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Academic Art

ACADEMIC STYLE

During the Renaissance, the first European fine art academies were established in Italy and would guide the style and standards of visual culture in the following centuries. Academic art became dominant across the continent in the 17th century, with artists coming together to offer instruction in this style of painting and sculpture

The academic art period represented a significant change from the previous era when painters, sculptors and other artists were part of guilds and seen more as artisans than purveyors of culture. While patronage from the elite and the church remained pivotal, young artists were able to support themselves for the first time through academic exhibitions and an independent marketplace. The leading academies included the French Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture founded in Paris in 1648 (which became the Académie des Beaux-Arts after the French Revolution) and the London Royal Academy of Arts formed in 1768 under the inaugural leadership of painter Joshua Reynolds

Academy students sketched drawings based on prints, sculptures and, finally, live models. Movements including neoclassicism and romanticism were particularly popular in these art schools and institutions where the influence of Raphael and Nicolas Poussin was prominent. Beaux Arts architecture and furniture design drew on these movements, too, and, as they also originated at the Académie des Beaux-Arts, the disciplines share common ground with academic painting and sculpture.

Although academic art was a major shift for artistic status when it began, by the middle of the 19th century it was viewed as stodgy and resistant to new ideas, with the subject matter of artists such as William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Jean-Léon Gérôme generally limited to allegorical or mythological themes. Impressionism, realism and the other movements that engaged with contemporary issues that followed were direct reactions to the academic tradition, although it continued to inform the avant-garde as artists like Gustav Klimt and Pablo Picasso started their practices as academic realists.  

Find a collection of academic paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs. 

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Style: Academic
Departure of the Caravan
Located in New York, NY
Departure of the Caravan, 1834-1887, by Theodore Frere (1814-1888) Oil on wood 10 x 16 inches unframed (25.4 x 40.64 cm) 18 ¾ x 24 ¾ inches framed (47.625 x 62.865 cm) Signed on bott...
Category

19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Oil

Seashore, Coastal Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Coastal Original oil Painting, One of a Kind Artist: Karen Darbinyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2023 Style: Impressionis...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Summer Field, Landscape, Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Karen Darbinyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2023 Style: Impressionism Title: Summer Field Size: 15.5" x 21.5" x 0...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Still Life Flowers and Butterfly - Painting 19th century
By Elisa-Antoinette Georget
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Elisa- Antoinette GEORGET (1842-1914) Flowers and Butterfly Oil on canvas signed low left Golden wooden frame stick (new) Dim canvas : 43 X 72 cm Dim Frame : 65 X 94 cm Elisa- Antoi...
Category

Late 19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Oil

Children on the Beach Marine Landscape French Antique Oil Painting
Located in Norwich, GB
The setting is the French coast, on a tranquil summer's evening. Clouds are drawing in, the sky is turning dusky pink and purple, but there is still time left for play, for the children on the beach...
Category

Early 20th Century Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Ocean Cliffs, Seascape, Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Karen Darbinyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2023 Style: Impressionism Title: Ocean Cliffs Size: 29.5" x 39.5" x 0...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Mountain's view by M. Völlmy - Oil on wood 40x50 cm
Located in Geneva, CH
Oil paint on wood with original frame. Total size with frame: 60x50x5 cm
Category

1950s Academic Art

Materials

Oil

'Classical Seated Female Nude', by Charles G. Bockman, Oil on Canvas Painting
Located in Oklahoma City, OK
This 38 x 32 inch painting, is an oil on canvas titled 'Female Nude,' by artist Charles G. Bockmann. The painting depicts a 3/4th portrait of a nude woman wh...
Category

Early 20th Century Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Life-size Plaster Statue of The Callipygian Venus or Aphrodite 1920'
Located in Rome, IT
Italian life-size plaster sculpture , figure of the Callipygian Venus, after the antique Roman marble statue. Aphrodite Kallipygos, or Callipygian Venus literally means “Venus of ...
Category

1920s Academic Art

Materials

Plaster

1900s French Atelier Life Drawing Academic Sculpture of Male Nude Figure
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Life study drawing original atelier drawing by the French artist, Jeanne Nachat (1898-1984) Nachat attended the prestigious Académie des Beaux-Arts in Pa...
Category

Early 20th Century Academic Art

Materials

Charcoal, Pencil

Buttercup Flowers: A Besler 18th Century Hand-colored Botanical Engraving
Located in Alamo, CA
This is a hand-colored copper plate engraving depicting Ranunculus (Persian Buttercup) flowers from Basilius Besler's landmark work, Hortus Eystettensis (Garden at Eichstatt), first published in 1613 in Eichstatt, Germany near Nuremberg and later in 1640 and 1713. This beautiful colorful engraving is printed on thick laid chain-linked paper. There is latin text on the verso. There are central horizontal creases and two small holes on the right and another in the left lower corner. It is otherwise in excellent condition. Basilius Besler (1561–1629) was an apothecary and botanist. He was curator of the Willibaldsburg Castle garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop...
Category

Early 18th Century Academic Art

Materials

Engraving

Island, Seascape Original oil Painting on Linen, Framed
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Karen Darbinyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2021 Style: Impressionism Subje...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Diana the Huntress, a bronze sculpture by Alexandre Falguière (1831–1900)
Located in Gent, VOV
This majestic bronze sculpture, titled Diana the Huntress, is the work of renowned French sculptor Alexandre Falguière, created in 1882. The Roman goddess of the hunt is depicted in ...
Category

Late 19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Bronze

“Sunset on the River”
Located in Southampton, NY
Beautifully painted sunset on the river with a single figure in a punt and cattle crossing by the American artist, George Riecke. Most likely a New Orlea...
Category

1890s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

“View of Bay of Naples 2”
Located in Southampton, NY
Very well executed original gouache on archival paper by the Italian artist, Maria Ada Gianni. Signed lower left. Condition is excellent. Circa 192...
Category

1920s Academic Art

Materials

Gouache, Archival Paper

Sans titre (1881), James Drummond, R.S.A., F.S.A.
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: James Drummond, R.S.A., F.S.A. (1816-1877) Title: Sans titre (1881) Year: 1881 Medium: Oil on canvas Size: 37 x 29 inches Inscription: Hand signed and dated, recto Provenance...
Category

1880s Academic Art

Materials

Oil

"Untitled Portrait" Burton Silverman, 1980 Intimate Watercolor Portrait
Located in New York, NY
Burton Silverman Untitled Portrait, 1980 Signed and dated lower right Watercolor on paper 14 x 10 1/2 inches Burton Silverman been painting and exhibiting as a fine artist for over...
Category

1980s Academic Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

“Still Life with Grapes and Peaches”
Located in Southampton, NY
Very nicely executed original still life oil painting on fiberboard by the Wales born artist, Edward Pritchard. Signed lower left. Circa 1915. Conditi...
Category

1910s Academic Art

Materials

Oil, Fiberboard

“View of Bay of Naples”
Located in Southampton, NY
Very well executed original gouache on archival paper of a group of figures on an overlook viewing the Bay of Naples by the Italian artist, Maria Ada Gianni...
Category

1920s Academic Art

Materials

Gouache, Archival Paper

Head of a Monk – Preparatory Study, Atelier of Enrico Reffo
Located in Firenze, IT
Study of a Kneeling Figure, from the Circle of Enrico Reffo Charcoal on lightly toned paper 47 x 32 cm Late 19th – early 20th century From the atelier of one of Reffo’s pupils This ...
Category

Late 19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Paper, Pencil, Carbon Pencil

The Carpet Seller 19th Century Orientalist Antique Watercolor Painting on Paper
Located in Jacksonville, FL
Provenance John Welles Hollenback, New York The Painting is Signed FBartolini Lower Right Federico Bartolini (Italian, 1861 - 1908) Description: Federico Bartolini was a renowned ...
Category

19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Three Gould Hand-colored Lithographs from Birds of Australia and New Zealand
Located in Alamo, CA
Three hand-colored lithographs from John Gould's seven volume book "The Birds of Australia", which included New Zealand, depicting: pairs of "Eudyptes Chrysocome" (New Zealand Rock-hopper Crested Penguins), "Diomedea O Thalassarche Cauta" (Australian Shy Albatross) and "Sula Fusca" (Brown Gannets). These beautiful sea bird prints are presented in identical very attractive brown wood frames, embellished with gold highlights in the corners and gold inner trim, along with light cream-colored French mats, each with a medium cream-colored band and a gold highlight line. There is scattered spotting. There is a small tear in the lower right corner of the penguin lithograph...
Category

1840s Academic Art

Materials

Lithograph

'Study for a Stained Glass Window', Devotional, Ecclesiastical, Pre-Raphaelite
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
A sensitively drawn and highly-detailed study for a three-panel set of stained glass windows showing the ascension of Jesus by angels and mortals. Initialed, lower right, 'EB-J', an...
Category

1920s Academic Art

Materials

Ink, Watercolor, Gouache

"View on Long Island" James Henry Cafferty, Hudson River School Summer Landscape
Located in New York, NY
James Henry Cafferty Landscape and Figures (New Jersey or Long Island), 1845 Signed lower right Oil on canvas 21 x 17 1/4 inches Provenance The artist John L. Schoolcraft, Albany, N...
Category

1840s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Antique British Oil Painting of the Alhambra by Thompson
Located in London, GB
Antique British oil painting of the Alhambra by Thompson British, 1876 Canvas: Height 45cm, width 35.5cm Frame: Height 69cm, width 61cm, depth 6cm This serene Orientalist oil painti...
Category

1870s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Painting Belgian 19th animal painter VERBOECKHOVEN woodLandscape cow sheperdess
Located in PARIS, FR
Eugène VERBOECKHOVEN Warneton, 1798 – Schaerbeek, 1881 Oil on wood panel 42 x 33.5 cm (58 x 50 cm with the frame) Signed, dated and located lower right “EJ Verboeckhoven / 1826 / à G...
Category

1820s Academic Art

Materials

Oil

Wild Flowers, Impressionism, Original Oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Ara H. Hakobyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Canvas Year: 2019 Style: Impressionism Title: Wild Flowers Size: 20" x 16" x 0.8''...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

“Warwick Castle”
Located in Southampton, NY
Exquisite original watercolor of Warwick Castle by the famous British artist, Edmund John Niermann. Signed lower right. Circa 1850. Condition is very ...
Category

1850s Academic Art

Materials

Watercolor, Archival Paper

Path, Impressionism, Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Karen Darbinyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2023 Style: Impressionism Title: Path, Size: 9" x 13.5" x 0.8'' inch...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Mary Magdalene - Original lithograph
Located in Paris, IDF
Maurice DENIS (1870 - 1943) Mary Magdalene Original lithograph enhanced in pastel Printed signature in the plate On light cream tinted vellum 32,5 x 47 cm (c. 12,7 x 18,5 inch) INF...
Category

Early 20th Century Academic Art

Materials

Lithograph

David Slaying Goliath Large Figural Bronze Statue by Antonin Mercie
Located in New York, NY
The base marked "A. Mercie" and "506 F. Barbenienne, Fondeur, Paris" ad "A. Collas" "Reduction Mecanique." The dazzling David, a prolific subject amongst sculpture artists beginning...
Category

Late 19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Bronze

Seashore, Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Karen Darbinyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2023 Style: Impressionism Title: Seashore Size: 16" x 21.5" x 0.8'' i...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Tree by Otto Vautier - Graphite on paper - 21x29 cm
Located in Geneva, CH
Otto Vautier (1863-1919) was a German artist active during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was born into a family with artistic roots, as the s...
Category

Mid-20th Century Academic Art

Materials

Paper, Graphite

Lion and Lioness On The Hunt
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
RÖTIG Georges-frédéric (1873-1961) Lion and Lioness On The Hunt Oil on canvas signed and dated 1933 lower right. The canvas is mounted in a frame called "Berain style” inherited fro...
Category

1930s Academic Art

Materials

Oil

Original French Abstract Portrait
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Title: Original French Abstract Portrait Artist: Robert Ladou (French, 1929-2014) Medium: Acrylic on paper Size: 11.5 (Height) x 15.25 (Width) Signed: No Condition: Good Descriptio...
Category

20th Century Academic Art

Materials

Acrylic

Autumn Valley, Landscape, Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Karen Darbinyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2023 Style: Impressionism Title: Autumn Valley Size: 15.5" x 22" x 0....
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Academy of seated nude of 19th century Italian school
Located in Florence, IT
Seated male nude that falls fully within the academic "model from life" production of the early 19th century, as also seems confirmed by the "Titus-like" hairdo of the effigy. The s...
Category

Early 19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Paper, Pencil

“Puerta Bisagra, Toledo”
Located in Southampton, NY
Oil on artist board painting of the historic city of Toledo by the Australian artist, Robert Camm. Signed lower left and titled and dated verso, 1931. Th...
Category

1930s Academic Art

Materials

Oil, Board

British, 19th Century oil painting of harvest time in the English countryside
Located in Petworth, West Sussex
David Hamilton (British, circa 1888) Harvest time Oil on canvas Signed and dated `David Hamilton 1888’ (lower right) 20.1/8 x 16 in. (51.2 x 40.8 cm.)
Category

19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Edouard Detaille (1848 1912), A trophy of arms, 1885, drawing signed and dated
Located in Paris, FR
Edouard Detaille (1848-1912) A trophy of arms, 1885 11.5 x 20 cm Pen and ink with heightenings of white gouache on paper Signed and dated 1885 lower right and annotated "Armée française...
Category

1880s Academic Art

Materials

Ink

Seascape, Impressionism, Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Ara H. Hakobyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Canvas Year: 2017 Style: Impressionism Title: Seascape Size: 23.5" x 35.5" x 0.8'...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Nude back (1978) - Ink on paper 46x63 cm
Located in Geneva, CH
China Ink Signed H. Balslaecj (artist unknown from the gallery) and dated 1978 Pastel wooden frame with plexiglas Total size with frame: 75x57x6 cm
Category

1970s Academic Art

Materials

Ink

Mythological Painting begining 19th oval Bacchus Apollon children
Located in PARIS, FR
Italian school from the beginning of the 19th century ? Oil on canvas (2) 99 x 65 cm (103 x 78 cm with the frame) Old frames with gadroons and palmette decoration Very good condition...
Category

Early 19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Oil

“Montalcino”
Located in Southampton, NY
Original oil on board painting of the historic town of Montalcino in Italy by the well known American artist, David Buckley Good. Signed by the artist lower left. Titled verso. Gr...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Oil, Board

Grand Tour Bronze Sculpture of Diana Goddess of the Hunt Signed B. Boschetti.
Located in Rome, IT
Grand Tour Fine Group of Sculpture in Bronze after a Louvre Diana of Versailles or Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt. Diana is represented at the hunt, hastening forward, as if in pursui...
Category

Mid-19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Bronze

Qahatika Girl, The North American Indian, Edward S. Curtis, Photogravure, 1907
Located in Phoenix, AZ
QAHATIKA GIRL Portfolio 2, plate no. 56 THE NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN BY EDWARD S. CURTIS SHIPPING CHARGES INCLUDE SHIPPING, PACKAGING & INSURANCE Considered by art collectors as extr...
Category

Early 20th Century Academic Art

Materials

Photogravure

Orientalist African Hunter Leaning on His Shield 19th cent. Black Forest, German
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Orientalist African Hunter Leaning on His Shield Black Forest, School Switzerland  19th century Carved Wood 21 inches This is an exceptionally beautifu...
Category

19th Century Academic Art

Materials

Wood

Original Marines World War 1 poster. E-E-E-YAH-YIP Go over with U. S. Marines
Located in Spokane, WA
Original World War One: Go Over With U.S. Marines. E-E-E-YAH-YIP. This charging leather neck holds his Springfield high. The cropped design was influenced by candid photography, ...
Category

1910s Academic Art

Materials

Lithograph

Sunny Day, Original Oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Ara H. Hakobyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Canvas Year: 2018 Style: Impressionism Title: Sunny Day Size: 16" x 20" x 0.8'' in...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Summer Valley, Landscape Impressionism Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Karen Darbinyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Signed to lower right Medium: Oil on Linen, Year: 2024 Style: Impressionism Title: Summer Valley,...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

“On the Seine, Paris”
Located in Southampton, NY
Original aquatint etching of working river barges on the Seine in Paris, France. A horse drawn cart is seen loading or unloading product. Circa 1900. Si...
Category

Early 1900s Academic Art

Materials

Archival Paper, Aquatint

Spring, Figurative Art, Impressionism, Original oil Painting, One of a Kind
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Artist: Ara H. Hakobyan Work: Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Canvas Year: 2018 Style: Impressionism Title: Spring, Size: 18" x 24" x 0.8'' inc...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Interior Scene with Lady and Two Children" Sarah Anne Freeman Clarke
Located in New York, NY
Sarah Anne Freeman Clarke Interior Scene with Lady and Two Children, 1883 Signed lower right Oil on canvas 32 x 27 inches Sarah Anne Freeman Clarke was born in Massachusetts in 180...
Category

1880s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Apollo Marble Bust Sculpture of Grand Tour Mythological subject 1850'
Located in Rome, IT
Finely carved mythological subject in white Carrara marble of Apollo bust .
Category

20th Century Academic Art

Materials

Marble

Flowering Hyacinth & Calla Plants: A Besler Hand-colored Botanical Engraving
Located in Alamo, CA
This is a hand-colored copper plate engraving depicting flowering "Hyacinthus Comosus Spurius" (Hyacinth), "Hyacinthus Anglicus" (Blue Hyacinth), "Palma ...
Category

Early 18th Century Academic Art

Materials

Engraving

Lady at the Flower Market
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
LEBAS Léonie (19th-20th) "Lady at the Flower Market in Paris" Oil on wood panel signed low right Old Frame regilded with gold leaves Dim panel : 16 X...
Category

1890s Academic Art

Materials

Oil

“Cordes”
Located in Southampton, NY
Original oil on board painting of the historic village of Cordes-sur-Ciel in France by the well known American artist, David Buckley Good. Signed lower left by the artist. Titled ...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Oil, Board

"Anaheim, " Oil painting
Located in Denver, CO
Thane Gorek's (US based) "Anaheim" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a green Anaheim pepper halved, so that it's seeds and core are exposed, with an indigo blue back...
Category

2010s Academic Art

Materials

Oil, Board

Italian School of the 17th Century : Saint Jerome with a Lion - Oil Painting
Located in Paris, IDF
Italy : Venetian school of the 17th century Saint Jerome wit a Lion, circa 1620 Oil on panel Unsigned On wood board 49 x 30 cm Good condition, accidents/wear (see photos)
Category

Early 17th Century Academic Art

Materials

Oil

Picnic on the Hudson
Located in New York, NY
Picnic on the Hudson is a significant canvas painted circa 1860 as Whittredge was purposely transitioning his European training and experience into a purely American style and genre....
Category

1860s Academic Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Academic art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Academic art 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 art created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of purple, blue, orange, pink and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Karen Darbinyan, Owen Jones, Paul Jones b.1921, and Mark Beard. 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 Academic art, so small editions measuring 1.5 inches across are also available. Prices for art 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 $11 and tops out at $700,000, while the average work sells for $1,444.

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