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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
dusk is dawn is day
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

By the bath. watercolor on paper, 48, 5x58, 5 cm
Located in Riga, LV
By the bath. watercolor on paper, 48,5x58,5 cm Zeberins Indrikis Born 1882. 30. 08 – 1969. 18. 05 Latvian painter, book illustrator, cartoon illus...
Category

1970s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

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

Conceptual Realist Painting Diptych Floral Colorful American female artist
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

Gapers (2015)
Located in Denver, CO
Gapers (2015)
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Fume" Acrylic on canvas 39" x 39" inch painting by Tom Barnabi
Located in Culver City, CA
"Fume" Acrylic on canvas 39" x 39" inch painting by Tom Barnabi Tom Barnabi is a part of the modern generation of artists, who managed to absorb several c...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

In a small town. 2011, oil on canvas, 65x81 cm
Located in Riga, LV
In a small town. 2011, oil on canvas, 65x81 cm Juris Germanis (1941) The artist has always had a tendency to catch the most significant features when working in landscape genre, usi...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

June 16
Located in Buffalo, NY
An original contemporary oil painting by Amanda Besl created in 2016. Throughout her career, Amanda Besl has focused primarily on the inner worlds of adolescent girls, turning her a...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

"You and I", Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Matt Talbert ( US based) "You and I" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a couple leaning in to kiss each other as they are cast in the glow of a red light. Artist b...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Ironman, " Mixed media painting
Located in Denver, CO
Gregory Block's (US based) "Ironman" is an original, handmade mixed media artwork that depicts the Ironman symbol made entirely of aluminum. Gregory was born in Kansas City, Missou...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Metal

“MARISMA DORADA“. Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscape, waterscape
Located in MADRID, ES
Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscapa, waterscape, pastel colors, earth colors
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Wood, Oil, Acrylic

Late-Hellenistic sculpture from the Monument to Daochos
Located in Boston, MA
Signed verso. Based in New York, John MacConnell received his BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore and his MFA from the School o...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Poppies" Oil cm. 30 x 38 , Flowers, red, 1960 , shipping free
Located in Torino, IT
Poppies,Red ,Flowers,russian,art,1960 NADEZHDA VOROBIEVA (Moscow, 1924 - 2011) Works by Nadezhda Vorobieva can be found in various private collections in Europe, Japan, United Sta...
Category

1960s 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

"Gardenia on Her Side, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Linda Tracey Brandon's (US based) "Gardenia on Her Side" is an oil painting that depicts a blooming White Gardenia with leaves sitting on a white ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Caligo Vespera" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Kierstin Young's (US based) "Sol" is an oil painting that depicts a grouping of barren trees surrounded with fog and ambiguous light Artist Statement/Bio: (b. The Year of the Rabbit...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Sol" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Kierstin Young's (US based) "Sol" is an oil painting that depicts a battered white moth and a black background with organic designs in rust tones. Artist Statement/Bio: (b. The Yea...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

"Finca Naranja" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Daud Akhriev's (EUR and US based) "Finca Naranja" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a sunny ledge with blooming glowers with a blue pool in the background. Artist ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Realistic oil on canvas painting of a boy in front of a house
Located in Oostende, BE
Oil on canvas painting, called Nie wieder naïvität (2024), by Frederik Van Laere
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas

Prayer Rug 1
Located in Buffalo, NY
A Modern realist “trompe l’oeil” egg tempera painting by American female artist Catherine Catanzaro Koenig depicting a person curled up titled “Prayer Rug #1″. Catherine C. Koenig was born Caterina Catanzaro in 1921 and grew up on the West side of Buffalo, NY. She graduated from Lafayette High School Buffalo in 1939. She exhibited a talent for drawing and painting early on and attended Albright Art School, where she graduated with an Associate's Degree in 1942. Her professional career as an artist began in the 1940s when she started to exhibit her work. From 1946-1956, she taught drawing and painting at the Art Institute of Buffalo. She married Buffalo artist...
Category

1980s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Board, Egg Tempera, Tempera, Wood

Prayer Rug 1
$2,800 Sale Price
37% Off
"Doñana en otoño". Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscape, waterscape
Located in MADRID, ES
Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscapa, waterscape, pastel colors, earth colors
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Wood, Oil

"Azur Sun" Figurative Oil Painting 24" x 20 "inch by Dmitriy Krestniy
Located in Culver City, CA
"Azur Sun" Figurative Oil Painting 24" x 20 "inch by Dmitriy Krestniy ATTENTION: Painting ships rolled in a tube. A look through Dmitriy’s designs reveals a glamorous, feminine, pr...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - Golden
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

Oil, Canvas

Vortex, Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Beth Sistrunk's "Vortex" is an oil on two translucent acrylic panels featuring a model with red petals. About the artist: Beth's interests in painting the figure, women’s fashion, ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

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

Ina Pesenka, New York in the winter, oil on canvas
Located in Tel Aviv, IL
Ina Pesenka, New York in the winter, Oil on canvas, Israeli artist, israeli art, art
Category

Early 2000s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Afternoon. Workers with tractor by the river. Oil on canvas, 60, 5x78, 5 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Afternoon. Oil on canvas, 60,5x78,5 cm Work in the socialist realist manner. People workers and tractor by the river
Category

Early 20th Century Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

"Recomposed No. 2" (2019) By Jon Doran, Original Oil painting
Located in Denver, CO
Jon Doran's (UK based) "Recomposed No. 2" is an oil painting created in 2019 and it depicts white and pink roses on a white background. Artist statement: "I am interested in taking...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Fragmented Roses" (2019) By Jon Doran, Original Oil painting
Located in Denver, CO
Jon Doran's (UK based) "Fragmented Roses" is an oil painting created in 2019 and it depicts white roses with an abstracted background. Artist statement: "I am interested in taking ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Memory. 2003, canvas, acrylic, 80x90 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Memory. 2003, canvas, acrylic, 80x90 cm Portrait of couple with temple on the background Igor Leontiev (1957) - one of the leading independent pai...
Category

Early 2000s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - Loto Attraction
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

Oil, Canvas

HRDR.FSTR, SMTR Steven Navarro, PanAm Games, Olympics 2024, Team USA
Located in Houston, TX
HRDR.FSTR,SMTR 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

Double Checking the Numbers, 16 x 12 oil, Southwest Art, Realist
Located in Houston, TX
Checking the Numbers 16 x 12 oil. Framed. Also shown in images are two other available paintings. Julian Tejera is a contemporary realist from New Jer...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Oil, Wood Panel

"The Light on Jupiter" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Robin Cole's (Us based) "The Light on Jupiter" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a man in foliage in dappled sun. Nature and those that ...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

Oil on Canvas Titled "Hopeless Romantic II”
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
"The arrows in the back of the figure symbolizes the amount of times the individual has fallen in love" -Artist Statement Carlos Antonio Rancaño...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

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

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

"NIKE. Improvisation 2" Acrylic on canvas 36" x 26" inch painting by Tom Barnabi
Located in Culver City, CA
"NIKE. Improvisation 2" Acrylic on canvas 36" x 26" inch painting by Tom Barnabi Tom Barnabi is a part of the modern generation of artists, who managed t...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Oil on Canvas Titled "Catch of the Day”
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Carlos Antonio Rancaño was born in Miami, FL. from Cuban/Panamanian parents. After graduating Cum Laude from MIU with a Bachelors Degree in Grap...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Folk story. 1960. Canvas, oil, 39x49 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Folk story. 1960. Canvas, oil, 39x49 cm
Category

1960s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - 5 Beautification
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

Oil, Canvas

"The Bronze Mask" Acrylic on canvas 36" x 26" inch painting by Tom Barnabi
Located in Culver City, CA
""The Bronze Mask" Acrylic on canvas 36" x 26" inch painting by Tom Barnabi Full name of the work: The Bronze Mask of Emperor Marcus Auerelius Antoninus A...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

"The Red Door" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Daud Akhriev's (EUR and US based) "The Red Door" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts an ornate, red door with large doorknobs in a European...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

“The Houndstooth Hat” oil painting, poetic realism, two fedora hats with sunset
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
Steven J. Levin - (b. 1964) is classical realist oil painter living and working in Stillwater, Minnesota. He grew up painting alongside his father—a commercial artist—and knew he wan...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

In Search of New Beginnings (The Paintings 1)
Located in Fairlawn, OH
In Search of New Beginnings (The Paintings 1) Watercolor on Arches heavyweight paper, 2021 Signed with the artist's initials in the shadows of the books (see photo) Signed, titled an...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Hamburger Speicherstadt, Schlösschen
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

Egg Tempera, Canvas

Threshing 1940. Canvas, oil. 54.5x73.5 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Threshing 1940. Canvas, oil. 54.5x73.5 cm Artist painted scene of every day life of countryside people in working atmosphere - threshing and haying. There is captured two haystacks, tractor, barn, and people in working process. Information about artist...
Category

1940s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

"Before the Storm" Oil Painting 24" x 20 "inch by Dmitriy Krestniy
Located in Culver City, CA
"Before the Storm" Oil Painting 24" x 20 "inch by Dmitriy Krestniy ATTENTION: Painting ships rolled in a tube. A look through Dmitriy’s designs reveals a glamorous, feminine, prov...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Flutist and Mandolin Player. 2016. Oil on canvas, 64x70 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Flutist and Mandolin Player. 2015. Oil on canvas, 64x70 cm from series Playing Angels
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Fondamenta de l'Osmarin" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Daud Akhriev's (EUR and US based) "Fondamenta de l'Osmarin" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a cityscape of a European City's channel encircled by a historic archit...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

"In My Lady's House" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Robin Cole's (Us based) "In My Lady's House" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a lady in black and red plaid with bees gently flying and float...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

"Corridor, Montereggi" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Daud Akhriev's (EUR and US based) "Corridor, Montereggi" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts an interior setting adorned with fine wood fur...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Hyper Realistic Contemporary Painting: "Portrait of Never-Ending Hive"
Located in Vilnius, Vilniaus apskr.
Petras' work is rooted in the exploration of specific geographical locations, the observation of everyday life and its relationship to the flow of virtual information. The author def...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Cotton Canvas, Oil

"Stoic, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Mia Bergeron's (US based) "Stoic" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a man with a dark beard in a dark interior with shadows playfully fills his face. Mia Bergeron'...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Oil on Canvas Painting
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Christina Major was born in Concord, New Hampshire in 1982. She has lived all over the world including Hawaii, France, New York and more currently Florida. Christina has achieved her...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

View From The Balcony
Located in Natchez, MS
Girbent stuns with this work. He creates a photorealistic portrait by focusing on the subject while the rest of the painting appears out of focus. The eye can only focus on one thin...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

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

Egg Tempera, Canvas

Gypsy girl, 1947. Oil on canvas, 34x37 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Jadviga Žilvinska (1918-2010) was born in Tallinn. She grew up in Liepāja, where her great interest in art began and strengthened, which led the young artist to study at the Art Academy of Latvia. During her studies at the Academy, she studied with K. Ubāns, V. Tone and J. Liepiņš, and defended her diploma thesis under the guidance of L. Liberts. Later on, she devoted her entire life to art, working at the Liepāja School of Fine Arts and as a portraitist at the "Māksla" combine. She had four favourite themes: landscapes, portraits, flowers and sacred painting. Her works have lyricism and inner harmony. In the portraits, we see not only the outer form of a person, but the artist allows us to look into the very essence of a person - it is likely that the models themselves often saw something new and bright in themselves through the artist's vision. The works are executed in various techniques - tempera, oil, pastel and watercolour. CV: 1938 - Graduated from the Liepaja Secondary School of Applied Arts, Department of Decorative Painting. 1943 - Latvian Academy of Art, L. Liberts Figurative Painting Workshop with her diploma work "At the Artist's" 1946-1948 - teacher of painting and drawing at Liepāja Fine Arts High School. 1948-1966 - portraitist at the "Māksla" combine Participated in exhibitions since 1948. Member of the Artists' Union since 1966. Solo exhibitions in Riga, Jelgava, Sigulda (1972); Riga (1975; 1978; two in 1981; 1986; 1994), Jurmala (1979). Works exhibited in Latvia as well as abroad (Poland, Switzerland, Italy, Japan, Finland, Venezuela, Germany, Hungary). The works are located in: "Portrait of Cardinal Julian Vaivoda", 1983, in the Vatican Museum in Rome "Portrait of Pope John Paul II, 1982, in the Roman Catholic Metropolitan Curia of Riga The altarpieces "The Heart of Jesus" and "Our Lady of Fatima", the paintings "John the Baptist" and "The Holy Family" , all from the late 1960s, in the Church of St Mary Magdalene...
Category

20th Century 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

"The Whispers in the Shadows, " Oil on Canvas
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

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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