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Realist Portrait 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
The Cat Knows but Says Nothing
Located in Zofingen, AG
A woman sits in a sunlit room with soft geometric lines and a peaceful color palette of green, beige, and blue. A black cat rests on her lap, staring out the window at a calm, bl...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

"Let Them Eat Cake" (2014) by Suzy Smith, Original Oil Painting, Portrait
Located in Denver, CO
Suzy Smith's "Let Them Eat Cake" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a portrait of a female nude with a crown set against a backdrop inspired by a Wayne Thiebaud cake...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil, Panel

Cat Therapy
Located in Zofingen, AG
In this painting, we see a minimalist room with a huge window, beyond which stretches a sky filled with fluffy white clouds. Muted colors dominate—the blue of the sky contrasts beaut...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

Dog Portrait of a Grand Vendéen Hunting Dog Jules Chardigny (1849-1892) ca 1870s
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Dog Portrait of a Grand Vendéen Hunting Dog Jules Chardigny (1849-1892) Circa 1870 Oil on wood panel Housed within its beautiful and original ornate original gilt frame. 9 1/4 x 7 ...
Category

Mid-19th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

"In Repose" (2025) By Matt Talbert, Original Oil Painting, Portrait
Located in Denver, CO
Matt Talbert's "In Repose" (2025) is an original, handmade oil painting on panel that depicts a portrait of a brunette seated at a table in deep contemplation. Artist bio/statement...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Early 20th Century French Military Portrait, The Brave Soldier
Located in Cotignac, FR
Early 20th Century French pastel portrait of a military officer by Marie Laforge. The painting is signed dated and dedicated bottom right. The subject's name is written but as yet un...
Category

Early 20th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Pastel

Portrait of a Scottish Girl - Scottish 1940's art oil painting Glengarry Hat
Located in London, GB
This impressive British 1940's portrait oil painting is by noted artist Arthur Royce Bradbury. Painted in 1949 it is a half-length portrait of a young Scottish girl in a mountainous ...
Category

1940s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Meringues" (2015) by Suzy Smith, Original Oil Painting, Portrait
Located in Denver, CO
Suzy Smith's "Meringues" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a portrait of a female nude set against a backdrop inspired by a Wayne Thiebaud pie painting...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil, Panel

Pair of 19 century oil on porcelain portraits
Located in San Francisco, CA
Pair of fabulous 19 century oil on porcelain portraits. These finally detailed paintings are most likely, a husband and wife. The male portrait could possibly be Napoleon the second....
Category

19th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Two Worlds - British Edwardian figurative interior oil painting religious art
Located in London, GB
This intriguing British Edwardian figurative interior oil painting is by noted artist Arthur Croft Mitchell. It is entitled Two Worlds verso and dated as c1910. The composition of th...
Category

1910s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Sleeping Girls - contemporary, figurative, portrait, acrylic, oil on board
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This realistic painting, a portrait of children, is by internationally recognized artist Daniel Hughes. Daniel Hughes is known best perhaps for his true-to-life figurative paintings. Early in his life, Hughes was strongly influenced by the work of his artist mother and her friends, many of whom were renowned British artists. He grew up drawing…never in color books but on six-foot lengths of computer paper. Hughes was especially drawn to the figurative paintings of British artists of the 1950s. His aesthetic focuses on a realistic interpretation, composition, light, harmony, and emotion. Hughes' work, like this acrylic and charcoal painting of two little girls sleeping...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Portrait of a Handsome Beatnik
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Mary Kiisel Greenwood (b.1924) Studied: PAFA Exhibited: Gross McCLeaf Gallery, Philadelphia Portrait of a Beatnik, ca. 1955-60. Oil on canvas measuring 12 x 16 inches. Some w...
Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Wood Nymph" (2018) By John Tarantola, Nude Oil Portrait Painting
Located in Denver, CO
John Tarantola's original nude portrait "Wood Nymph" (2018) is a beautiful realist painting done with oil on panel, which depicts an athletic nude male figure standing in a forest, p...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

A Classical Horse Painting of a Grand Andalusia Evoking Strength and Warmth
Located in Charleston, US
Renowned equine artist Valarie Wolf presents "Trusted Friend," a stunning classical horse painting that captures the beauty, strength, and loyalty of the majestic Andalusian horse. C...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

"The Bather" (2024) Oil Painting by Karen Offutt, Female Portrait, Nude
Located in Denver, CO
Karen Offutt's (US based) "The Bather" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a nude female in a landscape, bathed in light, with a towel draped around her. The painting ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Oracle" (2024) By Allen Williams, Original Oil Nude Portrait Painting
Located in Denver, CO
"Oracle" (2024) by Allen Williams is an original oil painting on a sealed illustration board that depicts an eerie portrait of a nude female figure. Thi...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

"Melancholy in Red" Oil Painting by Joseph Lorusso, Female Portrait
Located in Denver, CO
Joseph Lorusso's (US based) "Seeing Shadows" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a female figure at a table with a wine glass in the foreground. The painting is framed and ready to hang. Joseph Lorusso was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1966 and received his formal training at the American Academy of Art. He went on to receive his B.F.A. degree from the Kansas City Art Institute. Born of Italian descent, Lorusso was exposed to art at an early age. Through several early trips to Italy, his parents introduced him to the works of the Italian Masters. Lorusso would look to these influences throughout his early artistic development and they are still evident in his work today. While in school, Lorusso majored in watercolor and considers himself self-taught as an oil painter. He learned to paint by studying the works of master painters, often losing himself in the halls of the Chicago Art Institute during lunch hours...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Black Sea. Ukraine
Located in Zofingen, AG
Two figures stand, facing the horizon, their eyes fixed on a missile flying horizontally. Its fiery trail cuts through the calm sky, and the moment hangs between “there’s still time”...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

"Glimmer" (2024) Oil Painting by Karen Offutt, Nude Female Portrait
Located in Denver, CO
Karen Offutt's (US based) "Glimmer" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a nude female wearing a translucent robe, posing with her arms above her head. The painting is ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Realist Portrait, Mid-Century Oil On Card, The Babushka. Oil.
Located in Cotignac, FR
Mid-Century realist oil on card of a peasant woman, dated 1963 to the reverse. Artist unknown. Presented in gilt and painted wood frame under glass. A charming, grounded painting of...
Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Cardboard, Oil

Original English Antique 19th / 20th Century oil painting PORTRAIT OF A GIRL
Located in Cirencester, GB
ARTIST: George Henry Grenville Manton (1855-1932) English TITLE: "A Sketch From Life" MEDIUM: oil on canvas SIZE: 86cm x 76cm inc frame CONDITION: original condition, images taken i...
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Portrait of Mary Haggie - British 1925 art portrait landscape oil painting
By Charles Buchel
Located in London, GB
This lovely British 1920's Art Deco vibrant portrait oil painting is by Charles A. Buchel. Painted in 1925 and signed and dated it is a seated portrait of a young woman, Mary Haggie,...
Category

1920s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Small Dog Painting of a Serious and Intent Greyhound Focused on What?
Located in Charleston, US
Discover the captivating elegance of Valarie Wolf’s small yet powerful dog painting, "Focused." This 4" x 6" original artwork portrays a refined Greyhound, its intense gaze piercing ...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Portrait of the Head of a Calf" dated 1882, Henry Schouten (1857-1929)
Located in SANTA FE, NM
"Portrait of the Head of a Calf" dated 1882 Henry Schouten (Belgian, 1857-1929) Oil on canvas Inscribed "P.H. Schouten (18)82" 23 x 20 1/2 (28 3/8 x 25 1/4 frame) inches Painted by ...
Category

1880s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Afternoon Light" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Linda Adair's (Germany based) "Afternoon Light" is an oil painting that depicts a reclining male figure, wearing rings. Linda Adair is a contemporary fig...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

"Back View 11, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Mark Bradley Schwartz's (US based) "Back View 11" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts the nude back of a brunette woman sitting in a chair with white fabric delicately...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Linen

"Reclining Nude", Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Please note: This is a secondary market artwork with one previous owner. Kang Cho's artistic legacy endures through "Reclining Nude," a serene and contemplative handmade original o...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Crimson Murmurs" - Oil on Linen Figurative Painting With Red Birds
Located in Denver, CO
Alexandra Manukyan’s “Crimson Murmurs” (2024) is an original oil painting executed on linen mounted to aluminum gallery wrap, measuring 30 x 24 inches (32 x 26 inches framed). This e...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Linen

Solitary Path
Located in Zofingen, AG
This evocative painting portrays a solitary figure walking through a dark, enigmatic landscape under the soft glow of a full moon. Deep blacks and earthy browns dominate the scene,...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Regina Maris Ship, signed oil painting
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Regina Maris, 1908 by Louis Letouche (French 1924-2015) oil painting on linen canvas, stretched over board framed Framed size: 16 x 19.25 inches Superb oil painting by the well li...
Category

1990s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Young Girl Watering Flowers – Intimate 19th Century Genre Scene
Located in Stockholm, SE
This tender scene by German artist Georg Buchner captures a quiet, intimate moment: a young girl carefully watering a potted plant on a windowsill. The warm light gently illuminates ...
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

Dog Portrait of a Hunting Dog by Jules Chardigny (1849-1892)
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Antique Dog Painting of a Hunting Dog Jules Chardigny (1849-1892) Circa 1870 Oil on paper. 8 x 6 (18 1/2 x 15 1/4 frame) inches In Jules Chardigny's signature style, a beloved compa...
Category

1860s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Laid Paper

"Afternoon Light" by Linda Delahaye, Original Oil Painting, Nude Male Portrait
Located in Denver, CO
"Afternoon Light" by Linda Delahaye (France based) is an original oil on linen depicting a young man resting in the shade of his home in the afternoon. Born: 1980, Canada Lives and ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Linen

Wish You Were Here - Modern Figurative Oil Painting, Realistic Girl Portrait
Located in Salzburg, AT
KAMIL LISEK (born in 1980) Studied under the guidance of prof. Maciej Świeszewski at the faculty of painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk. He graduated with distinction obta...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Antique Cat Painting "Cat with Butterfly in a Meadow" Arthur Heyer 1872-1931
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Antique Cat Painting "Cat with Butterfly in a Meadow" Arthur Heyer 1872-1931 Oil on canvas Signed lower right "Heyer A." 25 1/2 x 21 (29 1/4 x 3...
Category

Early 1900s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Matthew (male portrait)
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Randall Exon (b.1956). Matthew, 1990. Oil on wood panel. Measures 24 x 36 inches. Unframed. Excellent condition with no damage or conservation. Signed and dated lower right. Gallery stamp on verso. Plastic wall mount taped down on verso. Provenance: The More Gallery INC, Philadelphia; Aramark Corporate Collection. Randall Exon (b. 1956) was born in Vermillion, South Dakota. Exon earned his B.F.A. in painting from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas, and an M.F.A. at the University of Iowa. In 2003, the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, staged a solo exhibition of his work. He was awarded the Thomas Benedict Clarke Prize in the 2004 179th Annual Invitation Exhibition of Contemporary American Art at the National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, New York. More recently, Exon’s work was featured in Visions of the Susquehanna, a traveling exhibition organized by the Lancaster Museum of Art, Pennsylvania, in 2008, and Haunting Narratives, a major exhibition at the Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, in 2012. BORN 1956 Vermillion, SD EDUCATION 1982 M.F.A. in Painting, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 1981 Skowhegan School of Painting, Skowhegan, ME 1981 M.A. in Painting, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 1978 B.F.A. in Painting, Washburn University, Topeka, KS SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2013 Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2009 Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2007 Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2004 Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2003 Randall Exon: A Quiet Light, James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, PA 2001 Mulvane Museum of Art, Topeka, KS 2000 More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1998 More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1996 More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1994 More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1993 Tasis England American School, Main Gallery, Thorpe, Surrey, England 1992 More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Theatre Gallery, Washburn University, Topeka, KS Widener University Art Museum, Chester, PA 1990 Charles More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1988 West Chester University, McKinney Gallery, Mitchell Hall, West Chester, PA Charles More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Carleton College, Northfield, MN 1987 University of Maine at Machias, University Gallery, ME Topeka Public Library, Central Gallery, KS 1986 More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1984 More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Stoneybrook School, Suffolk, Long Island, NY 1981-82 Florence Wilcox Gallery, Swarthmore College, PA Beauchamp Gallery, Topeka, KS SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS 2019 Unforeseeable Thereness, Stanek Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 2018 Vis-à-Vis, Hirschl & Adler Galleries, New York, NY 2017 The New Baroque, Booth Gallery, New York, NY, curated by Robert Zeller Painted Landscapes: Contemporary Views, Heritage Museums and Gardens, Sandwich, MA 2016 Mixed Environs: Contemporary Painters, Lore Degenstein Gallery, Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, PA 2015 Home is Where the Art Is, Hirschl & Adler Galleries, New York, NY 2014 Our American Life, Hirschl & Adler Galleries, New York, NY 2014 Edge of the Seat, The Rye Arts Center Gallery, Rye, NY 2013 Duets: Art in Conversation, Hirschl & Adler Galleries, New York, NY 2012 Haunting Narratives: Detours from Philadelphia Realism, 1935-Present, Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA Structuring Nature, Walton Arts Center, Fayetteville, AR Summer Selections, Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2011 Masterworks: The Best of Hirschl & Adler, Hirschl & Adler Galleries, New York, NY 2010 Summer Selections, Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2009 Holiday Selections, Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2008-2009 American Green – Art and Stewardship, Somerville-Manning Gallery, Greenville, DE 2008 Holiday Selections, Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY Summer Selections, Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2007 Finding a Form: Influences in Figurative Painting, Tower Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Holiday Selections, Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY Summer Selections, Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2006-2008 Visions of the Susquehanna, Susquehanna Art Museum, PA; Governor’s Residence, Harrisburgh, PA; Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, Hagerstown, MD; Roberson Center for Art and Science, Binghamton, NY. 2006 Summer Selections, Hirschl & Adler Modern, New York, NY 2004 179th Annual: An Invitational Exhibition of Contemporary American Art, National Academy of Design, New York, NY Selected Works from the Ballinglen Collection, United States Embassy to Ireland, Ambassadors Residence, Phoenix Park, Dublin, Republic of Ireland. Part of the Art in the Embassies Program, Washington D.C. 2001 Personal Affinities, Contemporary Artists Influenced by the works of Edwin Dickinson, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Museum, Philadelphia, PA 2000 December Show, Fenton Gallery, Cork City, Ireland Works from the Archives, Ballinglen Arts Foundation, Ballycastle, County Mayo, Ireland 1999 New Realism for a New Millennium, Memorial Art Gallery, University of Rochester, NY Indomitable Spirits, The Figure At The End Of The Century, The Art Institute of Southern California, Laguna Beach, CA 1998 Visual Poetry, A Selection of Work by Artists Inspired by the Words and Sentiments of Walt Whitman, Stedman Gallery, Rutgers University, Camden, NJ The Artist's Window, Lee Hansley Gallery, Raleigh, NC Embodied Fictions, Twelve Contemporary Figure Painters, The Boyden Gallery, St. Mary's College of Maryland, St. Mary’s City, MD 1997 Abstract and Image, Four Painters, Hopkin's Center, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH An Extended View: Landscapes by Philadelphia Artists, Levy and Paley Galleries, Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia, PA 1996 Figure Drawings, Hillyer Hall, Smith College, Northampton, MA Figurative Paintings, Edith Caldwell Gallery, San Francisco, CA A Show of Hands (Exhibit and auction to assist AIDS research), Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia, PA 1994 Figures in the Landscape, More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1992 Landscapes by Randall Exon & Joseph Byrne, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 1991 A Show of Hands, Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia, PA 1991 Ten Contemporary Philadelphia Painters, Westmoreland Museum, Greensburg, PA 1991 Sport in Art, Woodmere Museum, Chestnut Hill, PA 1990 Myth and Monument, More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1990 Evidence of the Senses, 7 Painters, Woodmere Museum, Chestnut Hill, PA Pollack Award Winners, Mulvane Gallery, Washburn University, Topeka, KS 1989 Works on Paper, More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Nocturnes, More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA 1986 Nature Morte, Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art, St. Francis College, Loretto, PA 1984 The Spirit of the Coast: Paintings, Monmouth Museum, NJ Drawings: Personal and Intimate, More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA Night Paintings, Florence Wilcox Gallery, Swarthmore, PA 1983 Realist Direction, Penn State University Museum, University Park, PA 1981 Graduate Student Traveling Exhibit, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 1980 Selected Painters, Mulvane Gallery, Washburn University, Topeka, KS 1979 Artists Choose Artists Exhibit, University of Missouri at Kansas City Art Gallery, MO JURIED SHOWS 1990 Philadelphia Art Now, Philadelphia Museum of Art, PA 1989 State of Pennsylvania Juried Exhibition, William Penn Museum, Harrisburg, PA 1987 State of Pennsylvania Juried Exhibition, William Penn Museum, Harrisburg, PA 1984 Butler Institute of American Art Annual Exhibit, Youngstown, OH National Academy of Design Biannual Competition, New York, NY 1981 32nd Iowa Artists Exhibition, Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, IA 1980 Iowa Artists Solon, Burnnier Gallery, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 1979 Kansas Bankers Association Exhibition, Topeka, KS AWARDS/GRANTS/RESIDENCIES 2004 The Thomas Benedict Clarke Prize, 179th Annual Invitational Exhibition of Contemporary American Art, National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, New York, NY 2001 2nd Fellowship, Ballinglen Arts Foundation, Ballycastle, County Mayo, Ireland Eugene M. Lang Faculty Fellowship, Swarthmore College, PA 1997 Fellow, Ballinglen Arts Foundation, Ballycastle, County Mayo, Ireland 1992 Washburn Fellow, Washburn University, Topeka, KS 1989 Eugene M. Lang Faculty Fellowship, Swarthmore College, PA 1988 Andrew Carnegie Prize, 163rd Annual Exhibition of the National Academy of Design, New York, NY 1987 1985-86 1984 1981 1981 1980 1976, 78 TEACHING 1982-present 1994-00 1980-82 Best of Show prize, juried museum exhibition, The State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA Henry Luce Scholar, Bali, Indonesia Julius Halgarten Prize for Best Painting by an Artist under 35 years of age Academy of Design Annual Exhibition, New York, NY Iowa Artists Salon, Second Prize Skowhegan Scholarship Award, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA Student Award, 32nd Iowa Artists Exhibition, Des Moines Art Center, IA Charles Pollack purchase prize for the best painting from annual student exhibition, Washburn University, Topeka, KS Professor in Studio Arts, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA Chair, Department of Art, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA Teaching Assistant to Ben Frank Moss, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA VISITING ARTIST/LECTURES 2002 2001 1998 1995 1994 1993 1994, 1992 1992 1989 1987 1986 1985 1982 Pennsylvania State University, Abington, PA Hollins College, Roanoke, VA Maryland Arts Institute, Baltimore, MD Beaver College, Glenside, PA Union College, Department of Art, Schenectady, NY Allentown Art Museum, PA Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA Bucks County Community College, Newtown, PA Tasis England American School, Thorpe, Surrey, England Boston Art Institute, MA Boston University, M.F.A. program, MA Beaver College, Department of Art, Philadelphia, PA Dartmouth College, Department of Visual Studies, Hanover, NH Dartmouth College, Department of Visual Studies, Hanover, NH Carleton College, Northfield, MN University of Maine at Machias, ME Horsham College of Art, Horsham, England Stoneybrook School, Suffolk, Long Island, NY Moore College of Art, Basic Drawing, Philadelphia, PA Vassar College, Department of Art, Poughkeepsie, NY PUBLIC COLLECTIONS Allentown Art Museum, PA ARA Corporation, Philadelphia, PA Security Pacific National Bank, Sanger Branch, Los Angeles, CA University of Iowa, Permanent Collection, Iowa City, IA Mulvane Gallery Permanent Collection, Washburn University, Topeka, KS Woodmere Museum, Mt. Airy, Philadelphia, PA Henry Luce Foundation, New York, NY Henry Wendt Collection, Philadelphia, PA Susquehanna Art Museum, Harrisburg, PA SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY Sozanski, Edward J. “Simple Situations, in almost holy light,” Philadelphia Inquirer , February 7, 2003 Francis, Naila,“Studies in Light, Space,” The Intelligencer, January 9, 2003 Thompson, Jodi, “Fabulous Realism, seeing the light,” Out & About, January 9, 2003 Hopkin, Alannah, The Irish Examiner, July 1, 2002 Hopkin, Alannah, The Irish Examiner, January 2002 Sosanski, Edward, Philadelphia Inquirer, February 2001 Carr, Jeffrey, “Landscapes of the Imagination,” American Artist, January 1999 “On The Town,” New York Times Art Review, November 1998 Adelson, Fred B...
Category

1990s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

"Business District" – Framed Oil Painting of Woman on Phone in City Night Scene
Located in Denver, CO
Brad Davis’s Business District is a luminous oil painting on wood panel, framed and ready to hang, measuring 36 x 36 inches (framed to 38 x 38 inches). Executed in 2025, this work ca...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

"Looking Away" by Mark Bradley Schwartz, Oil Painting, Female Nude Portrait
Located in Denver, CO
Mark Bradley Schwartz’s "Looking Away" (2020) is a masterful example of contemporary figurative realism, executed in oil on board. This original, handmade painting captures a quiet, ...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Hallucination
Located in Zofingen, AG
The painting conveys the idea that what we perceive as life may be an illusion, while the true reality remains hidden. At the center of the scene, a man and a woman stand by a pool, ...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

Large Dog Portrait: Grand Griffon Vendéen Hunting Dogs Jules Chardigny
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Double Portrait: Grand Griffon Vendéen Hunting Dogs Jules Chardigny (France, 1842-1892) circa 1870 Oil on canvas, signed 21 3/4 x 18 1/4 (29 1/8 x 25 frame) inches Though pairs of G...
Category

1870s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Is There Anyone Here?..
Located in Zofingen, AG
A cozy café with three visitors: two in dark attire, one figure in a checkered coat. The interior is understated with retro details, and soft blue light filters through the windows. ...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

"Anticipation" (2024) By Matt Talbert, Original Oil Painting, Portrait
Located in Denver, CO
Matt Talbert's "Anticipation" (2024) is an original, handmade oil painting on panel that depicts a portrait of a brunette in a dark slip. Artist bio/statement: Matt Talbert is a co...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Sighthound Dog Painting of an Italian Greyhound with a Beautiful Collar
Located in Charleston, US
Valarie Wolf's sighthound dog painting is of an Italian Greyhound with a beautiful collar. The Italian Greyhound, a sighthound dog, has the poise...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Dog Portrait of a Terrier 3/4 View by Jules Chardigny (1849-1892) circa 1870s
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Dog Portrait of a Terrier 3/4 View Jules Chardigny (1849-1892) Circa 1870s Oil on wood panel Housed within its beautiful and original ornate original gilt frame. 8 1/2 x 6 (15 3/4 ...
Category

Mid-19th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

Toby Rosenthal (German painter) - 19th century figure painting - Male portrait
Located in Varmo, IT
Tobias Edward Rosenthal, known as Toby (Strasbourg 1848 - Munich 1917) - Portrait of a San Francisco gentleman. 123 x 92 cm. Antique oil painting on canvas, without frame. - Work ...
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of Mrs William Tisdall Elsie Gardiner - British Edwardian oil painting
Located in London, GB
This superb large British Edwardian exhibited portrait oil painting is by noted artist George Spencer Watson. It was painted in 1909 and exhibite...
Category

Early 1900s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Antique Dog Painting; Cavalier King Charles Gustav Lorincz (Austrian, 1855-1931)
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Antique Dog Painting of a Cavalier King Charles Gustav Lorincz (Austrian, 1855-1931) Oil on panel, signed 9 1/4 x 6 3/4 (13 3/4 x 11 1/4 frame) inches Gustav Lorincz was a noted painter of animal subjects, mostly portraiture of dogs and cats...
Category

Early 1900s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Don’t Turn Around — They’re Still Here
Located in Zofingen, AG
This painting invites the viewer into a hushed interior filled with tension, memory, and quiet symbolism. A woman in a simple black dress stands with her back turned, unmoving—caugh...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Hercules Mourning the Death of his Cupbearer Hylas
Located in New York, NY
[Hippolyte-Alexandre Michallon (1849-1930)] Oil on canvas Signed in red, l.l. 48 x 60 inches, canvas size 54 x 66 inches in gold leaf frame 61 x 74 x 6 inches, framed This artwork is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. “By his own account, the most ambitious work of Michallon’s career was a thirty-foot canvas depicting Noah’s Ark, which he exhibited in the Salon of 1875, where it went unmentioned by the critics. Preparatory work for this elaborate composition took him frequently to the Jardin des Plantes, where he made painstaking drawings and oil sketches of the animals on view. These studies were enthusiastically remarked upon by visitors to his studio, some of whom counseled him to give up history painting altogether and pursue the less dignified but presumably more lucrative career of animal painter. Following this advice, and profiting from the tremendous vogue in 1880s Europe for all things African...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

20th century English dog portrait of a Pekinese dog called Bumble
Located in Woodbury, CT
Francis Mabel Hollams (British, 1877–1963) Bumble, 1957 Oil on wood panel With characteristic precision and affection, Francis Mabel Hollams captures the spirit of a beloved compani...
Category

1950s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

My Sister, The Moon
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
"My Sister, The Moon" by Adeniyi Joshua Adetayo is a captivating artwork that delicately captures a young lady standing at the back of a house, ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic, Pen

Early German Realistic Military Portrait of a Man (Johann Ludwig-Mosley)
Located in Houston, TX
Realistic early German portrait painting of Johann Ludwig-Mosley wearing his various military awards. The back features further documentation about the man's life and service. Curren...
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Self-portrait oil on canvas painting
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
LLuis Ribas (1949) - Self-portrait - Oil canvas Oil measurements 55x46 cm. Frameless.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Cloud-Gazing Club
Located in Zofingen, AG
This artwork captures a surreal and serene moment, blending simplicity with mystery. A barefoot woman in a black dress stands on a vast, white, textured expanse, reminiscent of salt ...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

Antique American School 19th Century Signed Young Girl Portrait Framed Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Impressive early American portrait of a young girl by Edward S Annison. Oil on board. Framed. Measuring 11.5H x 8.25L.
Category

Early 1900s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Winnie the Pooh - Contemporary Figurative Oil Painting, Realistic Girl Portrait
Located in Salzburg, AT
KAMIL LISEK (born in 1980) Studied under the guidance of prof. Maciej Świeszewski at the faculty of painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk. He graduated with distinction obta...
Category

2010s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

A Summer Beauty - British Victorian genre art female portrait oil painting
By Edwin Roberts
Located in London, GB
This lovely portrait oil painting is by much exhibited British artist Edwin Roberts. The painting is an excellent example of Victorian romantic genre art and is of a Summer Beauty. T...
Category

19th Century Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

LUNA DE CARNAVAL GOYO DOMINQUEZ SPANICH CONTEMORARY ARTIST
Located in Pollenca, Illes Baleares
I was born in the bosom of a modest family. My father had a natural talent for drawing and he made portraits of his brothers during a long convalescence due to a serious illness. Und...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Realist portrait paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Realist portrait 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 portrait 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, orange, red and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Matt Talbert, Chikako Okada, Mark Beard, and Bruce Adams. 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 portrait paintings, so small editions measuring 0.5 inches across are also available. Prices for portrait 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 $180 and tops out at $885,000, while the average work sells for $3,600.

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