Skip to main content

Realist Art

REALIST STYLE

Realist art attempts to portray its subject matter without artifice. Similar to naturalism, authentic realist paintings and prints see an integration of true-to-life colors, meticulous detail and linear perspectives for accurate portrayals of the world. 

Work that involves illusionistic techniques of realism dates back to the classical world, such as the deceptive trompe l’oeil used since ancient Greece. Art like this became especially popular in the 17th century when Dutch artists like Evert Collier painted objects that appeared real enough to touch. Realism as an artistic movement, however, usually refers to 19th-century French realist artists such as Honoré Daumier exploring social and political issues in biting lithographic prints, while the likes of Gustave Courbet and Jean-François Millet painting people — particularly the working class — with all their imperfections, navigating everyday urban life. This was a response to the dominant academic art tradition that favored grand paintings of myth and history. 

By the turn of the 20th century, European artists, such as the Pre-Raphaelites, were experimenting with nearly photographic realism in their work, as seen in the attention to every botanical attribute of the flowers surrounding the drowned Ophelia painted by English artist John Everett Millais.

Although abstraction was the guiding style of 20th-century art, the realism trend in American modern art endured in Edward Hopper, Andrew Wyeth and other artists’ depictions of the complexities of the human experience. In the late 1960s, Photorealism emerged with artists like Chuck Close and Richard Estes giving their paintings the precision of a frame of film.

Contemporary artists such as Jordan Casteel, LaToya Ruby Frazier and Aliza Nisenbaum are now using the unvarnished realist approach for honest representations of people and their worlds. Alongside traditional mediums, technology such as virtual reality, artificial intelligence and immersive installations are helping artists create new sensations of realism in art.

​​Find authentic realist paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs.

to
1,382
5,241
3,129
2,696
1,977
1,820
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
335
1,174
6,078
7,301
125
71
119
144
171
656
1,235
1,307
793
301
199
116,670
63,731
56,621
28,588
14,660
9,568
6,634
5,884
4,173
3,155
2,493
2,383
2,137
613
7,326
5,055
1,794
5,836
2,954
2,143
1,806
1,773
1,288
1,269
1,130
988
981
861
854
703
702
682
641
625
572
538
500
8,123
5,751
3,321
3,084
3,083
3,225
133
98
86
76
4,062
4,465
9,836
3,971
Style: Realist
Marina Large Pink Oil Painting With Woman and Sail Boats
Marina Large Pink Oil Painting With Woman and Sail Boats

Marina Large Pink Oil Painting With Woman and Sail Boats

By Felix Mas

Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL

Marina large pink oil painting with woman and sail boats. Artist signed, dated and titled, floater frame. Ethereal oil on canvas figural painting, titled Playa Amarillo (Yellow Beach...

Category

1980s Realist Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

British Chalk Pencil Sketch Of A Cow's Body With White Features
British Chalk Pencil Sketch Of A Cow's Body With White Features

British Chalk Pencil Sketch Of A Cow's Body With White Features

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

John Rabone Harvey ( 1966 - 1922) graphic and chalk deep green artist paper , unframed artist paper : 5.5 x 7 inches Provenance: private collection Condition: very good condition Ha...

Category

Mid-19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Chalk, Graphite

Lake District Cumbria Landscape Fine English Oil Painting Open Panoramic View
Lake District Cumbria Landscape Fine English Oil Painting Open Panoramic View

Lake District Cumbria Landscape Fine English Oil Painting Open Panoramic View

By Arthur Terry Blamires

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

"Great Gable and Black Sail Youth Hostel Emmerdale" by ARTHUR TERRY BLAMIRES (b.1930) signed and dated, 1995 oil painting on canvas, framed canvas: 20 x 3...

Category

Late 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Pinienhain" original etching

"Pinienhain" original etching

Located in Henderson, NV

Medium: original etching. Printed in 1900 and published in Leipzig, Germany for Zeitschrift für Bildende Kunst. This impression is printed on cream wove paper, and the image size is ...

Category

Early 1900s Realist Art

Materials

Etching

Just an Еlevator
Just an Еlevator

Just an Еlevator

Located in Zofingen, AG

This surreal contemporary painting presents a psychologically charged interior scene in which a traditional wooden elevator opens into an impossible sky. A solitary young woman dress...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic

Himmelstrasse, Austria
Himmelstrasse, Austria

Himmelstrasse, Austria

By Luigi Kasimir

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork titled "Himmelstrasse, Austria" c.1950 is an original color etching by Austrian artist Luigi Kasimir 1881-1962. It is hand signed in pencil at the lower center by the a...

Category

Early 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Etching

"Anoop's Place" Oil Painting

"Anoop's Place" Oil Painting

By Raymond Bonilla

Located in Denver, CO

Raymond Bonilla's "Anoop's Place" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts the façade of a brick building with balconies as the morning light hits its surface. About the Artist: Raymond Bonilla is a nationally recognized illustrator and fine artist in Buffalo, NY. Raymond graduated from the State University in New York at Fredonia in 2005 with a degree in New Media and Illustration. He continued his studies at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco where he completed his Masters of Fine Art in 2009. He was awarded Best in Show in the Great Lakes Emerging Artist Competition, was a finalist in the Artists Magazine Annual Art Competition, has been awarded Gold Medals in advertising from both Society of Illustrators of New York and Los Angeles, and juried into the Communication Arts Illustration Annual. He currently lives in Buffalo, New York where he spends his time painting and teaching part-time at SmART School and Visual Arts Passage. He is represented by Principle Gallery in Alexandria...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

FINE ORIGINAL ANTIQUE 18th CENTURY BRITISH OIL PAINTING MAN O WAR
FINE ORIGINAL ANTIQUE 18th CENTURY BRITISH OIL PAINTING MAN O WAR

FINE ORIGINAL ANTIQUE 18th CENTURY BRITISH OIL PAINTING MAN O WAR

Located in Ferndown, GB

FINE ORIGINAL ANTIQUE 18th CENTURY BRITISH OIL PAINTING MAN O WAR IN HARBOUR Description Good Condition canvas but very old with some browning in places (see picture). Cleaned ,re-...

Category

Mid-18th Century Realist Art

Materials

Oil

British Chalk Pencil Sketch of a Cow Posed Lying On The Ground
British Chalk Pencil Sketch of a Cow Posed Lying On The Ground

British Chalk Pencil Sketch of a Cow Posed Lying On The Ground

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

John Rabone Harvey ( 1966 - 1922) graphic and chalk deep green artist paper , unframed artist paper : 5.5 x 7 inches Provenance: private collection Condition: very good condition Ha...

Category

Mid-19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Chalk, Graphite

"Spectator" - Original Oil Painting on Copper Leaf Panel
"Spectator" - Original Oil Painting on Copper Leaf Panel

"Spectator" - Original Oil Painting on Copper Leaf Panel

Located in Denver, CO

Artist Statement I grew up in a small town west of St. Louis, MO.  To be more specific, I grew up in the woods outside of that small town.  Not having many human children around, my...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Copper

Aida
Aida

Aida

By Gaston Leroux

Located in New York, NY

GASTON LEROUX "Aida" Modeled scantily clad in a robe and head garment seated on a sculpted head of an Egyptian Pharoah, with a tambourine in her hand, with a green and brown patina, ...

Category

19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Bronze

After the Rain...
After the Rain...

After the Rain...

Located in Zofingen, AG

The quiet after a recent rain sets the stage, revealing a tranquil landscape. A vintage convertible and a solitary figure by an ice machine evoke a nostalgic, timeless scene. This ar...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

The dreamer
The dreamer

The dreamer

Located in Zofingen, AG

Once upon a time there was one tough girl. She did a lot of mistakes in her life and survived a lot of falls, including falls on the asphalt from her motorcycles and many times she balanced on the edge of life. But she didn't lost her good temper and ability to dream. *** In 2021 Evgeniy Monahov...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Sepia Toned Photograph - Portrait of Ruth - Berkeley 1968
Sepia Toned Photograph - Portrait of Ruth - Berkeley 1968

Sepia Toned Photograph - Portrait of Ruth - Berkeley 1968

Located in Soquel, CA

Photo portrait of a woman by Arnulf Rabl (German-American, 1942-2016). In this soft portrait, the woman has her head turned slightly down, with closed eyes. There is light striking t...

Category

1960s Realist Art

Materials

Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Animal scene Duck hunting with dogs 18th century Swedish Master by Philip Korn
Animal scene Duck hunting with dogs 18th century Swedish Master by Philip Korn

Animal scene Duck hunting with dogs 18th century Swedish Master by Philip Korn

Located in Stockholm, SE

Monogrammed lower left: Johan Philip Korn (1728 - 1796), was a Swedish painter. A beautiful landscape, with a backwater in which carefree ducks swim, hunters and their dogs in passion, in the background you can see a city with a bell tower. Old masters have been depicting animals in their paintings since the Renaissance. In those days, hunting scenes were popular - there is always a share of emotional participation in them. Here it is necessary to understand that in previous centuries people looked at hunting as a means of obtaining food, therefore naturalism dominates in the painting of the old masters. Old oil painting on wooden panel, in a non-original frame of the 19th century. Size app.: 49 x 64 cm (roughly 19.3 x 25.2 in) and nice golden gesso frame ca 65.5 x 81.5 cm (roughly 25.8 x 32.1 in). Very Good condition, age wear, cracks on a wooden board, minor losses, retouches, cleared and conserved. Please study good resolution images for overall cosmetic condition. In person actual painting may appear darker or brighter than in our pictures, strictly depending on sufficient light in your environment. Weight of app. 6.4 kg is going to measure some 10 kg volume weight packed for shipment. Johan Philip Korn first began his career as a decorative painter. He was a student of artist Johan Sevenbom (1721-1784). After further studies he changed to landscape painting in the Rococo style of French artist François Boucher (1703–1770) and often after Dutch copper engravings. In 1759, Korn became master of the Stockholm...

Category

18th Century Realist Art

Materials

Wood, Oil

Portrait of an Edwardian Dandy (Man)
Portrait of an Edwardian Dandy (Man)

Portrait of an Edwardian Dandy (Man)

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Portrait of an Edwardian Dandy Gentleman, 2003. Acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20 inches. Signed with monogram and dated lower right.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

Morning Sun, Shark Harbor; Catalina Island
Morning Sun, Shark Harbor; Catalina Island

Morning Sun, Shark Harbor; Catalina Island

By Joseph Paquet

Located in Pasadena, CA

Provenance Acquired by the gallery directly from the artist Signed " J. PAQUET" on lower right corner. Artist Statement "This unique vantage point could only be accessed by jeep. I...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

This is a Real Place! 2: large painting of lake or river w/ blue water & bridge
This is a Real Place! 2: large painting of lake or river w/ blue water & bridge

This is a Real Place! 2: large painting of lake or river w/ blue water & bridge

By Brooke Lanier

Located in Bryn Mawr, PA

"In the series “This is a real place!” I was fascinated by how the underside of the pier at Saint Simons Island, GA was like a readymade collage. The way the pilings and rails divide and frame the spaces between them looks artificially imposed on the scene until you notice the way the waves bounce off the pilings and the railings cast shadows on the water. In some iterations, I chose to simplify the structures of the pier and lighten the values so that it would emphasize the detail in the water. Likewise, I omitted a family of starlings and their droppings in favor of highlighting the geometry of the architecture and the colors and patterns of the water. Making paintings in a series allows me to investigate the results of making different decisions about an image. How I crop or stylize it, the manner in which I apply the paint, what gets included or excluded all add shades of meaning to each piece. Additionally, depictions of the same subject in different weather, seasons, times of day, and tides allows me a deeper understanding. I notice more relationships, colors, and details every time I paint the subject. Every painting is a pile of decisions. Playing with removing more and more details to see what is truly important sometimes improves the painting. The fewer elements you include in an image, the more each one means, and the more important it is to get each thing perfect. At times I like to paint every single detail I can find in a scene, and other times I feel like the unadorned components are sufficient to hold each other in a satisfying composition. I often add simplified shapes to my paintings to highlight the presence of absence or to heighten the importance of each area by creating stark visual contrasts. ⁠The physicality of the paint also plays a role. I used highly textured, thickly applied paint to construct the solid structural elements, and luminous layers of thinly glazed paint for the delicate linework and subtle blending of the water." - Brooke Lanier...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Beginning of Spring"
"Beginning of Spring"

"Beginning of Spring"

Located in Edinburgh, GB

“Beginning of Spring” (3rd quarter of the 20th century) Oil on canvas 100 × 150 cm Signed lower right Born in Golitsyno in 1916 into the family of Russian painter Konstantin Kirillo...

Category

20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Cowards - Three Male Figures, Framed Original Oil Painting on Panel
Cowards - Three Male Figures, Framed Original Oil Painting on Panel

Cowards - Three Male Figures, Framed Original Oil Painting on Panel

Located in Chicago, IL

Three figures, bent forward with their hands over their heads, seem caught in an emotional storm. Their mirrored postures convey shame, fear, and helplessness—states central to grief...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

Tigress Acrylic and Oil Painting on Canvas, Realist Style, 2000
Tigress Acrylic and Oil Painting on Canvas, Realist Style, 2000

Tigress Acrylic and Oil Painting on Canvas, Realist Style, 2000

Located in Sitges, Barcelona

Author: Rodolfo Ramírez Cardo (Havana, Cuba) Title: Version of “Tigress” by Karl Bang Year: 2000 Technique: Acrylic and oil on canvas Dimensions: 64 x 85 cm (25.2 x 33.5 in) (unframe...

Category

Early 2000s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Vintage Floral Still Life Oil Painting Roses Signed Framed Classic Bouquet
Vintage Floral Still Life Oil Painting Roses Signed Framed Classic Bouquet

Vintage Floral Still Life Oil Painting Roses Signed Framed Classic Bouquet

Located in Palm Coast, FL

A beautifully composed original oil painting on canvas, depicting a classic floral still life with a full bouquet of roses arranged in a warm-toned vase. Deep red blooms contrast wit...

Category

Late 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Oil

WHAT THE WATER SEES– Blue Sea Over Stone Surface
WHAT THE WATER SEES– Blue Sea Over Stone Surface

WHAT THE WATER SEES– Blue Sea Over Stone Surface

Located in Zofingen, AG

A quiet revelation from the depths. This painting invites you to see the world through the eyes of water — fluid, luminous, and infinitely sensitive. Rocks, usually firm and still, s...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Realist art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Realist 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, purple, orange, red and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Slim Aarons, Michael Budden, Daniel Pollera, and Su Yu. 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 Realist art, so small editions measuring 0.1 inches across are also available.