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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
"Plastic Figure 7" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Jason Walker's (CAN based) "Plastic Figure 7" is an oil painting that depicts a lone red plastic Native American figure toy aiming his bow and arrow into the darkness. Group photo...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

French Contemporary Art by Claudine Picard - Grenades
Located in Paris, IDF
Claudine Picard is a French artist born in 1949 who lives & works in Sainte Marie, France. She is graduated from the Ecole Nationale des Arts Décoratifs in 1973 (ENSAD).
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Plastic Figure 6" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Jason Walker's (CAN based) "Plastic Figure 6" is an oil painting that depicts a lone red plastic Cowboy figure toy aiming his weapon into the darkness. ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Plastic Figure 1" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Jason Walker's (CAN based) "Plastic Figure 1" is an oil painting that depicts a lone pink plastic Cowboy figure toy standing with his gun on his shoulder...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Belle Epoque Bride in White Dress
Located in New York, NY
Beautiful Belle Epoque Lady in White dress, presumably a Bride by Frederick Hendrik Kaemmerer (1839-1902). Oil on Canvas, circa 1860's, signed lowe...
Category

19th Century Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Starburst" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Sara Scribner's (US based) "Starburst" is an oil painting that depicts a realistic portrait of a feminine form in three quarters view wearing blue in a b...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Again and Again" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Mia Bergeron's (US based) "Again and Again" is an oil painting that depicts a lone man surrounded by an interior darkness that is kept at bay with only...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Fluorescent and Starry
Located in Buffalo, NY
An original contemporary oil painting by Amanda Besl from her most recent body of work created in 2017. Throughout her career, Amanda Besl has focused primarily on the inner worlds ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

Large Oil Painting Titled: The People’s Princess
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Words in painting: I think the biggest disease the world suffers from in this day and age is the disease of people feeling unloved. I know I can give love for a minute, for a half an...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Souvenir de la Malmaison
Located in Buffalo, NY
An original contemporary oil painting by Amanda Besl created in 2014.
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

Flight raso
Located in CAMPO REAL, ES
In this work, I create a scenario that awakens the imagination and defies conventional logic. I have opted for a surrealist approach in portraying a man, who, as a mime, is immersed...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

The little curious
Located in Genève, GE
Work on cardboard Golden wooden frame 58 x 50 x 4 cm
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Torii
Located in Vienna, AT
Was born in 1993 in the city of Marganets, Ukraine. Artist Gorbachenko Multiple participants of group and solo exhibitions and Art Fair Vilnius. The artist's works are in private col...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Paper, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Gouache

Armenian Contemporary Art by Kamsar Ohanyan - Inquisitive
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Distance", realist painting, modern elegant female figure on silver background
Located in Dallas, TX
Known for her bold visionary take on figurative realism, Erin Cone has twice been recognized in the national art press as one of the top young emerging artists in the country. After ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

"Kate In The Barn"
Located in San Antonio, TX
Timur Akhriev Image Size: 31 x 58 Frame Size: 38 x 65 Medium: Oil "Kate In The Barn" Biography Born in Vladikavkaz, the territory where Southern Russia meets...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Fernand Adriaenssens, Antwerp 1859 – 1944, Belgian Painter, Still Life with Book
Located in Knokke, BE
Adriaenssens Fernand Antwerp 1859 – 1944 Belgian Painter Still Life with Books Signature: Signed bottom middle left, on revers signed and placed ...
Category

Early 20th Century Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Paraje natural I". Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscape, waterscap
Located in MADRID, ES
Quadriptych (30 x 30 cm) x 4 Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscapa, waterscape, pastel colors
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Wood, Oil

In the Moment
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
Signed lower right. Peggy Dodds Williams 1900-1987 She studied at the Collegiate University, Paterson, New Jersey, Art Students League in New York; studied under Kuniyoshi and H. ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Andes Mountains Of Chili" Pastel Rural Village Mountain Landscape Painting
By Margaret Warren
Located in Houston, TX
Lovely realist landscape done with acrylic paint of a quaint town and a pastel mountainscape in the background. Signed in lower right corner "M. Warren." With a label on reverse that reads "'Andes Mountains...
Category

1930s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Berlin, Osthafen, Getreidespeicher
Located in Paris, IDF
Frank Suplie is a German artist born in 1950 lives and works in Berlin, Germany. He is a member of the Painters Association of the North German Realists since 2006. He paints everyda...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

Marie Channer, "Breaking Pointe", 24x18 Ballet Dancer Oil Painting on Canvas
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
This piece, "Breaking Pointe", is a 24x18 oil painting on canvas by artist Marie Channer. Featured is a ballet dancer silhouetted in the spotlight of the stage, caught in pose. Glow ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Mr. Cheerful (monochrome portrait vintage old man beard Hat Botanic nostalgia)
Located in Quebec, Quebec
Mr. Cheerful by Rudolf Kosow presents a figure whose warm smile and rugged features exude an air of quiet confidence, yet the surreal detail of branches sprouting from his hat adds a...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

The eye of God
Located in Vienna, AT
Was born in 1993 in the city of Marganets, Ukraine. Artist Gorbachenko Multiple participants of group and solo exhibitions and Art Fair Vilnius. The artist's works are in private col...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Paper, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Gouache

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - War in Ukraine
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas - diptych Su Yu is a Chinese artist born in 1987 who lives & works in Beijing in China. He was an old student of prestigious art teachers as Shi Liang & Chen Danqing ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Rosa Amarilla Three Women Portrait Painting
Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL
Rosa Amarilla Three Women Portrait Painting Artist signed front and verso dated and titled. Felix Mas was born in 1935 Barcelona, Spain. He studied art at Sa...
Category

1980s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

Madrid Centro - contemporary detailed ink and brush on canvas, black and white
Located in Dallas, TX
Her meticulously constructed paintings play with the duality between the simple and the complex, between the observer and the observed.
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Ink, Acrylic

The Bridge, August Trumper, Altona 1874 – 1956 Oberhausen, German Painter
Located in Knokke, BE
This work is offered in ready to hang gallery condition, having been professionally revised.
Category

Early 20th Century Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

In front of the window 2, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
Ludovit Holoska wrote on Roman Rembovsky: "The pragmatism, new pragmatism, psy­chological and contextual themes in his work have the ambition to urgently give an account of the exis...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Doñana". Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscape, waterscape, pastel
Located in MADRID, ES
Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscapa, waterscape, pastel colors, earth colors
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Wood, Oil

"Madrid Retiro", Intricate ink and brush on canvas, monochrome city scape
Located in Dallas, TX
Her meticulously constructed paintings play with the duality between the simple and the complex, between the observer and the observed.
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Ink, Acrylic

Shawn Faust, "Motorin", Black and White Equine Horse Race Charcoal on Canvas
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
This equine drawing, "Motorin'" is a 30x40" charcoal black and white painting on canvas by artist Shawn Faust depicting a horse and jockey in full leap. Complimentary to Faust's traditional oil works, these charcoal on canvas sketches boast a clean and contemporary feeling exhibiting the muscle tone and mass of these majestic creatures. Fixed with varnish, these charcoal works are permanent and best framed or unframed. About the artist: Shawn’s love and fascination for drawing came as an unexpected gift from his grandfather at the age of 5. Young Faust was a tag-a-long during his grandfather’s impromptu plein air art lesson with his older brother in the back yard of his Aunt’s house. A retired director for the American Red Cross, Shawn’s grandfather, who had only recently picked up the brush himself, began a charcoal sketch that would forever change how Faust would see the world. From that brief lesson, Faust recalls vividly, “The techniques I witnessed from my grandfather that day, were pure magic!” With his newfound gift of magic, Shawn quickly began practicing his art of 3D illusion for anyone who wanted to see it. During his childhood, you would be hard pressed not to find Shawn doodling on a piece of paper at some point during the day. Among his favorite things to draw as a youngster were his comic book heroes. Instead of reading the comics, he spent all his time studying the line work and muscle forms of the comic book characters. And so, began his interest in portraying the human form. Upon entering college at the University Of Delaware, Shawn enrolled as an accounting major yet emerged with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in 1990. At the U of D he is forever grateful for the privilege of studying under distinguished artists Stephen Tanis, Charles Rowe, Robert Straight and Rosemary Lane. Shortly after graduating, Shawn embarked on a career in Illustration. By 1993 he had quickly become one of Delaware’s prominent architectural illustrators working for more than 75% of the homebuilders in Delaware. Between illustration jobs, Shawn pursued his interest in portrait painting. In 1992 Faust was commissioned to paint the official portrait of outgoing Delaware Governor, Michael Castle. Continuing his quest to learn more about portrait painting, Faust studied with Daniel Greene in 1995. He credits Daniel Greene for giving him the greatest key to unlocking a whole new way of seeing and interpreting color. By 1995, Shawn’s portrait commissions and easel paintings were supporting him as much as his illustration jobs, so he decided to focus entirely on his fine art career. This included opening a gallery and custom frame shop with his wife and brother. During the twelve years of owning and operating the gallery, Shawn continued his intense portrait research by focusing his studies on the eyes of his favorite subject, the horse. His head studies of horses caught the attention of Mr. Richard Golden, a prominent horse owner in Chesapeake City, MD and president of Northview Stallion Station. Northview is best know for standing Northern Dancer...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Charcoal, Varnish

Kid Dynamite, Steven Navarro, PanAmerican Games, Olympics 2024, Team USA
Located in Houston, TX
Kid Dynamite is an oil painting by V...Vaughan of Steve Navarro of California. In late November Steven Navarro is participating in the PanAmerican games in Cali, Colombia after winning the Gold Medal at the PanAmerican Games in Guadalajara. He is ranked #1 in his weight division of 114 lbs.He most likely will qualify for the Paris 2024...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

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

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Paraje natural II". Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscape, watersca
Located in MADRID, ES
Triptych 3 x (25 x 25) cm Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscapa, waterscape, pastel colors
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Wood, Oil

"Maya Devi" Figurative Oil Painting 47" x 39" inch by Dmitriy Krestniy
Located in Culver City, CA
"Maya Devi" Figurative Oil Painting 47" x 39" inch by Dmitriy Krestniy ATTENTION: Painting ships rolled in a tube. A look through Dmitriy’s designs reveals a glamorous, feminine, p...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - Self Portrait
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Su Yu is a Chinese artist born in 1987 who lives & works in Beijing in China. He was an old student of prestigious art teachers as Shi Liang & Chen Danqing at Oil Pain...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Armenian Contemporary Art by Kamsar Ohanyan - Red Street
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Kamsar Ohanyan is an Armenian artist born in 1991 who lives and works in Yerevan, Armenia. He studied in Yerevan at State Pedagogical University with Kh. Abovyan at th...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Armenian Contemporary Art by Kamsar Ohanyan - Spring Day
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Kamsar Ohanyan is an Armenian artist born in 1991 who lives and works in Yerevan, Armenia. He studied in Yerevan at State Pedagogical University with Kh. Abovyan at th...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Urban Painting by Stuart Bush "Untitled 3"
By Stuart Bush
Located in New York, NY
Stuart Bush says of his work: "My painting practice has evolved though recording, interrogating and investigating the public realm. I want to work within and beyond the practical ...
Category

Early 2000s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - We are Sojourners 5
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas This painting bellows to the serie "We are Sejourners". Total dimension of the serie: 200 x 1100 cm Total price of the serie: $78,000 Su Yu is a Chinese artist born i...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Döllnfließ, Brückenblick
Located in Paris, IDF
Egg tempera on canvas, Shadow joint frame Frank Suplie is a German artist born in 1950 lives and works in Berlin, Germany. He is a member of the Painters Association of the North Ge...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Berlin, Neues Deutschland
Located in Paris, IDF
Egg tempera on canvas, Shadow joint frame Frank Suplie is a German artist born in 1950 lives and works in Berlin, Germany. He is a member of the Painters Association of the North Ge...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

He Knows
Located in Burlingame, CA
'He Knows' features the beautiful face of a boy with down syndrome encircled with lace and shrouded in dignified mystery. The small painting is 7 x 5 1/2 inches, framed 8 3/4 x 7 1/4...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Wood, Oil

Oil on Canvas Titled: "Adorn"
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Oil painting on canvas by Christina Major of Miguel (singer) Christina Major was born in Concord, New Hampshire in 1982. She has lived all over the world including Hawaii, France, ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

La rentrée des classes
Located in Mc Lean, VA
Signed lower left Literature: Aleksandrowski, Mathieu, Lobstein, Henry Jules Jean Geoffroy dit Géo, 1853–1924 (Édition Librairie des Musées...
Category

Early 20th Century Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - On Pregnancy
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Su Yu is a Chinese artist born in 1987 who lives & works in Beijing in China. He was an old student of prestigious art teachers as Shi Liang & Chen Danqing at Oil Pain...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Working Laborers, " Francis Bevilacqua, Soviet Cold War Art
Located in New York, NY
Francis Bevilacqua (American, b. 1911) Working Laborers, n.d. Oil and pigment on black granite 44 x 21 inches Signed lower right Born in 1911, Francis Bevilacqua was predominantly influenced by the 1930s. The period of the 1930s is epitomized by the conflict between many political ideologies, including Marxist Socialism, Capitalist Democracy, and the Totalitarianism of both Communism and Fascism. In the Soviet Union, Stalin’s government needed urgent funds to implement the rapid industrialization demanded by the first Five Year Plan. It initiated a secret strategy to sell off treasures from the State Hermitage Museum in Leningrad (St. Petersburg), including a primary list of two hundred and fifty irreplaceable paintings by the Old Masters, a number of which ended up in the collection of Andrew Mellon...
Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Granite

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - Idle Away
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Su Yu is a Chinese artist born in 1987 who lives & works in Beijing in China. He was an old student of prestigious art teachers as Shi Liang & Chen Danqing at Oil Pain...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Externsteine, Nachmittags
Located in Paris, IDF
Egg tempera on canvas, Shadow joint frame Frank Suplie is a German artist born in 1950 lives and works in Berlin, Germany. He is a member of the Painters Association of the North Ge...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - Unfinished
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Su Yu is a Chinese artist born in 1987 who lives & works in Beijing in China. He was an old student of prestigious art teachers as Shi Liang & Che...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Museumshafen, Kappeln
Located in Paris, IDF
Egg tempera on canvas, Shadow joint frame Frank Suplie is a German artist born in 1950 lives and works in Berlin, Germany. He is a member of the Painters Association of the North Ge...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - Crisis
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Su Yu is a Chinese artist born in 1987 who lives & works in Beijing in China. He was an old student of prestigious art teachers as Shi Liang & Chen Danqing at Oil Pain...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Marina Large Pink Oil Painting With Woman and Sail Boats
Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL
Marina large pink oil painting with woman and sail boats. Artist signed, dated and titled, floater frame. Ethereal oil on canvas figural painting, titled Playa Amarillo (Yellow Beach...
Category

1980s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - Drunk
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Su Yu is a Chinese artist born in 1987 who lives & works in Beijing in China. He was an old student of prestigious art teachers as Shi Liang & Che...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Entrance to the house
Located in Vienna, AT
Was born in 1993 in the city of Marganets, Ukraine. Artist Gorbachenko Multiple participants of group and solo exhibitions and Art Fair Vilnius. The artist's works are in private col...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Paper, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Gouache

Soldier Shooting Gun with Bikini Girls, Mid-Century Mens Magazine War
Located in Miami, FL
The artist tells a whole action-packed story in one picture. A handsome young soldier shoots his pistol at a passing bomb-dropping airplane. The close call splashes water on him and his two sexy girl...
Category

1960s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Gouache, Board, Pencil

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Herbstwald, Wildschweine
Located in Paris, IDF
Frank Suplie is a German artist born in 1950 lives and works in Berlin, Germany. He is a member of the Painters Association of the North German Realists s...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

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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