Skip to main content

Photorealist Art

2,979 Results
PHOTOREALISM

A direct challenge to Abstract Expressionism’s subjectivity and gestural vigor, Photorealism was informed by the Pop predilection for representational imagery, popular iconography and tools, like projectors and airbrushes, borrowed from the worlds of commercial art and design.

Whether gritty or gleaming, the subject matter favored by Photorealists is instantly, if vaguely, familiar. It’s the stuff of yellowing snapshots and fugitive memories. The bland and the garish alike flicker between crystal-clear reality and dreamy illusion, inviting the viewer to contemplate a single moment rather than igniting a story.

The virtues of the “photo” in Photorealist art — infused as they are with dazzling qualities that are easily blurred in reproduction — are as elusive as they are allusive. “Much Photorealist painting has the vacuity of proportion and intent of an idiot-savant, long on look and short on personal timbre,” John Arthur wrote (rather admiringly) in the catalogue essay for Realism/Photorealism, a 1980 exhibition at the Philbrook Museum of Art, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. At its best, Photorealism is a perpetually paused tug-of-war between the sacred and the profane, the general and the specific, the record and the object.

Robert Bechtle invented Photorealism, in 1963,” says veteran art dealer Louis Meisel. “He took a picture of himself in the mirror with the car outside and then painted it. That was the first one.”

The meaning of the term, which began for Meisel as “a superficial way of defining and promoting a group of painters,” evolved with time, and the core group of Photorealists slowly expanded to include younger artists who traded Rolleiflexes for 60-megapixel cameras, using advanced digital technology to create paintings that transcend the detail of conventional photographs.

On 1stDibs, the collection of Photorealist art includes work by Richard Estes, Ralph Goings, Chuck Close, Audrey Flack, Charles Bell and others.

to
540
680
850
435
509
725
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
1
3
1,200
1,992
5
1
26
12
21
131
116
198
219
92
120,003
64,137
57,171
29,249
14,516
9,683
6,987
6,314
4,261
2,521
2,322
2,127
590
1,506
1,318
351
1,249
606
472
394
376
337
322
290
269
221
194
191
180
153
151
150
145
144
113
110
1,272
933
706
666
638
191
70
65
48
48
808
930
2,358
724
Style: Photorealist
Kate Bush

Kate Bush

By Gered Mankowitz

Located in Austin, TX

Absolutely stunning portrait of singer Kate Bush by acclaimed photographer, Gered Mankowitz, taken in his London studio in 1978. Kate Bush has seen a huge r...

Category

Late 20th Century Photorealist Art

Materials

C Print

Reflections on Forest Pond in the English Countryside with Warm Yellows & Browns
Reflections on Forest Pond in the English Countryside with Warm Yellows & Browns

Reflections on Forest Pond in the English Countryside with Warm Yellows & Browns

By Christopher Osborne

Located in Preston, GB

Reflections on Forest Pond in the English Countryside with Warm Yellows & Browns, by 20th Century British Artist, Christopher Osborne. Art measures 12 x 10 inches Frame measures 18 ...

Category

1970s Photorealist Art

Materials

Oil, Board

"After, " Original Still Life Oil Painting, Donuts
"After, " Original Still Life Oil Painting, Donuts

"After, " Original Still Life Oil Painting, Donuts

By Gregory Block

Located in Denver, CO

This work is part of a group exhibition at the Arvada Center for the Arts (September 10 - November 8, 2026). Available for purchase; shipping begins mid-November. Gregory Block's (U...

Category

2010s Photorealist Art

Materials

Oil, Board

Stargazer Lily '86, Lowell Nesbitt
Stargazer Lily '86, Lowell Nesbitt

Stargazer Lily '86, Lowell Nesbitt

By Lowell Nesbitt

Located in Fairfield, CT

Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933–1993) Title: Stargazer Lily '86 Year: 1986 Medium: Pastel on handmade paper Size: 24 x 23 inches Condition: Excellent Inscription: Signed, dated by the a...

Category

1980s Photorealist Art

Materials

Pastel, Handmade Paper

East River Drive

East River Drive

By Norman Parkinson

Located in Austin, TX

East River Drive by Norman Parkinson. Robin Miller and Pippa Diggle photographed on the South Street Viaduct beneath Manhattan Bridge for Go Magazine, 1960 ...

Category

Late 20th Century Photorealist Art

Materials

C Print

David Bowie "He'd Blow Our Minds" by Sukita

David Bowie "He'd Blow Our Minds" by Sukita

By Masayoshi Sukita

Located in Austin, TX

16" x 20", signed limited edition print of David Bowie, titled "He'd Blow Our Minds" by Masayoshi Sukita. This print is also available as a 30x40" signed limited edition print. “...

Category

Late 20th Century Photorealist Art

Materials

C Print

Peaceful beach, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas
Peaceful beach, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas

Peaceful beach, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas

By Ana Hefco

Located in Yardley, PA

Unique ocean and beach paintings with gold sand and frothy splashing waves, inspired by the Turks And Caicos Islands Ocean Seascape Painting with gold sand beach and frothy white sp...

Category

2010s Photorealist Art

Materials

Acrylic

Break Time, American Photorealist, Coffee
Break Time, American Photorealist, Coffee

Break Time, American Photorealist, Coffee

Located in Grand Rapids, MI

Michael Sheets (American, born 1947) Signed: SHEETS 1981 (Lower, Right) " Break Time ", 1981 Acrylic on canvas 32" x 48" Housed in a 1/2 Silver Me...

Category

Late 20th Century Photorealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Willie Nelson playing pool

Willie Nelson playing pool

By Scott Newton

Located in Austin, TX

Willie Nelson, taken playing pool at the Pedernales Studio's in 1983 by photographer Scott Newton Signed limited edition print, printed on heavyweight co...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

"Water lilies"
"Water lilies"

"Water lilies"

By Madalena Zampassi

Located in Edinburgh, GB

This painting was inspired by nature, specifically the beauty of water lilies. It was painted outdoors, en plein air, and later refined in the studio.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Greta Garbo - Black and White Photograph by Clarence Sinclair Bull, 1930
Greta Garbo - Black and White Photograph by Clarence Sinclair Bull, 1930

Greta Garbo - Black and White Photograph by Clarence Sinclair Bull, 1930

By Clarence Sinclair Bull

Located in Soquel, CA

Greta Garbo - Black and White Photograph by Clarence Sinclair Bull, 1930 1930 Black and white portrait photograph of Swedish/American actress Greta Garbo (Swedish, 1905-1990) by Clarence Sinclair Bull (American, 1896-1979). Greta Garbo poses in a top hat and collard shirt while gazing away from the camera. Printed by the artist circa 1970's. A black and white photograph, matte finish, double-weight paper, depicting a 1931 shot of the star titled 'Mata Hari,' printed decades later from the original negative, pencilled in the lower left corner "A.P.," Estate stamped and blind embossed in the lower right corner "Clarence Sinclair Bull," further blind embossed in same corner "The Kobal / Collection," verso with the photographer's black ink credit stamp, verso further with two "Edward Weston" black ink credit stamps dated "1981" and "1992," originally from the John Kobal Collection. Greta Garbo was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses of all time, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragic characters, and her subtle and understated performances. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Garbo fifth on its list of the greatest female stars of classic Hollywood cinema. Clarence Sinclair Bull was born in Sun River, Montana, in 1896. His career began when Samuel Goldwyn hired him in 1920 to photograph publicity stills of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio's stars. He is most famous for his photographs of Greta Garbo, taken between 1926 and 1941. Bull's first portrait of Garbo was a costume study for the silent romantic drama film Flesh and the Devil in September 1926. Bull was able to study with the great Western painter...

Category

1930s Photorealist Art

Materials

Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

The Beatles, Our World 1967

The Beatles, Our World 1967

By Alec Byrne

Located in Austin, TX

Signed limited edition print of The Beatles by Alec Byrne, taken at Abbey Road Studios, London, Jun. 24, 1967 Alec recalls “This wasn’t just any band: It was the Beatles. Everyone w...

Category

Late 20th Century Photorealist Art

Materials

Archival Pigment, Silver Gelatin

Ian Hornak, Sorcerer Series: Beast Head, Spider Web, 1969
Ian Hornak, Sorcerer Series: Beast Head, Spider Web, 1969

Ian Hornak, Sorcerer Series: Beast Head, Spider Web, 1969

By Ian Hornak

Located in Fairfield, CT

Artist: Ian Hornak (1944–2002) Title: Sorcerer Series: Beast Head, Spider Web Year: 1969 Medium: Acrylic on canvas Size: 72 x 48 inches (182.88 x 121.92 cm) Condition: Well preserve...

Category

1960s Photorealist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Canvas

"Allegheny Cemetery", Oil Painting

"Allegheny Cemetery", Oil Painting

By Adrienne Stein

Located in Denver, CO

Adrienne Stein's (US based) "Allegheny Cemetery" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts an angel statue in a cemetery at dawn. About the artist: Adrienne Stein (b. 198...

Category

2010s Photorealist Art

Materials

Linen, Oil

The Beastie Boys 1994

The Beastie Boys 1994

By Jake Chessum

Located in Austin, TX

Signed limited edition print of the Beastie Boys by Jake Chessum. Jake recalls ” This was from April 1994. I flew from London to shoot at Mike D’s ba...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Art

Materials

C Print

Kate Bush Lionheart album back cover

Kate Bush Lionheart album back cover

By Gered Mankowitz

Located in Austin, TX

Portrait of singer and dancer, Kate Bush by acclaimed photographer, Gered Mankowitz, taken in his London studio in 1978 for the back cover of her album, Lionheart. Gered recalls, "The cover series of portraits that I shot for Lionheart in August 1978. I art directed the album cover and my assistant at the time, Richard Grey...

Category

Late 20th Century Photorealist Art

Materials

C Print

The Beastie Boys

The Beastie Boys

By Jake Chessum

Located in Austin, TX

Signed limited edition print of the Beastie Boys by Jake Chessum. Jake recalls ” This was from April 1994. I flew from London to shoot at Mike D’s ba...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Art

Materials

C Print

Nick Cave
Nick Cave

Nick Cave

By Kevin Cummins

Located in Austin, TX

Signed limited edition 16x20" silver gelatin print of Nick Cave by celebrated British photographer, Kevin Cummins, taken for the British music publication, N...

Category

Late 20th Century Photorealist Art

Materials

Silver Gelatin

RAM C&N RR -Steel Bridge, Chicago Skyscraper, Contemporary Photorealist Painting
RAM C&N RR -Steel Bridge, Chicago Skyscraper, Contemporary Photorealist Painting

RAM C&N RR -Steel Bridge, Chicago Skyscraper, Contemporary Photorealist Painting

By Roland Kulla

Located in Chicago, IL

I’ve always been attracted to the built environment. Bridges are a great subject. Each one is specially engineered to solve the problem of how to get across the void. While usually n...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Large Acrylic Photorealist Painting Nature Scene Water & Light David Kessler
Large Acrylic Photorealist Painting Nature Scene Water & Light David Kessler

Large Acrylic Photorealist Painting Nature Scene Water & Light David Kessler

By David Kessler

Located in Surfside, FL

DAVID KESSLER (American born 1950 - ) Greyed Magic #2 (Water and Light Series) Acrylic on canvas Hand signed and titled with artist's studio stamp on verso 60 inches x 84 inches David T. Kessler was born in Park Ridge, New Jersey in 1950. He attended Arizona State University, where he received the award for Outstanding Graduate in Studio Art in 1972. In 1973, David was one of 12 painters accepted into the graduate program at The San Francisco Art Institute, where he received his M.F.A. in 1975. He is well known for his holographic airbrush paintings on aluminum. His paintings have been exhibited internationally since 1977, with shows in Tokyo, Strasbourg, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Scottsdale, and New York. Kessler's paintings are in the permanent collections of The Strasbourg Contemporary Museum of Art, The Brooklyn Museum, The Minnesota Museum of Art, The Museum of the Rhode Island School of Design, The Santa Barbara Museum, The Barrington Art Center, and others. Within Arizona, his work is in the collections of The Phoenix Art Museum, The Scottsdale Center for the Arts, The Tucson Museum of Art, Arizona State University Art Museum, and Northern Arizona University Art Museum. Photorealism is a genre of art that encompasses painting, drawing and other graphic media. An American art movement that began in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Photorealism evolved from Pop Art as a counter to Abstract Expressionism as well as Minimalist art movements. Though Photorealists share some aspects of American realists, such as Edward Hopper, they tried to set themselves as much apart from traditional realists as they did Abstract Expressionists. Photorealists were much more influenced by the work of Pop artists and were reacting against Abstract Expressionism. The word Photorealism was coined by Louis K. Meisel in 1969 and appeared in print for the first time in 1970 in a Whitney Museum catalogue for the show "Twenty-two Realists." It is also sometimes labeled as Super-Realism, New Realism, Sharp Focus Realism...

Category

20th Century Photorealist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Peonies, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Peonies, Painting, Oil on Canvas

Peonies, Painting, Oil on Canvas

By Elena Podmarkova

Located in Yardley, PA

Peonies, 2023 year :: Painting :: Photorealism :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenticity signed by the artist :: Ready to Hang: Yes :: Signed: Yes :: Signatur...

Category

2010s Photorealist Art

Materials

Oil

Still Life with Baroque Cauliflower, Artichokes and Radishes
Still Life with Baroque Cauliflower, Artichokes and Radishes

Still Life with Baroque Cauliflower, Artichokes and Radishes

By Ian Hornak

Located in Fairfield, CT

Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002) Title: Still Life with Baroque Cauliflower, Artichokes and Radishes Year: 2002 Medium: Oil on Panel with artist painted frame Size: 42 x 31.5 inches Co...

Category

Early 2000s Photorealist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Wood Panel

Woman In Ballet Pose Holding a Flower - San Francisco Richard Edwards
Woman In Ballet Pose Holding a Flower - San Francisco Richard Edwards

Woman In Ballet Pose Holding a Flower - San Francisco Richard Edwards

By Richard Edwards

Located in Soquel, CA

Woman In Ballet Pose Holding a Flower - San Francisco Richard Edwards A brunette woman poses, standing on her left leg with her hand out holding a flower. A collection of photograph...

Category

1960s Photorealist Art

Materials

Paper, Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Porsche 917K Salzburg, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas
Porsche 917K Salzburg, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas

Porsche 917K Salzburg, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas

By Benjamin Self

Located in Yardley, PA

A large original painting of the LeMans 24-hour winning car from 1971. The is a Porsche 917K Salzburg, created on 92x73cm stretched canvas using acrylic paint, partially airbrushed. ...

Category

2010s Photorealist Art

Materials

Acrylic

Hannah's Mirror, Variation #3: The Expulsion from Eden
Hannah's Mirror, Variation #3: The Expulsion from Eden

Hannah's Mirror, Variation #3: The Expulsion from Eden

By Ian Hornak

Located in Long Island City, NY

Artist: Ian Hornak Title: Hannah's Mirror, Variation #3: The Expulsion from Eden Year: 1977 Medium: Oil on Canvas, signed, dated, and titled verso Size: 42 x 60 inches (106.68 x 152....

Category

1970s Photorealist Art

Materials

Oil

"Cherry Cheesecake"  Large Photo-Realist Painting, Slice and Bright Red Cherries
"Cherry Cheesecake"  Large Photo-Realist Painting, Slice and Bright Red Cherries

"Cherry Cheesecake" Large Photo-Realist Painting, Slice and Bright Red Cherries

By Mary Ellen Johnson

Located in Wellesley, MA

Mary Ellen Johnson is internationally recognized as one of the top Photo Realist painters working today whose extraordinary area of expertise is large-scale, unimaginably realistic, stunningly beautiful and delightful images of food. Currently available are this delicious slice of cherry cheesecake, a slice of cherry pie with vanilla ice cream, an equally gorgeous strawberry parfait sundae, and a bowl of mixed berries with whipped cream: Mary Ellen Johnson "Cherry Cheesecake" 2010 Oil on Wood Panel 38 x 27.5 Inches Note: This painting is framed in dark wood. THE BACKGROUND IS A VERY LIGHT CREAM SOLID COLOR WITH THE SHADOW. The artist has also completed many commissioned food paintings including the Canadian Government's request for images of 5 of Canada's favorite foods which subsequently became stamp images - and The Cheesecake Factory's two commissions for their corporate headquarters and the owners' Malibu beach house. A quote from the artist: “I make the panels large to give a monumental feeling to the painting when viewed. These large images not only confront the viewer with their size but with their tremendous sense of extravagance. My work explores the deep connection that food has with humanity.” Mary Ellen Johnson Johnson further describes herself as a ‘Precision Realist’ whose primary subject is food. Sold works include paintings of PB & J sandwiches, pancakes with blueberries and syrup, banana splits, ice cream, hot dogs, cupcakes, waffles, muscles and sushi, among others. Unequaled for their brilliance and dramatic depictions of mundane subjects with their connotations of nostalgia, comfort and tradition, it is also her scale, cropping and over the top technical skill that renders these works so overwhelmingly appealing! MARY ELLEN JOHNSON Born: 1967, West Long Branch, NJ. Education: 1989, Ringling School of Art and Design, Sarasota ONE PERSON EXHIBITIONS: Beth Urdang...

Category

2010s Photorealist Art

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

Photorealist art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Photorealist 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 blue, red, purple, orange and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Alex Sher, Gregory Block, Lowell Nesbitt, and Ian Hornak. 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 Photorealist art, so small editions measuring 0.79 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 $585,000, while the average work sells for $2,404.