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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.

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Style: Realist
"Three Blue, White and Gold Cups Stacked"
"Three Blue, White and Gold Cups Stacked"

"Three Blue, White and Gold Cups Stacked"

By Olga Antonova

Located in Wellesley, MA

Olga Antonova’s subject is compositions of extraordinarily elegant and beautiful cups, plates, teapots, and dishes, but there is something humorous and provocative about these paintings that belies formality: stacked teacups are also amusing, having a kind of jaunty and upbeat personality of their own, polka dots are as endearing to adults as to children, and everyone responds to the 'bling' and sparkle of gold and Antonova’s seemingly effortless ability to paint these radiant details: Olga Antonova "Three Blue, White and Gold Cups...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

Cat Animal Watercolor on Paper Handmade Painting, One of a Kind

Cat Animal Watercolor on Paper Handmade Painting, One of a Kind

Located in Granada Hills, CA

472 Artist: Artyom Abrahamyan, Work: Original Painting, Handmade artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Watercolor on Paper Year: 2025 Style: Classic Art Title: Cat Size: 12 x 16 inch, (30...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Portrait Of A Young Girl  In A Lilac Dress With A Black Bow. Circa 1860. SIgned.
Portrait Of A Young Girl  In A Lilac Dress With A Black Bow. Circa 1860. SIgned.

Portrait Of A Young Girl In A Lilac Dress With A Black Bow. Circa 1860. SIgned.

Located in Firenze, IT

Portrait of a young girl in a lilac dress with a black bow. Circa 1860. Signature below right, partially visible. Size with frame 59cm x 49cm Size without frame 33cm x 24cm The portrait depicts a young girl with an elegant hairstyle, her hair carefully tied back. Dressed in the fashion of the 1860s, her light lilac dress reflects the synthetic aniline colors, a novelty in fashion at the time. A black bow at the neck and slightly black straps accentuate her attire. Represented at mid-length, with a mysterious and melancholic gaze, suggesting a mourning endured over a year ago. The portrait, executed in pastels, chalks, and charcoals on paper, highlights the mastery and speed of the artist's execution. Framed in a vintage oval frame...

Category

Mid-19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Paper, Chalk, Crayon, Carbon Pencil

The ruines Undspunnen and the Jungfrau - Oil on cardboard 19th century
The ruines Undspunnen and the Jungfrau - Oil on cardboard 19th century

The ruines Undspunnen and the Jungfrau - Oil on cardboard 19th century

Located in Geneva, CH

Oil on cardboard sold with frame. The total size with frame is 21x23 cm. The work is unsigned but we can recognize the Ruine Undspunnen and the Jungfrau in Switzerland. Dated around...

Category

19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Cherry Blossoms Spring

Cherry Blossoms Spring

By Jeffrey Vaughn

Located in Fairfield, CT

Jeffrey Vaughn, showing at George Billis Gallery is from Alton, Illinois, received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1978 from Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, and his M...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Danzig
Danzig

Danzig

By Luigi Kasimir

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork titled "Danzig" c.1920, is a color etching on paper by Austrian artist Luigi Kasimir, 1881-1962. It is hand signed in pencil by the artist's estate at the lower center. The plate mark (image) size is 16 x 20 inches, framed size is 26.5 x 30 inches. Custom framed in a wooden silver frame, with light brown matting and dark brown fillets . It is in Excellent condition. About the artist. Luigi Kasimir was born in 1881 at Pettau, today Ptuj, Slovenia, then a part of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. He inherited his talent from his ancestors; his grandfather was a painter and a poet, and his father an officer in the Habsburg army, who later became a professional painter. Kasimir attended the Vienna Academy of Art where he studied under Wilhelm Unger, who introduced him to the technique of the coloured etching, and also to his future wife, the artist Tanna Hoernes.[1] He died in 1962 in Grinzing, a suburb of Vienna.Kasimir was among the first to develop the technique of the coloured etching. Before this, prints were usually hand-coloured with the colour being applied in a casual, haphazard manner. Kasimir would first create a sketch usually in pastel, he then transferred the design on as many as four to six plates, printing one after the other and applying the colour on the plate, all done by hand. Kasimir is mainly famous for his etchings, but he also produced some oil painting, as well as some pastels. One of his favourite genres was the landscape, or veduta. He demonstrated a predisposition street scenes, and tourist landmarks. He depicted places from all over Europe, mainly Italy, Austria, and Germany. He also travelled to the United States to do a series of etchings of famous sights ranging from urban landmarks such as New York City skyscrapers, to natural wonders like Yosemite Valley. Luigi Kasimir’s etchings...

Category

Early 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Etching

"Free from religion"
"Free from religion"

"Free from religion"

Located in Edinburgh, GB

One of the most fascinating topics in religion for me remains the theme of the Last Supper. What did Jesus say to his disciples? This is not the first interpretation I have made on t...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Cityscape
Cityscape

Cityscape

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork titled "Cityscape" c.1930 is an original color etching on wove paper by Austrian/American artist Tana Kasimir Hoernes, 1887-1972. It is hand signed in pencil by the artist. The image (plate mark) size is 12.75 x 9.15 inches, framed size is 19.35 x 15.25 inches. Custom framed in a silver with brown patina frame, with light grey matting and green and red filet. It is in excellent condition, About the artist: Tanna Kasimir...

Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Etching

Frozen Reflections, Original Painting
Frozen Reflections, Original Painting

Frozen Reflections, Original Painting

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
Early morning light glimmers across a winding winter creek, scattering pale blues and cool shadows between the intricate weave of bare branches. Water moves ben...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

"The Disciples" (2023) by Deb Komitor, Original Oil Painting
"The Disciples" (2023) by Deb Komitor, Original Oil Painting

"The Disciples" (2023) by Deb Komitor, Original Oil Painting

By Deb Komitor

Located in Denver, CO

"The Disciples" by Deb Komitor (United States) is a handmade oil painting depicting 3 owls perched in a tree. The piece is on a cradled board with the painting continuing on the side...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Board

Fritz Schulze-Blank – Hen with Chicks, Oil on Cardboard
Fritz Schulze-Blank – Hen with Chicks, Oil on Cardboard

Fritz Schulze-Blank – Hen with Chicks, Oil on Cardboard

Located in Berlin, DE

Delightful oil on cardboard by Fritz Schulze-Blank, signed lower left. The painting captures a tender barnyard scene with a hen surrounded by her colorful brood of chicks, rendered w...

Category

20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Cardboard

Barbizon School, Fontainebleau landscape with walkers, oil on canvas
Barbizon School, Fontainebleau landscape with walkers, oil on canvas

Barbizon School, Fontainebleau landscape with walkers, oil on canvas

Located in Paris, FR

Barbizon School, French circa 1850 Fontainebleau landscape with walkers Oil on canvas 21.5 x 31 cm Framed : 32 x 41.5 cm In good condition, some minor lacks of paintingsdue to a former frame abrasion mainly on the right border and in the lower border (see photographs please) This landscape is probably a view of the Fontainebleau forest. This type of scene was painted by the Barbizon painters and by Camille Corot. The village of Barbizon is very close to the forest of Fontainebleau and the painters who lived there, such as Camille Corot, painted the most picturesque views of the spectacular stone quarries. There were also many walkers and hikers in these places, as the artists had made them famous and fashionable. The author of this charming little painting wanted to depict the wildness of the place and, in contrast, the walkers who made it a pittoresque curiosity. Although it's difficult to identify or ascribe the work, as there's no signature or other indication, there's a great deal of sensitivity and self-confidence in a very lively touch that heralds Impressionism. The detail of the barely sketched silhouettes...

Category

1850s Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Winter Passage, Original Painting
Winter Passage, Original Painting

Winter Passage, Original Painting

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
A pale winter road winds through a hush of trees, their bare branches reaching into soft, silvery air. The world holds its breath, and only the faint promise of...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

PSFS Building (Philadelphia Cityscape Architecture)
PSFS Building (Philadelphia Cityscape Architecture)

PSFS Building (Philadelphia Cityscape Architecture)

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Naomi Charles Limont (1929-2010). PFSF Building, Philadelphia, ca. 1990. This piece is a restrike of the following Earl Horter image, using the exact plate created by Horter nearly 6...

Category

20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Etching

Sleeping Bobcat
Sleeping Bobcat

John FlannaganSleeping Bobcat, 1943

$3,900Sale Price|35% Off

Sleeping Bobcat

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Mark Morrison (1895-1964) Sleeping Bobcat, 1943. Carved stone 9.5" by 8", height is 4.25" Signed and dated 1943. Provenance: Estate of Mrs. Mark Morrison. Born: Kingfisher,...

Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Stone

Floating Peony. Contemporary Floral Still Life
Floating Peony. Contemporary Floral Still Life

Floating Peony. Contemporary Floral Still Life

By Nicola Currie

Located in Brecon, Powys

A display of peonies at the Malvern Spring Show provided the inspiration for this painting. The prize peony was floating in a silver bowl of water providing a beautifully delicate ba...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Goddess
Goddess

Goddess

By Peter Brooke

Located in Pasadena, CA

Signed Edition #1 of 6 Provenance Acquired by the gallery directly from the artist Description Feeling the sun’s warmth enveloping her body, Peter Brooke’s bronze “Goddess” express...

Category

Early 2000s Realist Art

Materials

Bronze

Sailors at Cafe du Globe
Sailors at Cafe du Globe

Sailors at Cafe du Globe

By Charles Rocher

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Charles Rocher (1890-1962. Sailors, ca. 1920s. Gouache on paper. Sheet measures 19 x 25 inches. Considerable damage and loss as depicted. Signed lower left.

Category

1920s Realist Art

Materials

Gouache

Naked Tree, Original Painting
Naked Tree, Original Painting

Naked Tree, Original Painting

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
A stark, leafless tree stretches its branches toward a soft, clouded sky. Its weathered trunk stands as a testament to passing time. Beside it, a vibrant, full-...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

Prepare to Celebrate
Prepare to Celebrate

Prepare to Celebrate

By Mian Situ

Located in Pasadena, CA

Provenance Acquired by the gallery directly from the artist Signed "Mian Situ" on lower left Description Charged with uplifting energy, this beautiful oil painting by Mian Situ is ...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Nineteenth Century Landscape of a River Bank by an Unknown Artist
Nineteenth Century Landscape of a River Bank by an Unknown Artist

Nineteenth Century Landscape of a River Bank by an Unknown Artist

Located in Philadelphia, PA

Unknown (American, nineteenth century) River Bank Oil on canvas, 9 x 13 1/2 inches Unsigned Framed: 13 1/2 x 18 inches (approx.)

Category

Mid-19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Bird Watercolor on Paper Handmade Painting, One of a Kind

Bird Watercolor on Paper Handmade Painting, One of a Kind

Located in Granada Hills, CA

367 Artist: Artyom Abrahamyan, Work: Original Painting, Handmade artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Watercolor on Paper Year: 2024 Style: Classic Art Title: Bird Size: 12 x 16 inch, (3...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Catch Up By the Pool (Poolside Series)
Catch Up By the Pool (Poolside Series)

Catch Up By the Pool (Poolside Series)

By Slim Aarons

Located in Los Angeles, CA

1970: A desert house in Palm Springs designed by Richard Neutra for Edgar Kaufman. Lita Baron approaches Nelda Linsk, right, wife of art dealer Joseph Linsk who is talking to a frien...

Category

1970s Realist Art

Materials

Lambda

Frozen Silence, Original Painting
Frozen Silence, Original Painting

Frozen Silence, Original Painting

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
A quiet expanse stretches beneath a pale sky, where the lake and horizon merge in muted, cool tones. This winter landscape speaks of stillness, endurance, and t...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

20th Century Still Life of fruits and insects on a ledge
20th Century Still Life of fruits and insects on a ledge

20th Century Still Life of fruits and insects on a ledge

Located in Woodbury, CT

This jewel-like still life by contemporary English artist Katalin Némethy shows her hallmark precision and luminous handling of fruit subjects. Against a rich, deep red background, t...

Category

1980s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Wood Panel

'Kauai Large Panoramic Landscape & Ocean Painting  Oil on Canvas
'Kauai Large Panoramic Landscape & Ocean Painting  Oil on Canvas

'Kauai Large Panoramic Landscape & Ocean Painting Oil on Canvas

By Uri Blayer

Located in Carmel, CA

Israeli born artist that works mainly in Hawaii, whose realistic and whimsical landscapes has earned him a vast reputation. Blayer's work was critiqued in the New York Times (see b...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

WESTERN PEAKS
WESTERN PEAKS

WESTERN PEAKS

By Harold Lukens Doolittle

Located in Santa Monica, CA

HAROLD LUKENS DOOLITTLE (1873 - 1974) WESTERN PEAKS c. 1945 Aquatint signed and titled in pencil. 6 3/4 x 8 7/8 sheet 9 5/8 x 12 3/4. Good condition save for just a hint of darkening within the window and small bits if tape on the sheet edge verso. Doolittle was a renaissance man. His day job was as an engineer for the Edison Electric Co. But he produced an outstanding body of prints for 5 decades as well as photographs. His very rare arts and crafts furniture is highly sought after. He was a long time member and officer in the California Print...

Category

1940s Realist Art

Materials

Aquatint

Tufted Bird, Watercolor Handmade Painting, One of a Kind

Tufted Bird, Watercolor Handmade Painting, One of a Kind

Located in Granada Hills, CA

222 Artist: Artyom Abrahamyan, Work: Original Painting, Handmade artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Watercolor on Paper Year: 2024 Style: Classic Art Title: Tufted Bird Size: 12 x 16 in...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

White lace
White lace

White lace

Located in Zofingen, AG

On the canvas of the artwork "White Lace" nature unveils its delicate side, as if weaving an intricate lace fabric for its masterpiece. A wave, enveloped in pristine foam, intertwine...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

River Landscape Painting of Scottish Highlands by 19th Century British Artist
River Landscape Painting of Scottish Highlands by 19th Century British Artist

River Landscape Painting of Scottish Highlands by 19th Century British Artist

By Alfred de Breanski Sr.

Located in Preston, GB

River Landscape Painting of the Scottish Highlands by 19th Century British Artist, Alfred De Breanski Snr, (1852 - 1928). Signed on the front (l...

Category

Late 19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Wood, Cotton Canvas, Linen, Canvas

Limited Edition Print of Chrysler Building New York City NYC by British Artist
Limited Edition Print of Chrysler Building New York City NYC by British Artist

Limited Edition Print of Chrysler Building New York City NYC by British Artist

By Angela Wakefield

Located in Preston, GB

Limited Edition Print of Chrysler Building New York City NYC by Contemporary British Artist, Angela Wakefield. This is a striking, colourful and vibrant depiction of the Chrysler Bui...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Paper, Archival Paper, Color, Digital, Giclée

Fairy Wren, bird, Watercolor Art Handmade Painting

Fairy Wren, bird, Watercolor Art Handmade Painting

Located in Granada Hills, CA

5 Artist: Artyom Abrahamyan, Work: Original Painting, Handmade artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Watercolor on Paper, Year: 2022 Style: Realism, Subject: Fairy Wren, Size: 12 x 16 ...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

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.