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Realist 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
Wintry Crossroad, 10th Ave & 23rd St, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
A view from my series of the High Line in Manhattan on a wintry day! Looking down 23rd St at 10th Ave, the blustery grey snowfall against the colorful yellow cabs and red lights caug...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Eva 90x70 cm, oil/canvas, 2007
Located in Riga, LV
Igor Maikov (1966) Education: 1981 - 1984 The Art Academy of Latvia 1973 - 1983 Salaspils Primary and Secondary School Exhibitions: 1994 - Group Exhibition «Rol-Art», Latvia ...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Leslie Peck, "On the Hunt", Fox Hunting Landscape Oil Painting on Canvas
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
"On the Hunt", is a 24x36 oil painting on board by artist Leslie Peck featuring a fox hunt scene of horses and hound dogs crossing a stream, following the ...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Batumi. View of the harbor 1987, paper, watercolor, 18.5x30.5 cm
Located in Riga, LV
"Batumi. View of the Harbor" is a watercolor artwork created in 1987 on paper. The dimensions of the artwork are 18.5x30.5 cm. The painting portrays a scenic view of the harbor in B...
Category

1980s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Pomegranate, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
The painting depicts large pomegranate seeds in their realistic beauty. By enlarging the size of small objects in art, we can look at them closely, study their nature and constructio...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Roses" Contemporary Dutch Fine Realist Still-Life Painting of Pink Roses
Located in Utrecht, NL
During his successful career as a goldsmith the desire to paint grew on Dutch artist René Smoorenburg (1954). The attention to detail, which was of great importance in his work as a ...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Shepherd and his Flock, original 19thC oil on canvas, Belgian realist genre
Located in Naples, Florida
This is an original and unique oil on canvas painting by the Belgian 19th century artist Julien Jos, who was active from 1890 -1910. He specialised in rustic genre scenes featuri...
Category

1890s Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

French Contemporary Art by Claudine Picard - Kaki
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 Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - The Girl
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 Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Flamingoes
Located in Deddington, GB
Flamingoes Trevor Waugh Oil on canvas Unframed Animals
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Landscape 1961, paper/watercolor, 20x23.5 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Landscape 1961, paper/watercolor, 20x23.5 cm Herberts Mangolds (1901-1978) Graphic, army officer. In 1920 he graduated from the Artillery Cadet School of Latvian and many military ...
Category

1960s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

"Convergence of Peppers and Beets" (2022) By Timothy J. Standring, Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Though small in scale, Timothy James Standring’s oils and watercolors pierce the assumed poetics both media aspire to express. Over the past decade, Standring has brought a gimlet-ey...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Gesso, Oil

'White Cliffs of Dover' by Johan Jacob Bennetter, 1822-1904, Norwegian Painter
Located in Knokke, BE
Johan Jacob Bennetter Oslo, Norway 1822 -1904 Norwegian Painter 'White Cliffs of Dover' Signature: Signed lower right Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: Image size 41,50 x 63 cm, f...
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Madaket Marsh
Located in Greenwich, CT
Madaket Marsh, Nantucket
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

Antique American Realist Chow Chow Dog Portrait Framed Signed Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Vintage American realist dog portrait oil painting. Oil on board. Framed. Signed. In excellent original condition. Handsomely framed in a modern wood molding. Excellent conditio...
Category

1940s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Spring. Oil on cardboard, 40x50 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Spring. Oil on cardboard, 40x50 cm Alfejs Bromults (1913.3.IV - 1991.11.I) His first professional education was at National University at studies to...
Category

1980s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Cardboard

Valley 1969, paper, watercolor, 18x31 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Valley 1969, paper, watercolor, 18x31 cm Herberts Mangolds (1901-1978) Graphic, army officer. In 1920 he graduated from the Artillery Cadet School of Latvian and many military cour...
Category

1960s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Woman on red cloth II
Located in CAMPO REAL, ES
Woman Lying on Red Cloth is a work that evokes mystery and sensuality. In this scene, a woman is lying on a background of red fabrics, intentionally creating a striking and appealing...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

Erwartungsvoll (oil painting woman portrait hair neck flesh tones vintage art)
Located in Quebec, Quebec
keywords; surrealism, portrait, oil painting, earth tones, figurative painting, strangeness, contemporary surrealistic, unsettling, contemporary figurative painting, dreams, symbolic...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Water Sports - Coney Island Nude Swimmers and Nude Bathers
Located in Miami, FL
Presented in a good broad craved and antiqued giltwood frame in the Spanish Baroque style. Each corner boldly carved with a stylized anthemion mantled by foliate scrolls. The beauti...
Category

1940s Realist Paintings

Materials

India Ink, Watercolor

Grace, 2011
Located in Greenwich, CT
Grace is an oil on Masonite painting, 32 x 25" panel size, signed ‘HOFMANN’ lower right and framed in a custom, closed-corner, baroque-style frame. Douglas Hofmann’s works have been...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Morning 1965, paper/watercolor, 15x21 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Morning 1965, paper/watercolor, 15x21 cm Herberts Mangolds (1901-1978) Graphic, army officer. In 1920 he graduated from the Artillery Cadet School of Latvian and many military cour...
Category

1960s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

"Studio Corner" Realist oil painting, corner of art studio with paintings
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Studio Corner" is a post modern oil on panel painting. It depicts the corner an art studio. There are a variety of paintings, sculptures, and vases that can be seen. Frame Dimensi...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Wacholderwald und Heide, Schmarbeck
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 Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

"Two Stacked Cups in Green, White and Gold on a Gray Ground"
Located in Wellesley, MA
Olga Antonova’s subject is compositions of extraordinarily elegant and beautiful cups, plates, teapots, and dishes, but there is something humorous and provocative about these painti...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

Large Oil Painting Titled: Prince
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
(Designers: Custom framing is available for this item) Christina Major was born in Concord, New Hampshire in 1982. She has lived all over the world including Hawaii, France, New Yo...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Portrait of a Man - 19th Century Spanish Antique Oil on Panel Painting
Located in Sevenoaks, GB
A fine signed and dated 1880 Spanish oil on panel portrait of a man wearing a white shirt and waistcoat by Manuel Pla y Valor. The work is superbly ...
Category

1880s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Summer Over Bridgehampton" - realist landscape painting, sun setting over beach
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Summer Over Bridgehampton" is an oil on brass landscape painting. The painting shows the sun setting over a mecox bay from Scott Cameron Beach in The Hamptons. Clouds swirl around t...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Brass

The Farmer - 19th century Portrait oil over a photographic base
Located in London, GB
BRITISH SCHOOL (circa 1890) The Farmer Oil over a photographic base, on card and mounted onto original canvas Framed in original frame and behind glas...
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Photographic Paper

Morning by the Pond, John Henry Dolph, Realism, Oil on Panel, Ducks, Birds, Fowl
Located in Wiscasset, ME
John Henry Dolph, best known as painter of domestic animals, especially cats, was born in 1835 in Fort Ann, New York. In 1841 Dolph's family moved to Ohio and in 1849 Dolph began an ...
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Brazo de la Torre". Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscape
Located in MADRID, ES
Diptych 2 x (100x100 cm) Contemporary, realism, figurative, oil, landscapa, waterscape, pastel colors
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Wood, Oil

Moonlight, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
The full moon glows above palm trees, casting a gentle glow across billowing clouds tinged with orange and peach. Framed by silhouettes of palms rising, the squ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Kunz Meyer-Waldeck, 1859 –1953, Fishermen Boats in Harbour of Cascais, Portugal
Located in Knokke, BE
Meyer-Waldeck Kunz Mitau 1859 –1953 Neuburg Fishermen Boats in Harbour of Cascais, Portugal German Painter Signature: Signed bottom right Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: Image s...
Category

Early 20th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Lakeside. 1959, oil on cardboard, 36x49, 5 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Lakeside. 1959, oil on cardboard, 36x49,5 cm Summer landscape by the lake Edgars Vinters (1919-2014) Edgars Vinters is working in oil, watercolor and monotype techniques. He paints ...
Category

1950s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Cardboard

Pioneer Leader. Oil on cardboard, 25x24, 5 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Pioneer Leader. Oil on cardboard, 25x24,5 cm Arnolds Pankoks (born 1914.21.IX - 2008.) Graduated Art Academy of Latvia (1937 – 43, 1945 – 47) with dip...
Category

1990s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Teofimo, oil, ARC Salon Finalist, Portrait Society of America, Florence, Italy
Located in Houston, TX
Teofimo was painted over several days in the artist studio in Florence, Italy. The painting measures 16 x 12 with a handmade frame from Italy. This is oil on a linen panel which mos...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil, Panel

Road Around Capri, Tyrrhenian Sea, Italian Landscape, Island, Campania Region
Located in Grand Rapids, MI
Carlo Ciappa (Italian, 1890-1970) Signed: A. Ciappa (Lower, Left) " Road Around Capri ", circa 1960s Oil on Canvas 23 1/2" x 34 Overall Size: 27" x 37"
Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Landscape. Oil on cardboard, 25x35 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Landscape with mountain. Oil on cardboard, 25x35 cm Alfejs Bromults (1913.3.IV - 1991.11.I) His first professional education was at National Univers...
Category

1950s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Cardboard

Beth Parcell, "Lush Pasture", 16x20 Equine Horse Field Landscape Oil Painting
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
This vibrant landscape piece, "Lush Pasture", is a 16x20 featuring three brown horses grazing in a green pasture surrounded by the warm afternoon sun light. Lush green trees fill the...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

The factory 1961, paper/watercolor, 28.5x40.5 cm
Located in Riga, LV
The village 1964, paper/watercolor., 20.5x29.5 cm Herberts Mangolds (1901-1978) Graphic, army officer. In 1920 he graduated from the Artillery Cadet School of Latvian and many mili...
Category

1960s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Dover, National Park, Langdon Hole
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 Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

Still Life with Fruit & Flowers
Located in Milford, NH
A fine still life painting with fruit and flowers by André (Gittleson) Gisson (1921-2003). Gisson, born Anders Gittleson in Brooklyn, NY, graduate...
Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

French Contemporary Art by Claudine Picard - Manequins
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 Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Orchard in Bloom, Mid Century Spring Blossoms Landscape Watercolor by Jay Simm
Located in Soquel, CA
Lovely pastoral landscape of beautiful spring blossoms lining a quiet country lane by Jay Simm (American, 20th Century), c. 1960s. The delicate light pink flowers of the orchard in b...
Category

1960s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Still Life with Nike and Sailboat - Oil Painting with 23K Gold Leaf Backdrop
Located in Chicago, IL
A collection of objet d'art sit upon a gleaming table, their reflections enhanced by the light of the gilt background which is hand applied using 23K gold leaf. The objects - a toy sailboat...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Gold Leaf

Elegant Still Life of Two Blue and White Stacked Cups with Blue Background"
Located in Wellesley, MA
Elegant Still Life of Two Blue and White Stacked Cups with Blue Background" Olga Antonova’s subject is still lifes of elegant cups, plates, teapots, and dishes, singular for their f...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Sea at winter. 2020. Watercolor, paper, 60, 5 x 85 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Sea at winter. 2020. Watercolor, paper, 60,5 x 85 cm Sea with ice at the shore Zigmunds Šņore was born in 1942 in Latvia. His works has been exhibited since 1969 and are held in pr...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Wood End Light, Painting, Oil on MDF Panel
Located in Yardley, PA
This piece is an actual working lighthouse on the tip of Cape Cod near Race Point. Wood End Light was built in the 1870's. This is a realistic piece paint...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Gentle Giant, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
Towering clouds drift lazily over an island, creating a sense of awe and tranquility. Inspired by artist Kat Bergman's time spent on the North Shore of Oahu, this piece captures the quiet isolation and beauty of the landscape. The composition invites the viewer to imagine themselves on a secluded beach immersed in the peaceful rhythm of nature.The artwork comes with a natural wood frame.


About the Artist
Artist Kat Bergman paints landscapes and natural scenes in a realistic style, often infused with serenity and tranquility. "With each piece, there is always some extent of self-discovery and healing that occurs," says Kat. She channels deep human emotion in her work, capturing beauty, sorrow, and resilience through her art. After raising two sons as a single mother and building a career as a Quality Director in the electronics industry, she retired in 2015 to pursue painting full-time. She works in her home studio, a dedicated space within her large garage, which she keeps mostly tidy. When not creating, Kat enjoys reading, baking, and working on a cookbook.


Words that describe this painting: cloud, island, cloudscape, ocean, sea, tranquil, sky, water, Hawaii...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Still life with vegetables. 1973. Oil on cardboard and canvas, 35x55 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Still life with vegetables. 1973. Oil on cardboard, on canvas, 35x55 cm
Category

1970s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Cardboard, Canvas

Beth Parcell, "Peaceful Evening", 16x20 Equine Horse Farm Landscape Oil Painting
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
This vibrant piece, "Peaceful Evening", is a 16x20 equine oil painting on canvas featuring three brown horses and one white horse grazing together in a lush green pasture. The distan...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Mystique n.1" Portrait Oil Painting 28" x 28 "inch by Dmitriy Krestniy
Located in Culver City, CA
"Mystique n.1" Portrait Oil Painting 28" x 28 "inch by Dmitriy Krestniy ATTENTION: Painting ships rolled in a tube. A look through Dmitriy’s designs reveals a glamorous, feminine,...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

After the storm. 2020. Watercolor, paper, 70 x 96 cm
Located in Riga, LV
After the storm. Watercolor, paper, 70 x 96 cm Sea after the storm Zigmunds Šņore was born in 1942 in Latvia. His works has been exhibited since 1969 and are held in private collec...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

"Mighty Ocean" Oil Painting by Montague Dawson (British, 1890-1973)
Located in New York, NY
Montague Dawson (British, 1890-1973) Mighty Ocean oil on canvas signed Montague Dawson (lower left); titled and inscribed (on the stretcher) 24 x 36 in. (61 x 91.4cm) Provenance...
Category

20th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Daffodils and Lemons, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
Spring has come with fresh daffodils and new beginnings; the lemons were the perfect colour match for them. :: Painting :: Realism :: This piece comes with an official certificate of...
Category

2010s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Busy Venetian Harbor Scene Italian Seascape Oil Painting
Located in Rochester, NY
Venetian harbor scene with St Marks in the background oil on oak panel. Exceptional quality. Signed illegibly lower left. From an old Philadelphia collection. ...
Category

Mid-19th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

Fenland Reed Cutters - Victorian Idyllist landscape painting by Walker Macbeth
Located in London, GB
ROBERT WALKER MACBETH, RA (1848-1910) Fenland Reed Cutters Signed with initials and dated 1900 Oil on canvas 59 by 79 cm., 23 ¼ by 31 in. (frame size 82 by 102 cm., 32 ¼ by 40 in.) Provenance: Agnews; Fine Art Society, London. Macbeth was born in Glasgow, the son of the Scottish portrait painter Norman Macbeth, RSA. He first studied at the Royal Scottish Academy, before moving to London in 1870 to join the staff of The Graphic. On his arrival in London he first exhibiting at the Dudley Gallery. He soon became acquainted with Hubert von Herkomer, Fred Walker...
Category

Late 19th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Nightfall" romantic nocturne painting of Italian Countryside, oil on brass
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Nightfall" is an oil on brass painting of the Italian Countryside at night. Dark blue skies soften as our eye drifts down to the horizon, where a mountainous landscape frames the ba...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings

Materials

Brass

The flowers. Colorful Asters. 1964. Oil on canvas, board, 46x58 cm
Located in Riga, LV
White, yellow and red asters. 1964. Oil on canvas, board, 46x58 cm Vimba Voldemars ( 1904 St. Petersburg – 1985 Riga, Latvia) He began his artistic education at the St Petersburg...
Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Board

Portrait of a Lady, 1895 - oil on canvas, 73x60 cm., framed
Located in Nice, FR
1895 portrait by the french painter Arthur Rion. The oil on canvas is finely framed.
Category

1890s Realist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Realist paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Realist 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 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 Michael Budden, Su Yu, Olga Antonova, and Mark Hunter. 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 paintings, so small editions measuring 0.5 inches across are also available.

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