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Realist Figurative 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
Color:  Pink
Inner Circle
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity (Issued by the Gallery) About Artist Clinton Odhiambo popularly known as Clinton Artisto is a self-taught composite realism artist from Kibera Nairobi, Kenya whose work generally investigates and portrays the beauty of struggle faced by common people especially women in their daily life, environment, and the environment he faces. He uses women as a symbol of strength and hope for the future. His motivation comes from people around him and their environment, memories, photographs, and sometimes conceptualizing his ideas from dreams and imagination. His main inspiration has always been hope for a better tomorrow. He uses acrylic paint as a medium to portray his subjects in a realistic manner while he also uses color according to the mood he wants to support the story of his subjects. born in 1997 in Asembo Kenya, Clinton moved with his parents to Kibera slums in Nairobi to look for a greener pasture, he joined Kibera primary school and later started painting while in class seven in order to pay for his school fees. He has been featured in several group exhibitions Hamptons Fine Art Fair, NYCartwalk, Kenya Art...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Ethereal Symphony: Vibrations of 5D Mushroom- butterfly contemporary realism
Located in London, Chelsea
Ethereal Symphony: Vibrations of 5D Mushroom Ascension" is a captivating artwork that transports us into a mystical realm where the ethereal and the earthly converge. This painting i...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Celestial Metamorphosis: Embracing the Ascended- butterfly contemporary realism
Located in London, Chelsea
"Celestial Metamorphosis: Embracing the Ascended Self"is a captivating and transformative painting that invites viewers into a vibrant realm of spiritual growth and enlightenment. In...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Piggy in the Middle
Located in Deddington, GB
Marie Robinson Piggy in the Middle Original Still Life Painting Oil Paint on Canvas Canvas Size: H 31cm x W 32cm x D 2cm Framed Size: H 36cm x W 42cm x D 3cm Sold Framed in a White B...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Opened Eyes - Oil Acrylic Figurative Painting Ivory Blue White Brown Green
Located in Sofia, BG
" Opened eyes " is a modern art line painting by Maestro Dimitar Voynov -Junior, About the artwork: TECHNIQUE: Acrylic, oil on canvas painting STYLE...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

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Stride
Located in Greenwich, CT
Scott Duce is an international artist working in New York. His work has been exhibited throughout the United States, with several solo exhibitions in New York City, Chicago, Boston, ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Waiting for Birth" Oil Painting 20" x 16" inch by Dmitriy Krestniy
Located in Culver City, CA
"Waiting for Birth" Oil Painting 20" x 16" inch by Dmitriy Krestniy A look through Dmitriy’s designs reveals a glamorous, feminine, provocative yet sensual style influenced by his natural Ukrainian exuberance. He understands and respects the art’s body which continuously is at the center of his paintings. His preference goes by drawing with pastels, oil and charcoal to create innovative paintings among which are such style as photorealism where the artist writes such paintings as the pictorial art...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

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Peony 26
Located in New York, NY
oil painting on stretched canvas Leigh Wen’s works reflect her personal and cultural histories. Having grown up on the island of Taiwan, she has a deep affi...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Linen, Stretcher Bars, Canvas, Oil, Varnish

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Realist figurative paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Realist figurative 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 figurative 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, purple, red, orange and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Su Yu, Janusz Szpyt, JC Spock, and Matt Talbert. 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 figurative paintings, so small editions measuring 0.5 inches across are also available.

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