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Old Masters Art

OLD MASTERS

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.

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Style: Old Masters
17th Century Dutch engraving 'Mein Greit; Mein Greit'
17th Century Dutch engraving 'Mein Greit; Mein Greit'

Julius Goltzius 17th Century Dutch engraving 'Mein Greit; Mein Greit'

$2,063

17th Century Dutch engraving 'Mein Greit; Mein Greit'

Located in Petworth, West Sussex

Julius Goltzius (Dutch c.1550-1595) Mein Greit; Mein Greit Engraving 6.5/8 x 11.3/8 in. (16.8 x 29 cm.) (measured to slip edge) Christie’s have suggested this impression is from the ...

Category

17th Century Old Masters Art

Materials

Engraving

The Physiognomy - Etching by Thomas Holloway - 1810

Thomas HollowayThe Physiognomy - Etching by Thomas Holloway - 1810, 1810

$545

The Physiognomy - Etching by Thomas Holloway - 1810

Located in Roma, IT

The Physiognomy - The Portrait is an original etching artwork realized by Thomas Holloway for Johann Caspar Lavater's "Essays on Physiognomy, Designed to Promote the Knowledge and th...

Category

1810s Old Masters Art

Materials

Etching

La Femme Muse /// Allegorical Symbolism Romantic Old Masters European Drawing
La Femme Muse /// Allegorical Symbolism Romantic Old Masters European Drawing

La Femme Muse /// Allegorical Symbolism Romantic Old Masters European Drawing, Circa: 1780

$1,800

La Femme Muse /// Allegorical Symbolism Romantic Old Masters European Drawing

Located in Saint Augustine, FL

Artist: Unknown (Likely French, 18th Century) Title: "La Femme Muse" *No signature found Circa: 1780 Medium: Original Pastel Drawing on heavy laid paper Framing: Recently beautifully...

Category

1780s Old Masters Art

Materials

Pastel, Laid Paper

Study of Five Heads - Original Etching by J.-J. Boissieu

Jean-Jacques de BoissieuStudy of Five Heads - Original Etching by J.-J. Boissieu, Second Half of 18th Century

$284

Study of Five Heads - Original Etching by J.-J. Boissieu

By Jean-Jacques de Boissieu

Located in Roma, IT

Study of Five Heads is a beautiful black and white etching with drypoint interventions on paper, realized at the end of XVIII century by the French artist Jean-Jacques de Boissieu (Lyon, 1736- 1810). Five study of heads of which two profiles (a female and a male) are lightly sketched with the drypoint technique, and we could appreciate the incredible draftsmanship. Instead, the bigger three portraits are very detailed and etched with a superb technique. Although the subjects are drawn in different scales and with different degrees of finish, each portrait has the dignity of a unique piece and the composition is very balanced. In particular on the lower margin at the center there is the portrait of "Le Père Cotrot, Garçon Teinturier à Lyon'", an elderly man, toothless and with a large-nosed, slightly turned to left, with a hat and unbuttoned jacket over waistcoat, shows all his wrinkles in a very realistic way. Signed on plate on lower right margin “De Boissieu”. This old master’s original print with fresh impressions, is in very good conditions, except for a usual yellowing of the paper above all on the edges and some signs of the time and light foxing along the margins, do not affect the image. Jean-Jacques de Boissieu (Lyon,1736 –1810) Jean-Jacques de Boissieu was a French artist studied at the École de Dessin in Lyon, but he was mostly self-taught. His first prints were realized between 1758–64. When he went to Italy in the retinue of the ambassador and Duc de la Rochefoucauld d’Enville, he had the lifechanging encounter: he met Voltaire and he entered in the world of luminaries, he had the opportunity of realizing some plates for the Diderot-d’Alembert’s Encyclopèdie. Then he continued to produce prints in Lyon, Boissieu made many etchings of the Roman and Dutch countryside, as well as the French countryside around Lyon, which earned him a reputation as the last representative of the older etching...

Category

Late 18th Century Old Masters Art

Materials

Drypoint, Etching

Atraphaxis (Shrub); Cabomba (Carolina Fanwort) /// Botanical Botany Plants Art
Atraphaxis (Shrub); Cabomba (Carolina Fanwort) /// Botanical Botany Plants Art

Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de BuffonAtraphaxis (Shrub); Cabomba (Carolina Fanwort) /// Botanical Botany Plants Art, 1749-1789

$450

Atraphaxis (Shrub); Cabomba (Carolina Fanwort) /// Botanical Botany Plants Art

By Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon

Located in Saint Augustine, FL

Artist: Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (French, 1707-1788) Title: "Atraphaxis (Shrub); Cabomba (Carolina Fanwort)" (Hexandrie, Digynie, Plate 265) Portfolio: Histoire Naturel...

Category

2010s Old Masters Art

Materials

Watercolor, Laid Paper, Engraving, Intaglio

Ancient Roman Statue - Original Etching - 18th Century

Ancient Roman Statue - Original Etching - 18th Century, Late 18th Century

$237

Ancient Roman Statue - Original Etching - 18th Century

Located in Roma, IT

Ancient Roman Statue, from the series "Antiquities of Herculaneum", is an original etching on paper realized by An anonymous artist in the 18th century. Signed on the plate on the l...

Category

Late 18th Century Old Masters Art

Materials

Etching

Phinée - Etching by Bernard Picart - 1742
Phinée - Etching by Bernard Picart - 1742

Bernard PicartPhinée - Etching by Bernard Picart - 1742, 1742

$593

Phinée - Etching by Bernard Picart - 1742

By Bernard Picart

Located in Roma, IT

Black and white etching on wire rod paper, representing the Greek myth of Phineus. Beautiful plate with fresh impression and sharp details, from the volume “Le Temple des Muses”, pu...

Category

1740s Old Masters Art

Materials

Etching

Picris (Sunflower); Helmintia (Bristly Oxtongue) /// Botanical Botany Plants Art
Picris (Sunflower); Helmintia (Bristly Oxtongue) /// Botanical Botany Plants Art

Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de BuffonPicris (Sunflower); Helmintia (Bristly Oxtongue) /// Botanical Botany Plants Art, 1749-1789

$350

Picris (Sunflower); Helmintia (Bristly Oxtongue) /// Botanical Botany Plants Art

By Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon

Located in Saint Augustine, FL

Artist: Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (French, 1707-1788) Title: "Picris (Sunflower); Helmintia (Bristly Oxtongue)" (Syngenesie; Polygamie, Plate 648) Portfolio: Histoire Na...

Category

1740s Old Masters Art

Materials

Watercolor, Laid Paper, Engraving, Intaglio

Profile of Man, Old Masters Lithograph after Andrea del Sarto

Andrea Del SartoProfile of Man, Old Masters Lithograph after Andrea del Sarto, 16th Century

$750

Profile of Man, Old Masters Lithograph after Andrea del Sarto

By Andrea Del Sarto

Located in Long Island City, NY

Andrea del Sarto, After by Alphonse Leroy, Italian (1486 - 1530) - Profile of Man, Medium: Lithograph, Image Size: 10.25 x 7.5 inches, Size: 19.5 x 14 in. (49.53 x 35.56 cm), Fram...

Category

16th Century Old Masters Art

Materials

Lithograph

La Pompe Notre Dame

Charles MeryonLa Pompe Notre Dame, 1852

$14,835

La Pompe Notre Dame

By Charles Meryon

Located in Roma, IT

This original etching is titled and dated on plate. Monogram of the artist "MC" on higher right margin. Edition of 30 prints, 9 State. Very good conditions. Charles Méryon was a Fre...

Category

1850s Old Masters Art

Materials

Etching

Old Masters art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Old Masters 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 orange, yellow, blue and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Charles Amand Durand, Giuseppe Vasi, Thomas Holloway, and Vincenzo Campana. Frequently made by artists working with Etching, and 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 Old Masters art, so small editions measuring 0.4 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 $1,495,000, while the average work sells for $546.

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