Skip to main content

Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

PHOTOREALISM

A direct challenge to Abstract Expressionism’s subjectivity and gestural vigor, Photorealism was informed by the Pop predilection for representational imagery, popular iconography and tools, like projectors and airbrushes, borrowed from the worlds of commercial art and design.

Whether gritty or gleaming, the subject matter favored by Photorealists is instantly, if vaguely, familiar. It’s the stuff of yellowing snapshots and fugitive memories. The bland and the garish alike flicker between crystal-clear reality and dreamy illusion, inviting the viewer to contemplate a single moment rather than igniting a story.

The virtues of the “photo” in Photorealist art — infused as they are with dazzling qualities that are easily blurred in reproduction — are as elusive as they are allusive. “Much Photorealist painting has the vacuity of proportion and intent of an idiot-savant, long on look and short on personal timbre,” John Arthur wrote (rather admiringly) in the catalogue essay for Realism/Photorealism, a 1980 exhibition at the Philbrook Museum of Art, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. At its best, Photorealism is a perpetually paused tug-of-war between the sacred and the profane, the general and the specific, the record and the object.

Robert Bechtle invented Photorealism, in 1963,” says veteran art dealer Louis Meisel. “He took a picture of himself in the mirror with the car outside and then painted it. That was the first one.”

The meaning of the term, which began for Meisel as “a superficial way of defining and promoting a group of painters,” evolved with time, and the core group of Photorealists slowly expanded to include younger artists who traded Rolleiflexes for 60-megapixel cameras, using advanced digital technology to create paintings that transcend the detail of conventional photographs.

On 1stDibs, the collection of Photorealist art includes work by Richard Estes, Ralph Goings, Chuck Close, Audrey Flack, Charles Bell and others.

9
to
20
167
26
93
10
113
75
8
54
38
37
47
20
Overall Height
to
Overall Width
to
7,197
6,405
5,438
2,132
611
525
498
456
381
323
221
77
76
46
35
24
23
20
19
17
17
16
15
15
14
14
14
12
12
12
9
9
9
50
146
1
4
11
14
15
28
27
20
15
10
118
107
79
66
37
Style: Photorealist
"Pebbles, " Pastel Drawing
Located in Denver, CO
Irene Georgopoulou's (EL based) "Pebbles" is a hyperrealist pastel drawing of a grouping of pink, white, yellow and black stones in a pile. Irene Georgopoulou has won several award...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Pastel

"Love Boat, " Pastel Drawing
Located in Denver, CO
Irene Georgopoulou's (EL based) "Love Boat" is a hyperrealist pastel drawing of a pink and blue paper boat placed amid a rocky, pebble covered landscape. I...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Pastel

Rubber Duck with Arrows
Located in Denver, CO
This is a framed original drawing on paper. Adonna Khare is an America Artist mainly focused on carbon pencil on paper drawings. She received her Masters of Fine Art from California ...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Carbon Pencil, Archival Paper

Bison and Bears
Located in Denver, CO
This is a unframed large scale original drawing on paper. Adonna Khare is an America Artist mainly focused on carbon pencil on paper drawings. She received her Masters of Fine Art fr...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Archival Paper, Carbon Pencil

Anteater and Elephant
Located in Denver, CO
This is an framed original drawing on paper. Adonna Khare is an America Artist mainly focused on carbon pencil on paper drawings. She received her Masters of Fine Art from California...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Carbon Pencil, Archival Paper

Approaching Slains Castle #8, black/white monotype, architecture ruin
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Monotype Ms. Murray is notable for capturing the crystalline quality of northern light. She has an extensive exhibition history and she is represented in both private and public co...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Monotype, Archival Ink, Archival Paper

Crazy Ballad - Rita Lee, Painting, Watercolor on Watercolor Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
Photo-based portrait of singer Rita Lee. Inspired by her song Balada do Louco :: Painting :: Photorealism :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenticity signed by t...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Untitled (The Road to Swindon)
Located in New York, NY
Colin Hunt (b. 1973) is a Brooklyn, NY-based artist working primarily in egg tempera and watercolor. His recent series of landscapes of the Avebury stone circle outside of London are...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Chimp with Castles
Located in Denver, CO
Adonna Khare is an American master carbon-pencil artist. Her style has been compared to the photo-realistic illustrations of Audubon, but the surreal worlds and strange inhabitants s...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Carbon Pencil, Archival Paper

Clown, Painting, Watercolor on Watercolor Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
Based on photo of characters from the Ligia Aydar School of Arts :: Painting :: Photorealism :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenticity signed by the artist :...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

David Morrison, Wind-Up Bird No. 6, hyperrealist color pencil animal drawing
Located in New York, NY
David Morrison has extended his brand of hyperrealism to the artificial, capturing the intricate lithography that decorates his collection of vintage Kohler wind-up birds. His drawings are often mistaken for a photograph from afar - on approach, they dissolve into a mesmerizing display of mark-making.This new body of work plays with the boundaries between organic and manufactured: the metal imposters are resplendent as they perch, pert and expectant, on wilting greenery. Yet another layer of irony, the toy birds...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

David Morrison, Wind-Up Bird No. 1, hyperrealist colored pencil animal, 2019
Located in New York, NY
David Morrison has extended his brand of hyperrealism to the artificial, capturing the intricate lithography that decorates his collection of vintage Kohler wind-up birds. His drawin...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

"Yellow Cadillac, " Hyperrealistic Watercolor Painting signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Yellow Cadillac" is an original watercolor painting by Bruce McCombs. The artist signed the piece lower right. It reatures a shiny yellow car with its doors open sitting on a suburb...
Category

1990s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Buds and Leaves, photorealist graphite floral drawing, 2018
Located in New York, NY
Mary Reilly explores the full tonal depth of graphite in her nature drawings and landscapes. She finds all of the soft subtleties of gray as she shifts seamlessly from leaf to bud, s...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Graphite, Paper

David Morrison, Wind-Up Bird No. 3, hyperrealist color pencil animal drawing
Located in New York, NY
David Morrison has extended his brand of hyperrealism to the artificial, capturing the intricate lithography that decorates his collection of vintage Kohler wind-up birds. His drawin...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

Sail Boats
Located in Miami, FL
A precise and exact rendering and meticulous spacial arrangement are on full display in Lewandowski's this later work. The work looks better in person. The artwork is in pristine co...
Category

1990s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Gouache, Watercolor

David Morrison, Wind-Up Bird No. 5, hyperrealist color pencil animal drawing
Located in New York, NY
David Morrison has extended his brand of hyperrealism to the artificial, capturing the intricate lithography that decorates his collection of vintage Kohler wind-up birds. His drawin...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

Riverbank 2, photorealist graphite nature drawing, 2018
Located in New York, NY
Mary Reilly explores the full tonal depth of graphite in her nature drawings and landscapes. She finds all of the soft subtleties of gray as she shifts...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Graphite, Paper

Ice 1, photorealist graphite nature drawing, 2018
Located in New York, NY
Reilly uses a toning technique to endow her graphite works with a smooth, seamless quality. Rather than distinct outlines, her seashells glide gracefully into one another, creating a...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Graphite

Corn Field 2, gray photorealist graphite still life drawing, 2019
Located in New York, NY
Mary Reilly explores the full tonal depth of graphite in her nature drawings and landscapes. She finds all of the soft subtleties of gray as she shifts seamlessly from branch to pebb...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Graphite

David Morrison, Sycamore Series No. 3, hyperrealist colored pencil drawing, 2003
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, yet abstracted, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and a...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Color Pencil

"Drive Thru Open, " Photorealist City-view Watercolor signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Drive Thru Open" is an original watercolor painting by Bruce McCombs. The artist signed the piece lower right. This piece features a photorealist depiction...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Birch Fragment No. 1, photorealist colored pencil nature drawing
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and also by working f...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

"Cadillac, " Photorealistic Automobile Watercolor signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Cadillac" is an original photorealistic watercolor painting by Bruce McCombs. The artist signed the piece lower left. It features a deep blue car on a car lot with a domed building ...
Category

1990s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Bullfinches and Blackberries, Painting, Watercolor on Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
I brought some blackberries in to paint and quickly decided to paint a pair of bullfinches on the prickly stems. Bullfinches really enjoy feasting on these juicy sweet berries and ar...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Eagle Owl, Painting, Watercolor on Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
This original painting was inspired by a young Eagle Owl who was resting on his perch at a county fair. The photograph I used was him puffing out his feather...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

"Open 24 Hours, " Photorealist Watercolor signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Stardust Dine-o-Mat" is an original watercolor painting by Bruce McCombs. The artist signed the piece lower center. This piece depicts a photorealist rendition of a bright and color...
Category

Early 2000s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Firewood Series No. 5, hyperrealist nature still life, colored pencil drawing
Located in New York, NY
In "Firewood Series No. 5," David Morrison uses colored pencils to capture the finest details of a frayed and peeling piece of birch wood. With his careful and methodical handling of...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

David Morrison, Firewood Series No. 8, hyperrealist colored pencil drawing
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and also by working f...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

"Central Cafe, NYC, " Photorealist Cityscape Watercolor signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Central Cafe, N.Y.C." is a photorealist watercolor painting by Bruce McCombs. The artist signed the piece lower right. This piece features a reflection of a neon sign with some silh...
Category

Early 2000s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Adjustable Wrench
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Richard Stenhouse, American (1944 - ) Title: Adjustable Wrench Year: circa 1970 Medium: Graphite on Paper, signed l.r. Size: 16.5 x 17 in. (...
Category

1970s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Graphite

"Window Reflections, " Watercolor Cityscape signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Window Reflections" is an original signed watercolor by Bruce McCombs. It depicts a window, likely from a residential building. This view does not allow the viewer to see much of th...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Birch Fragment No. 2, photorealist colored pencil nature drawing
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and also by working f...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

David Morrison, Firewood Series No. 2, hyperrealist colored pencil drawing, 2018
Located in New York, NY
In "Firewood Series No. 2," David Morrison uses colored pencils to capture the finest details of a frayed and peeling piece of birch wood. With his careful and methodical handling of...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

"Harley, " Photorealist Watercolor of a Motorcycle signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Harley" is an original watercolor painting by Bruce McCombs. The artist signed the piece lower left. It features the wheel and bottom part of a Harley Davidson motorcycle. The artis...
Category

1990s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Tired Feet for a Tired Soul, Charcoal Drawing by Nathaniel Tatum
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Nathaniel Tatum, American (1964 - ) Title: Tired feet for a tired soul Year: 2001 Medium: Charcoal on Paper, signed and dated Paper Size: 24 x 18 inches
Category

Early 2000s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Charcoal

"Neon Sign, N.Y.C., " Watercolor Cityscape signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Neon Sign, N.Y.C." is an original signed watercolor by Bruce McCombs. It depicts front of a sushi shop and features its neon sign and reflective windows. This painting displays McCo...
Category

Early 2000s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Firewood Series No. 3, hyperrealist nature still life, colored pencil drawing
Located in New York, NY
In "Firewood Series No. 3," David Morrison uses colored pencils to capture the finest details of a frayed and peeling piece of birch wood. With his careful and methodical handling of...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

"Persimmons, Tangerines & Blue Kerchief, " Watercolor signed by Alicia Czechowski
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Persimmons, Tangerines & Blue Kerchief" is an original watercolor painting by Alicia Czechowski. The artist signed the piece in the lower right. This painting depicts orange persimm...
Category

1960s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

David Morrison, Paper Wasp Series No. 2, hyperrealist colored pencil drawing
Located in New York, NY
In his hyperrealist drawing, "Paper Wasp Series No. 2," David Morrison uses colored pencil to render, in overwhelming detail, an abandoned wasp nest. He crea...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

Stick Series No. 12, Photorealist colored pencil drawing, still life
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, yet abstracted, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and a...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

"Chevrolet Grille (Car), " Watercolor by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Chevrolet Grille" is an original signed watercolor by Bruce McCombs. It depicts the grille of a highly-polished Chevrolet car. This painting displays McCombs' exquisite attention to...
Category

1990s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

David Morrison, Sycamore Series No. 5, Photorealist colored pencil drawing, 2003
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, yet abstracted, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and a...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

Within the Forest, gray photorealist graphite landscape drawing, 2018
Located in New York, NY
In her newest landscape drawing, Within the Forest, Mary Reilly explores the full tonal depth of graphite. She finds all of the soft subtleties of gray in her movement from the momen...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Graphite

David Morrison, Stick Series No. 9, Photorealist colored pencil drawing, 2015
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, yet abstracted, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and a...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

Jack Leynnwood, "Ferrari Berlinetta 563, " Gouache Illustration, circa 1964
By Jack Leynnwood
Located in Long Island City, NY
This gouache painting on illustration board was created by American artist Jack Leynnwood. Fascinated by aviation from a young age, Leynnwood did kit illustrations of everything from military aircraft to rigged ships, Rat Finks, Flash Gordon, space ships and Ed “Big Daddy...
Category

1960s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Gouache, Illustration Board

David Morrison, Firewood Series No. 1, Hyperrealist colored pencil drawing, 2018
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and also by working f...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Color Pencil

Sycamore Series 6, photorealist colored pencil drawing still life, 2003
Located in New York, NY
David Morrison challenges the idea of what is cherished in nature by celebrating the beauty of the over-looked and the imperfect. Found broken branches, a peeling sycamore tree, bug-...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Archival Paper

David Morrison, Stick Series No. 13, Photorealist colored pencil drawing, 2015
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, yet abstracted, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and a...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

"Oldenburg Sculpture, Cleveland, Ohio, " Watercolor signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Red Boxes, Chipping Camden, U.K." is an original signed watercolor by Bruce McCombs. It depicts the Claes Oldenburg culpture "Free Stamp" in Cleveland, Ohio. This painting displays ...
Category

1990s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Wildflower, Central Park, photorealist graphite drawing, 2011
Located in New York, NY
Reilly uses a toning technique to endow her graphite works with a smooth, seamless quality. Rather than distinct outlines, her flower petals glide gracefully into the surrounding spa...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Graphite, Paper

"Diner, " a Realist Watercolor signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Diner" is an original signed watercolor by Bruce McCombs. It depicts the front facade of a diner with careful attention to reflection, atmosphere, and light. 22" x 29 1/2" art 25"...
Category

1990s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Stick Series No. 4, Photorealist colored pencil drawing, still life, 2015
Located in New York, NY
Artist David Morrison creates hyperrealistic, yes abstracted, finely detailed pencil drawings of found natural objects, both by observing the object itself under magnification, and a...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Color Pencil, Paper

Signature Spitball Series of Julia Randall, Photorealist colored pencil drawing
Located in New York, NY
Julia Randall is in love with drawing, and uses her seductive technique to craft images that subtly challenge assumptions about corporeality, desire, and the natural world. Intersecting sensibilities activate her work; images are simultaneously erotic and humorous, beautiful and repulsive. Although she clearly operates in the realm of fantasy, Randall uses observation-based drawing and hyperrealistic technique to create images that are surreal and suggestive. Mysterious in tone, these "Under and Afloat" drawings hint at the fugitive nature of our passions, and the dreaded passage of time. Spatial convolutions and open-ended narratives allude to the confounding emotional layers that exist between people, and the enigmatic nature of desire, love and loss. In this vein, desire is ultimately ephemeral, but ironically drawn in fastidious detail. Framed: 64 x 49 inches Provenance: Artist to GarveySimon, New York, NY Exhibitions: 2015 "She's a Changeling," the Harts Gallery...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Paper, Color Pencil

"Prague, " Watercolor Cityscape signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Prague" is an original signed watercolor by Bruce McCombs. It depicts the architecture of a highly detailed and ornate building. This painting displays McCombs' exquisite attention ...
Category

Early 2000s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

"Shoe Repair Window, " Watercolor signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Shoe Repair Window" is an original signed watercolor by Bruce McCombs. It depicts the front of a shop and the reflection of the neon sign. This painting d...
Category

Early 2000s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Flowering Hillside, grayscale photorealist graphite landscape drawing, 2018
Located in New York, NY
In her newest landscape drawing, Flowering Hillside, Mary Reilly explores the full tonal depth of graphite. She finds all of the soft subtleties of gray in her movement from the mome...
Category

2010s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Graphite, Paper

"Reflections, Lincoln, England (Car), " Watercolor signed by Bruce McCombs
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Reflections, Lincoln, England (Car)" is an original signed watercolor by Bruce McCombs. It depicts the hood of a well-polished car reflecting a cathedral facade. This painting displ...
Category

1990s Photorealist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Photorealist drawings and watercolor paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Photorealist drawings and watercolor paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add drawings and watercolor paintings created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, orange, red, yellow and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including David Morrison, Bruce McCombs, Mary Reilly, and Adonna Khare. Frequently made by artists working with Paper, and Pencil and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Photorealist drawings and watercolor paintings, so small editions measuring 2 inches across are also available. Prices for drawings and watercolor paintings 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 $189 and tops out at $87,000, while the average work sells for $3,472.

Recently Viewed

View All