American Realist Paintings

Artist Comments
Artist Gary Leonard juxtaposes a realistic figure clothed in a floral dress against a dreamy background that hints at a wild garden. The spotlight heightens her reserved gesture and timid expression while giving her skin a soft glow. Shadows on her face, neck, and body create a striking contrast to the lighter tones of the composition. "This work creates an atmosphere of calm, blending the woman's soft countenance and pastel greens of nature. "

About the Artist
Through composition, color, texture and more, Gary Leonard celebrates beauty. His works start with the subject, but then he lets the work evolve into a more complex composition. Oftentimes, he enjoys merging figures with abstract images and varying textures. He hopes that his works will leave the viewer with a sense of warmth and peace. When he's not making art, he enjoys listening to music and learning how to play the piano.

Words that describe this painting: figurative, figure, people, woman, fashion, standing, peaceful, oilpaint, dreamy, vertical, realism, people, realism, oil painting, beige

In the Calm...

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Artist Guigen Zha displays a blooming lotus flower that echoes through the composition. It blooms from a porcelain Prunus vase pain...

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The Clinton Station Diner is one of New Jersey's landmark diners. I was seated in this particular room that is actually a salvaged train dining car. I could n...

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The last rays of the sun descend in artist Jesse Aldana's striking realist seascape. He captures the green flash, a notoriously ephemeral moment at sunset. Gr...

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Serenity prevails in artist Jenn Williamson's dreamy and atmospheric skyscape. In her creative practice, she explores light and darkness, searching for beauty in quiet, unnoticed places, thus creating a spiritual oasis. She aims to bring an atmosphere of tranquility to each viewer. "I painted this in the summer of 2022 after I completed a 4-year journey of organizing charity golf tournaments and decided to launch as a full-time artist," shares Jenn.

About the Artist
Jenn Williamson expertly evokes the scenery of British Columbia in her soft abstract landscapes. She utilizes defining horizontal and vertical strokes, coupled with a skillful handling of color, to create significant depth in each piece. Her paintings, though abstracted, clearly convey the atmospheric attributes of the scene–rain, wind, clouds, fog. Jenn’s muted color palette transports the viewer to the Canadian west...

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A full moon rises in an indigo sky over artist Nancy Hughes Miller's impression of quiet marsh wetlands. The golden glow illuminates the drifting water and ne...

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Artist Emil Morhardt paints a glaucous-winged gull lifting off Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska. He paints the bird splashing the crystalline water in detailed realism. "These big gulls are unafraid of brown bears, dodging between their legs to grab morsels," says Emil. He highlights the piece with a silvery edge reflecting a dazzlingly sunny day.

About the Artist
Emil Morhardt is an acrylic painter from Santa Barbara, California who expresses his passion for birds through realistic acrylic paintings. He paints at home in a studio room that has large windows and a north-facing view of the mountains. He observes the animals from this window, watching roadrunners, foxes, bobcats, deer, and coyote run by. Surrounded by this wildlife, Emil paints bird portraits reminiscent of those by artist John James Audubon. He bases his paintings off hundreds of photographs he takes of birds in the wild and at wildlife recovery centers. Emil captures the freedom and inquisitiveness that birds display in the natural world. Before painting birds, he painted landscapes of San Francisco and the Eastern Sierra. Emil was raised in the high desert of California and learned to paint from his father, who was one of the early California watercolorists...

Artist Comments
"Corgis have big ears, big smiles, and have lots of LOVE to share," says artist Jeff Fleming. He displays the two playful canines with endearing grins and sparkling doe eyes. Jeff blends multiple colors and textures, adding depth and character to the composition. He creates dynamic points of interest with finger painting and applying drizzles of color with string.

About the Artist
Artist Jeff Fleming uses fingerpainting to create exuberant portraits of dogs. Growing up in Southern California, Jeff was first introduced to fingerpainting in kindergarten. He painted through high school and college and won several art awards, including Best of Show in a city wide student competition. After graduating with a degree in journalism and advertising, he went to work as an art director. For the next 40 years, he created print, radio and television ads for a number of top agencies. "After retiring in 2019, the clouds of stress and pressure cleared and allowed me to set my creative energy free," says Jeff. He began developing new techniques focused on the excitement and energy of painting. Today, he uses a variety of methods and tools, including fingerpainting wearing nitrile gloves, traditional paint brushes, bamboo shish kebab sticks, kite string, spraypaint and splattering. While working, Jeff always listens to music, including Broadway musicals, dance music and rhythmic Hawaiian tunes.

Words that describe this painting: Corgi, happy, dogs, kinetic impressionism, oilpaint, fun, Iris Scott...

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In his distinct realism style, artist Guigen Zha displays a black horse drinking water from a tranquil lily pond. Part of ...

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Part of David Shepherd's latest series of hyperrealist paintings focusing on women's lips. A sensual portrait rendered in extremely precise painting. Among ot...

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Jo encountered this peaceful scene at the edge of a river while on a road trip. "All that green and blue color gives a relaxing feeling after a long day's dri...

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While on a summer hike in the woods, Jo discovered this stream and small pool of water. She says she couldn't resist stopping and dipping her feet in the cool...

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Artist Nancy Hughes Miller paints a majestic seaward skyline with tinges of periwinkle. Inspired by her time on the coasts of North Carolina, she displays a d...

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Classical still life of red lilies and nasturtiums. Artist Nikolay Rizhankov placed the flowers against a linen drape to highlight...

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Artist Jesse Aldana paints a dramatic seascape in realistic detail. Warm rays of sunlight pierce through the clouds and illuminate the breathtaking panorama. ...