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Realist Animal Paintings

REALIST STYLE

Realist art attempts to portray its subject matter without artifice. Similar to naturalism, authentic realist paintings and prints see an integration of true-to-life colors, meticulous detail and linear perspectives for accurate portrayals of the world. 

Work that involves illusionistic techniques of realism dates back to the classical world, such as the deceptive trompe l’oeil used since ancient Greece. Art like this became especially popular in the 17th century when Dutch artists like Evert Collier painted objects that appeared real enough to touch. Realism as an artistic movement, however, usually refers to 19th-century French realist artists such as Honoré Daumier exploring social and political issues in biting lithographic prints, while the likes of Gustave Courbet and Jean-François Millet painting people — particularly the working class — with all their imperfections, navigating everyday urban life. This was a response to the dominant academic art tradition that favored grand paintings of myth and history. 

By the turn of the 20th century, European artists, such as the Pre-Raphaelites, were experimenting with nearly photographic realism in their work, as seen in the attention to every botanical attribute of the flowers surrounding the drowned Ophelia painted by English artist John Everett Millais.

Although abstraction was the guiding style of 20th-century art, the realism trend in American modern art endured in Edward Hopper, Andrew Wyeth and other artists’ depictions of the complexities of the human experience. In the late 1960s, Photorealism emerged with artists like Chuck Close and Richard Estes giving their paintings the precision of a frame of film.

Contemporary artists such as Jordan Casteel, LaToya Ruby Frazier and Aliza Nisenbaum are now using the unvarnished realist approach for honest representations of people and their worlds. Alongside traditional mediums, technology such as virtual reality, artificial intelligence and immersive installations are helping artists create new sensations of realism in art.

​​Find authentic realist paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs.

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Style: Realist
Gulf Evening
By Mathew Hillier
Located in Naples, Florida
Wildlife artist Matthew Hillier was born in England. Married to fellow artist Julia Rogers, he now lives in the United States on the Eastern shore of Maryland. Hillier’s father was a...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Animal Paintings

Materials

Oil

Street Light, Original Landscape Painting, 2013
Located in Boston, MA
Artist Commentary: Dark, raining and the street light silhoettes 2 birds. Keywords: bird, street light, street, black and white, painting, creepy, eerie, halloween, scary, white, bl...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Animal Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Walk along the shore
Located in CAMPO REAL, ES
This painting captures a peaceful moment on a beach in Santander, where a man walks along the shore with his dog. The dog, always attentive to his owner, reflects a playful and joyfu...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Animal Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

Oil on canvas painting of a honey bee, called 'Creature of Importance'
Located in Oostende, BE
Oil on canvas painting of a honey bee. The work is called 'Creature of Importance'.
Category

2010s Realist Animal Paintings

Materials

Canvas

Refrigerio d’ Estate, 2013
Located in Atlanta, GA
Gastone Costantini , in collaboration with the “Cericola” Academy of Arts in Pescara, offers professional courses in “hyper-realistic painting”. Gastone Costantini, an artist from L...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Animal Paintings

Materials

Oil

Roseata Spoonbill Painting
Located in Houston, TX
Wonderful realist painting depicting four roseata spoonbills by renowned artist Oris Robertson. Painting was made with acrylic paint and has a nice light colored background. Artist...
Category

20th Century Realist Animal Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Realist animal paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Realist animal 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 animal 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, red, orange, purple and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Beth Carlson, Marie Channer, Shelli Langdale, and Beth de Loiselle. Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Oil Paint and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Realist animal paintings, so small editions measuring 1.38 inches across are also available. Prices for animal 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 $150 and tops out at $257,060, while the average work sells for $3,213.

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