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.
French Contemporary Art by Franck Bailleul - Chapelle Sixtine
Located in Paris, IDF
Artwork located in Los Angeles, USA. Franck Bailleul is a French painter born in 1964 who lives & works in Abbeville, Normandy, France. He has exhibi...
Canvas, Oil
Untitled Portrait II (Modern, Academic Style Portrait Painting of a Young Man)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Modern, academic style portrait painting on canvas of a young athletic male oil on canvas, 26 x 17 inches in antique wood frame This vertical, contemporary portrait painting of sin...
Canvas, Oil
$18,000
"Cherry Blossom" Emily Cole, Early American Female Artist, Botanical Painting
Located in New York, NY
Emily Cole Cherry Blossom, 1890 Dated "May 3, 1890" lower right Signed, dated and inscribed on verso Watercolor and graphite on paper 6 1/4 x 8 1/2 inches Sheet 8 1/4 x 10 1/2 inches...
Paper, Watercolor, Graphite
Disegno Accademia figurativo ritratto maschile neoclassico veneto del XIX secolo
Located in Florence, IT
Il disegno è realizzato su un unico pezzo di carta beige, le misure sono ( x cm; con il passepartout x cm). La cornice è a scopo espositivo e non è inclusa nel prezzo. Il soggetto r...
Cardboard, Laid Paper, Chalk
Lying Naked Woman - Original Etching Signed (Petrides #E11)
Located in Paris, IDF
Suzanne VALADON (1865-1938) Lying Naked Woman, 1932 Original etching Signed in pencil On BFK Rives vellum 47 x 37 cm (c. 18.5 x 14.5 in) INFORMATION : Printed in 1932, this etching...
Etching
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...
Oil
Olivia Unveiling to Viola (from Twelfth Night)
Located in Mc Lean, VA
Exhibited: Birmingham Royal Society of Artists, 1879 “Autumn Exhibition of the Birmingham Royal Society of Artists.” The London Times, 25 August 1879. T...
Canvas, Oil
$28,450Sale Price|36% Off
Pair 19th Century French Whimsical Oil on Canvas "Cherubs and Putti Children"
Located in LA, CA
Charles Joshua Chaplin (French, 1825-1891) A Very Fine and Charming Pair of 19th Century French Whimsical Oils on Canvas of Cherubs and Putti, after François Boucher (French, 1703–17...
Canvas, Oil
The Love Letter
Located in Mc Lean, VA
Signed and dated '1884' lower right
Canvas, Oil
Young Woman Sponging Herself - Original Etching Signed (Petrides #E12)
Located in Paris, IDF
Suzanne VALADON (1865-1938) Young Woman Sponging Herself, 1932 Original etching Signed in pencil On BFK Rives vellum 47 x 37 cm (c. 18.5 x 14.5 in) INFORMATION : Printed in 1932, t...
Etching
Cleopatra Queen of Egypt 17' century Painting Oil on Canvas
Located in Rome, IT
Amazing painting of Cleopatra oil on canvas with a gilt wood frame. Attributed to Giuseppe Diamantini (Fossombrone 1621-Venice 1705) not signed. The dramatic subject of the paintin...
Oil
Czech 19th Century Dalmatian Costume Young Man Orientalist Oil Portrait Kovács
Located in London, GB
Czech 19th Century Dalmatian Costume Young Man Orientalist Oil Portrait Kovács Czech, c. 1870 Canvas: Height 46cm, width 34cm Frame: Height 79cm, width 68cm, depth 10cm This oil por...
Canvas, Oil
$15,750
In the Bazaar II, Oil on Wood, Signed, 19th Century, Framed, 7x5"
Located in New York, NY
In the Bazaar II, 1834-1855, by Theodore Frere (1814-1888) Oil on wood 7 x 5 inches unframed (17.78 x 12.7 cm) 10 ⅝ x 9 inches framed (26.9875 x 22.86 cm) Signed on lower right Desc...
Oil
$112,000
Aurora in white toga smelling a flower. Goddess of Dawn Mythology scene
Located in Miami, FL
Jean Louis Hamon artfully presents the mythological subject: Aurora the Goddess of Dawn. She is dressed in a flowing toga, standing on a large leaf and smelling the sweetness of a flower in bloom. Surrounded by lush plants in an idyllic setting of pinks and blues, one would not think that this peaceful and beautiful work was painted in 1864 at the time of the American Civil War. Hamon meticulously renders the scene with the academic precision of Bouguereau. The closer you get, the more detail you discover. Two butterflies sit atop Aurora's head. Droplets of water gracefully roll down her hair. There was a hand colored steel plate...
Oil
A Very Fine Italian Oil on Canvas Titled "The Solo Violinist or Violin Teacher "
Located in LA, CA
A very fine Italian oil on canvas titled "The Solo Violinist" by Luigi Da Rios (Italian, 1844-1892), depicting an interior 18th century room scene of a single violinist player; withi...
Gesso, Canvas, Wood, Oil
Four Season Extraordinary Set of Italian Stone Caryatids Sculptures
Located in Rome, IT
Four Caryatids sculptures with classically draped figures and their distinguishing symbols. Autumn, winter, spring and summer. Measures: Height with square form bases cm 220. Time...
Limestone
$1,300
19th century color lithograph beetles nature forest tree leaves animal signed
By Louis Prang
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Stag Beetle & Longicorn Beetle" is an original color lithograph by Louis Prang. It depicts two forest-dwelling beetles. The artist signed the piece in the stone lower left. It was published by Selmar Hess in New York. 8" x 5" art 19 3/8" x 16" framed Louis Prang (March 12, 1824 – September 14, 1909) was an American printer, lithographer, publisher, and Georgist. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card". Prang's early activities in the US publishing architectural books and making leather goods were not very successful, and he began to make wood engravings for illustrations in books. In 1851 he worked for Frank Leslie, art director for Gleason's Pictorial Drawing-Room Companion, and later with John Andrew. In 1851, he married Rosa Gerber, a Swiss woman he had met in Paris in 1846. In 1856, Prang and a partner created a firm, Prang and Mayer, to produce lithographs. The company specialized in prints of buildings...
Lithograph
Portrait of Lady
Located in London, GB
John Westbrooke Chandler 1763- 1807 Oil on canvas Image size: 30 x 25 inches (76 x 63.5 cm) Original gilt swept frame This portrait is marked by its loose brushwork, which creates a...
Canvas, Oil
Portrait of an Elegant Young Woman in Warm Grays and Soft Ochers
By Leon Kroll
Located in Miami, FL
Leon Kroll was above all an academician. To him "abstract art was merely the beginning of a picture. Structurally, "Portrait of a Young Woman recalls some of the portraits from the ...
Oil, Canvas
Sitting Pretty (Pomeranian Pups)
Located in Mc Lean, VA
Signed and dated '1901' lower left
Canvas, Oil
Tigers of Bengal
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Ferdinand SCHEBEK (1875 - 1949) Oil on canvas signed low left - Tigers of Bengal - Old coppery frame - Dim canvas : 60 X 81 cm - Dim Frame : 95 X ...
Oil
A Party To The Castle in 18th Century
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
A Party To The Castle in the 18th Century Oil on canvas with a signature G.Weiss low left Old frame regilded Dim canvas : 46 X 38 cm Dim frame : 66 X 58 cm
Oil
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 ...
Paper, Watercolor
Pan and Siringa
Located in Roma, RM
Jafet Torelli (active in Florence in the second half of the 19th century), Pan and Siringa Terracotta sculpture 54 x 22 x 22 cm signed Torelli Firenze on the base.
Terracotta
$2,124
LECARON French religious small paintings mid 19th Portrait Jesus Virgin Mary
Located in PARIS, FR
Jules Achille Lecaron Paris, 1813 – after 1865 Portrait of Jesus and Mary his mother A pair of oil paintings on wood 15 x 12 cm (25 x 21 cm with frame) Countersigned on the verso "Pa...
Oil
'Chapel in the Woods', Oil on Canvas Painting by English School
Located in London, GB
'Chapel in the Woods', oil on canvas painting by English School English, 1847 Canvas: Height 56cm, width 77cm, depth 2.5cm Frame: Height 78cm, width 97cm, depth 9cm This beautiful ...
Canvas, Oil
$6,500
19th century color lithograph portrait indigenous male subject feathers signed
Located in Milwaukee, WI
"Wa-Em-Boesh-Kaa, A Chippeway Chief," is an original hand-colored lithograph by McKenney & Hall. It features a portrait of a notable Native American chief, with informational text below. 13 1/2" x 18 3/4" paper 25 5/8" x 20 1/2" frame American lithograph publishers. Most well-known for "History of the Indian Tribes of North America," a collection of 125 images that included biographical sketches and anecdotes of principal chiefs. Thomas Loraine McKenney (1785-1859) served as Commissioner of Indian Affairs from 1824 to 1830. In that capacity he commissioned and collected portraits of Native Americans...
Lithograph
Orientalist Scenes in Pair - Dutch Painting 19th Century
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
VAN WYK Henri (1833-NC) signed HENRI Orientalist scenes in pair Oil on wood panel signed low left Old frame re-gilded with gold leaves Dim wood : 22 X 41 cm Dim frame : 33 X 55 cm V...
Oil
A Fine Victorian Oil on Board Titled "A Lady Standing by a Sundial in the Park"
Located in LA, CA
Henry John Yeend King R.B.A, R.I., R.O.I. (British, 1855-1924) "A Victorian Lady Standing by a Sundial in the Park" Oil on panel. Signed lower right: Yeend King. "YK" Sticker en ver...
Oil
Flower Gathering
Located in Mc Lean, VA
Signed and dated '1873' lower left
Canvas, Oil
$27,000
A pair of Regency 12 inch celestial and terrestrial globes, early 19th c
By John & William Cary
Located in New York, NY
The firm of Cary was established in the late 18th century by John Cary (c.1754-1835), a noted map seller, and his brother William (c.1759-1825), an optician and nautical instrument m...
Wood
Jean-Léon Gérôme La Danseuse au Cerceau - Gilt Bronze Statue of a Hoop Dancer
Located in New York, NY
Jean-Léon Gérôme French 1824 - 1904 La Joueuse De Cerceau - The Hoop Dancer A mini gilt bronze female figural statue of a young hoop dancer inspired by a trove of ancient terraco...
Bronze
Plums: George Brookshaw's Framed Hand-colored 19th C. Aquatint
Located in Alamo, CA
George Brookshaw's (1751-1823) beautiful "Plums" hand colored aquatint engraving from his "Pomona Brittanica", considered to be the finest British botanical large format treatise of the 19th-century. His engravings were unique for their rich tones and colors, elegant compositions with the fruit seeming to float on a mottled sumptuous background. There are purple, mustard-colored plums on brown branches with green leaves over a two-tone dark brown and light tan background. The print is presented in an ornate bronze-colored wood frame with gold-colored inner and outer trims and a triple mat. The outer mat is a marbled light...
Aquatint
Exceptional Italian Neoclassical Sphinx Carrara Marble Statue
Located in Rome, IT
Outstanding Italian Neoclassical Sphinx Carrara Marble sculpture designed as entrance guardian, this mythical lady sphinx statuary display the head and chest of a neoclassical woma...
Marble
Hercules Italian Stone Sculpture of Classical Torso with Base
Located in Rome, IT
This reproduction of a classical Hellenistic sculpture of Hercules . A timeless piece for interior and a garden decoration. We can raise with a base on request .
Limestone
Fournier Hippolyte (1853-1926)+ Promenade de Dimanche (The Walk on Sunday)
By Hippolyte Fournier
Located in Gent, VOV
This exquisite oil on canvas painting, "The Walk on Sunday," by Hippolyte Fournier is a captivating depiction of 19th-century leisure. The artist's meticulous brushstrokes bring to l...
Oil
The Little Ballerina
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Alphonse PELLET (1853-1926) The Little Ballerina Oil on wood panel signed low right Old frame regilded with leaves Size panel : 30 X 43 cm - Size frame : 40 X 55 cm Alphonse PELLET...
Oil
Magnificent Italian Fountain Sculpture of Goddess with Delphines
Located in Rome, IT
Monumental finely carved limestone fountain sculpture of Goddess with a putto figure and three magnificent dolphins . Proveniente from an important Villa Veneta. Including a round ...
Limestone
Four Season Extraordinary Set of Italian Stone Caryatids Sculptures
Located in Rome, IT
Four Caryatids sculptures with classically draped figures and their distinguishing symbols. Autumn, winter, spring and summer. Measures: Height wi...
Limestone
Paintings 19th Century Still Life With Flowers
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
GODCHAUX Emile (1860) Compositions of Flowers in Pair Oil on canvas signed low Left Old Frames gilded with gold leaves Dim canvas (each) : 130 X 89 cm Dim frame (each) : 149 x 109 cm...
Oil
“The Grand Canal, Venice”
Located in Southampton, NY
Venice, The Grand Canal, Illustrated London News: hand-colored wood engraving after drawings by Viscount Maidstone, published August 25, 1849 in The Illustrated London News, titled “...
Archival Paper, Engraving
Portrait of an Elegant Woman Dressed in Eighteenth-Century
Located in Naples, Florida
Signed lower left Fernand Toussaint was a Belgian painter known for portraits, genre scenes, and refined representations of women. Trained in Brussels and la...
Oil, Canvas
Newfoundland with a Kitten by Otto Eerelman
Located in New Orleans, LA
Otto Eerelman 1839-1926 Dutch Newfoundland with a Kitten Oil on canvas Signed “O. Eerelman” (lower right) This monumental painting is by the celebrated Dutch artist Otto Eerelman...
Canvas, Oil
Hercules Italian Stone Sculpture of Classical Torso with Base
Located in Rome, IT
This reproduction of a classical Hellenistic sculpture of Hercules . A timeless piece for interior and a garden decoration. We can raise with a base on request .
Limestone
$29,850Sale Price|39% Off
A Fine & Large 19th Century Oil on Canvas "New Year's Day at The Grandfather's"
Located in LA, CA
Friedrich Ortlieb (German, 1839-1909) A fine and large oil on canvas titled "New Year's Day at The grandfather's". The joyful indoor family scene depicting a Christmas and new year's...
Oil
Cathédrale Saint Pierre Genève by Pierre Duc - Watercolor
By Pierre Duc
Located in Geneva, CH
Watercolor paper Brown wooden frame with plexiglass 85,5 x 65,7 x 2 cm
Watercolor, Pencil
French Contemporary Art by Franck Bailleul - Noblesse Oblige
Located in Paris, IDF
Artwork located in Los Angeles, USA Franck Bailleul is a French painter born in 1964 who lives & works in Abbeville, Normandy, France. He has exhibit...
Oil, Canvas
Marines in Pair - Dutch Painting 19th Century
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
VAN WYK Henri (1833-NC) Marines in pair Oil on wood panel signed low left Old frame re-gilded with gold leaves Dim wood : 23 X 41 cm Dim frame : 40 X 58 cm Certificate of authenticit...
Oil
Solitude
Located in New Orleans, LA
French Academic painter Guillaume Seignac was renowned for his masterful treatment of the idealized nude. His languishing female subjects based on Greco-Roman prototypes were and rem...
Canvas, Oil
$4,249Sale Price|20% Off
PLAUZEAU Painting Oil canvas French Academic Portrait of boy Early 20th century
Located in PARIS, FR
Alfred PLAUZEAU Avanton-Paché (Vienna), 1875 - Hendaye, 1918 Oil on oil 61 x 38 cm (75.5 x 52.5 cm with frame) Signed lower right "A. Plauzeau" Good condition (sevreal restoration, w...
Oil
Meissen, Louise Sleeping, after a drawing by Greuze, 19th Century figurine
By (Circle of) Jean Baptiste Greuze
Located in Norwich, GB
As all of you will know, every Meissen figure is painted individually by an artist. While all Meissen is of high quality, I feel that the present figure is particularly fine, with th...
Porcelain
$30,000
Victory - Athletic Young Man in Classical Pose, ( Female Sculptor )
By Evelyn Beatrice Longman
Located in Miami, FL
Evelyn Beatrice Longman was a trailblazing female artist getting major commissions at the very begining of the 20th century. Having lived in New York City, I used to walk by the life size version of this in Philip Johnson's ATT Building and it left me breathless every time. This classical bronze statue of a victorious and handsome young man is called "Victory...
Bronze
Italian Limestone Garden Sculptures of Aria a Roman Goddness
Located in Rome, IT
Finely carved mythological subject in Lecce limestone of Aria a Roman Goddness . Excellent condition from an estate of Veneto. Measurements: Statue cm 160, base cm 85.
Limestone
Large & Impressive French 19th Century Oil on Canvas "The Water Carrier Lady"
By Jules Salles-Wagner
Located in LA, CA
Jules Salles-Wagner (French, 1814-1898) A Large and Impressive French, 19th century oil on canvas "The Water Carrier Lady" depicting a standing and posing young peasant girl holding ...
Oil
Twilight Crashing Surf”
Located in Southampton, NY
Original watercolor on archival paper by the well known American artist, George Howell Gay. Signed lower left by the artist. Circa 1910. Condition is excellent. Great vibrant colo...
Archival Paper, Watercolor
$124,500
The Potter
Located in New Orleans, LA
Léon Olivié-Bon 1863-1901 French The Potter Oil on canvas Signed and dated "Olivie-Bon 1888" (lower right) This monumental masterpiece by French artist Léon Olivié-Bon is one of ...
Canvas, Oil
Young Lady and Cupid in The Park
By Hans Zatzka
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Hans Zatzka (8 March 1859 – 17 December 1945 Young Lady With Cupid in The Park Oil on canvas circa 1880 signed low with pseudonym C.BRIAND Old Frame gilded with leaves Size canvas : ...
Oil
Bust of veiled woman
Located in Roma, RM
Giulio Tadolini ( Rome 1849 - 1918 ) ( attr. to ), Bust of veiled woman Bronze 61 x 37 x 22 cm.
Bronze
A Fine Orientalist Pencil and Watercolor Reclining Middle Eastern Beauty
By Francesco Ballesio 2
Located in LA, CA
Francesco Ballesio (Italian, 1860-1923). A fine orientalist pencil and watercolor heightened with gum Arabic on paper figure of "A Middle-Eastern Beauty at Rest" depicting a young ma...
Paper, Watercolor, Pencil
Peonies in a Blue Vase
Located in Mc Lean, VA
One of three still-life paintings by the French flower painter Germain-Theodore Ribot.
Canvas, Oil