Old Masters Art
Encompassing centuries of change in Europe between 1300 and 1800, from booms of prosperity to bloody revolutions, Old Masters describes a wide range of artists. The informal term was derived from the title of an artist who trained in a guild long enough to become a master, such as Leonardo da Vinci, who studied in a Florence painters’ guild. However, Old Masters paintings, prints and other art is now used to refer to work made by any artist with a high level of skill in painting, drawing, sculpture or printmaking who worked during this era.
The 15th century’s expansive trade and commerce spread culture across borders. A vibrant period of art emerged, bolstered by studies of anatomy and nature that influenced a new visual realism. From Raphael and Michelangelo in the Renaissance to Rembrandt van Rijn and Johannes Vermeer in the Dutch Golden Age, artists expressed emotion, naturalism, color and light in new ways. El Greco and Paolo Veronese were leaders in the dramatic style of Mannerism, while Caravaggio and Peter Paul Rubens demonstrated the movement and meticulous detail of Baroque art.
Historically, most attention was concentrated on male artists, but recent research and exhibitions have elevated the impactful work of women such as Rachel Ruysch and Artemisia Gentileschi. In late-18th-century France, female artists like Adélaïde Labille-Guiard and Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun were prominent names. Nevertheless, access to the academies and guilds was highly restricted for women, and even those able to establish practices were expected to adhere to portraits and still lifes rather than the grand history paintings being created by men.
Find a collection of Old Masters prints, paintings, drawings and watercolors and other art on 1stDibs.
18th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
2010s Old Masters Art
Mixed Media, Acrylic, Canvas
17th Century Old Masters Art
Handmade Paper, Laid Paper, Etching
Late 17th Century Old Masters Art
Canvas, Oil
17th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
18th Century Old Masters Art
Gouache, Vellum
17th Century Old Masters Art
Ink, Laid Paper, Etching
Late 18th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
1910s Old Masters Art
Oil
2010s Old Masters Art
Paper, India Ink
18th Century Old Masters Art
Pastel, Gouache
18th Century and Earlier Old Masters Art
Oil, Panel
1740s Old Masters Art
Etching
Early 19th Century Old Masters Art
Paper
Early 18th Century Old Masters Art
Laid Paper, Woodcut
17th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
Late 18th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
1850s Old Masters Art
Lithograph
1870s Old Masters Art
Oil
1810s Old Masters Art
Etching
1870s Old Masters Art
Oil
Early 19th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
Early 18th Century Old Masters Art
Canvas, Oil
Early 1900s Old Masters Art
Oil, Board
18th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
17th Century Old Masters Art
Laid Paper, Etching
17th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
Mid-18th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
Early 19th Century Old Masters Art
Laid Paper, Etching, Handmade Paper
Early 1800s Old Masters Art
Paper, Pencil, Ink
18th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
1650s Old Masters Art
Oil
Early 18th Century Old Masters Art
Paper, India Ink, Gouache
Early 19th Century Old Masters Art
Marble, Bronze
Early 19th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
1860s Old Masters Art
Etching, Aquatint
16th Century Old Masters Art
Cotton Canvas, Canvas, Oil
17th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
Late 18th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
19th Century Old Masters Art
Handmade Paper, Laid Paper, Etching
Late 19th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
17th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
Early 1600s Old Masters Art
Etching
2010s Old Masters Art
Paper, India Ink
Mid-19th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
19th Century Old Masters Art
Paper, Ink, Watercolor
Early 19th Century Old Masters Art
Canvas, Oil
Early 17th Century Old Masters Art
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Old Masters Art
Canvas, Linen, Ink, Linocut
21st Century and Contemporary Old Masters Art
Canvas, Linocut
Late 18th Century Old Masters Art
Etching
1770s Old Masters Art
Etching
21st Century and Contemporary Old Masters Art
Canvas, Linen, Ink, Linocut
18th Century Old Masters Art
Oil Pastel, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Old Masters Art
Canvas, Linen, Ink, Linocut
17th Century Old Masters Art
Oil
Early 17th Century Old Masters Art
Oak, Oil
1760s Old Masters Art
Engraving
18th Century Old Masters Art
Oil Pastel, Canvas
Early 19th Century Old Masters Art
Oil