival Paper
Early 17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Handmade Paper
Early 18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
1650s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk, Ink, Laid Paper
16th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
1720s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
Late 17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Charcoal, Chalk
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Copper
17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Etching
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor
Late 17th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Handmade Paper, Graphite
16th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
Mid-18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Handmade Paper, Laid Paper
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Watercolor
1770s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
1780s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel, Laid Paper
1630s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Oil
1780s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Gouache
1730s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Laid Paper, Pen, Carbon Pencil
18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Pencil
1740s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink, Watercolor
16th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
16th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Pencil
1760s Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
16th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink, Handmade Paper, Graphite
Early 18th Century Old Masters Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink