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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
The Fog
The Fog

The Fog

By Evgeniy Monahov

Located in Zofingen, AG

Some time ago Evgeniy bet with his good friend that he could paint a painting where about half of it would be pure white primer but painting will look finished anyway. So this story ...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Tempera, Wood Panel

"Evening at the sea"
"Evening at the sea"

"Evening at the sea"

By Oleksandr Khrapachov

Located in Edinburgh, GB

“Evening at Sea” Oil on canvas The golden hour of tranquility: when day turns into evening Alexander Khrapachov captures the most poetic moment of a day at sea—that magical moment wh...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Mid Century Horse in Winter Landscape
Mid Century Horse in Winter Landscape

Mid Century Horse in Winter Landscape

By William Ernest Smyth

Located in Soquel, CA

Charming mid century watercolor painting of a horse in winter with a barn in the background by Ernest Smythe (American/England 1881-1950). Signed "ERNEST SMYTHE" in lower left corner. Presented in a tan mat with a wood frame and glass. Image size: 25"H x 19.75"W As William Ernest Smyth, he was born at 13 Commercial Road, Ipswich on 9 April 1874 but was not baptised at St Michael's, Ipswich until 23 October 1885, when his birth date is given as 17 February 1874, youngest son of artist Thomas Smythe...

Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor, Illustration Board

19th Century British School
19th Century British School

19th Century British School

Located in San Francisco, CA

Charming 19th Century painting of a grandmother and grandauughter in front of their thatched cottage. It is an oil on canvas measuring 18 inches by 14. The frame measures 20 3/4 by 1...

Category

1890s Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Historical Home Russellville Kentucky 1930
Historical Home Russellville Kentucky 1930

Historical Home Russellville Kentucky 1930

Located in Soquel, CA

Mid-century Southern landscape of the historical Home possibly of the Artist and built by the Kentucky Governor John Breathitt for his daughter Jane (some historical accounts say) and later the McClean family lived there, in Russellville, Kentucky by Roberta Fisk McClean (American, 1882-1975). As we get the information confirmed we will update the description. Roberta painted numerous versions of the house and one example called it the Bowden House. There is a House that looks similar on E5th in Russellville called Governors Corner, but many look like the same structure of the time. Signed "R. McClean" in the lower left corner Presented in a giltwood frame. Artist's board size: 14"H x 19"W Framed size: 17.75"H x 22.5"W Born in Russellville, Kentucky, Roberta McClean...

Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Board

The Smell of Us (Hand signed poster)
The Smell of Us (Hand signed poster)

The Smell of Us (Hand signed poster)

By Larry Clark

Located in New York, NY

Larry Clark The Smell of Us (Hand signed poster), 2015 Offset lithograph poster Pencil signed by Larry Clark on the back 10 1/2 × 15 1/2 inches Unframed Limited edition poster; hand ...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Lithograph, Offset

Boy with cigarette by Raffaelle Frigerio - Oil on wood 23x30 cm
Boy with cigarette by Raffaelle Frigerio - Oil on wood 23x30 cm

Boy with cigarette by Raffaelle Frigerio - Oil on wood 23x30 cm

Located in Geneva, CH

Signed work Work on cardboard glued on a frame Frame in golden plaster molding 46 x 37 x 5 cm Raffaele Frigerio was an Italian painter born in 1875 and passed away in 1948. He was ...

Category

19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Doll
Doll

Vincente EsparzaDoll

$400Sale Price|20% Off

Doll

By Vincente Esparza

Located in Atlanta, GA

Item is in excellent condition and has only been displayed in a gallery setting. Vincente Esparza was born in Graus, Huesca in 1946. In 1967 he began his studies at La Escuela De ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Canvas

"Antonio and Kleopatra"
"Antonio and Kleopatra"

"Antonio and Kleopatra"

Located in Edinburgh, GB

Unidentified Artist – "Antonius and Kleopatra" Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions (Framed): 91 x 75 cm Dimensions (Flat): 77 x 59 cm Signature: Monogrammed “LE” lower left, indistin...

Category

20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Original Painting of Sweden Norway Fjord Landscape by Danish Landscape Artist
Original Painting of Sweden Norway Fjord Landscape by Danish Landscape Artist

Original Painting of Sweden Norway Fjord Landscape by Danish Landscape Artist

By Jens Christian Bennedsen

Located in Preston, GB

Original Painting of Sweden Norway Fjord Landscape by Danish Landscape Artist. Art measures 27 x 23 inches Frame measures 33 x 29 inches An oil pain...

Category

Early 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Paint, Oil, Cotton Canvas, Canvas

Koko, with her favourite ball
Koko, with her favourite ball

Koko, with her favourite ball

Located in London, GB

Vivian Evans, circa 1907 Koko, with her favourite ball signed and dated ‘VIVIAN EVANS. 1907.' (lower right) oil on canvas 10 ¾ x 15 ¾ in. (27.3 x 40 cm.) frame 17 x 22 in. (43.2 x 55...

Category

Early 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Robert Kenneth White "Cairn Road" Signed Realist Oil, Western Desert Landscape
Robert Kenneth White "Cairn Road" Signed Realist Oil, Western Desert Landscape

Robert Kenneth White "Cairn Road" Signed Realist Oil, Western Desert Landscape

By Robert Kenneth White

Located in Miami, FL

ROBERT KENNETH WHITE – "CAIRN ROAD" ⚜ Oil on Canvas ⚜ Hand Signed Lower Right ⚜ Frameless Display A QUIET TESTAMENT TO ENDURANCE AND SOLITUDE In “Cairn Road” (2012), Robert Kenneth ...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Revelation, Painting, Oil on Canvas

Revelation, Painting, Oil on Canvas

By Roman Rembovsky

Located in Yardley, PA

Ludovit Holoska wrote on Roman Rembovsky: "At the beginning of his independent career, spontaneity and naturalism, together with an artistic element, led the artist to new experience...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil

"Christmas trees. Transcarpathia"
"Christmas trees. Transcarpathia"

"Christmas trees. Transcarpathia"

By Oleksandr Khrapachov

Located in Edinburgh, GB

“Fir trees.Transcarpathia” - the melody of mountain peaks Oleksandr Khrapachov, 2014 The canvas “Fir trees.Transcarpathia” invites the viewer to a journey through the breathtaking ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

The Exerciser
The Exerciser

The Exerciser

By Justin Allen

Located in Columbia, MO

Justin Allen Springfield, MO Justin Allen brings extraordinary technical mastery to oil painting, rendering everyday objects with precision so striking they verge on the surreal. A...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

Little Fox Hunt
Little Fox Hunt

Little Fox Hunt

By Andrea Wilkinson

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze Sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 2/30

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Bronze

San Francisco, Fisherman's Wharf
San Francisco, Fisherman's Wharf

San Francisco, Fisherman's Wharf

By Josef Eidenberger

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork titled "San Francisco, Fisherman's Wharf" c.1975 is a color etching on Wove paper by noted Austrian artist Josef Eidenberger, 1899-1991. It is hand signed n pencil by th...

Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Etching

Framed 1930s Realist Oil Painting of Lilies, 50x35.5 cm
Framed 1930s Realist Oil Painting of Lilies, 50x35.5 cm

Framed 1930s Realist Oil Painting of Lilies, 50x35.5 cm

Located in Genève, GE

Work on wood Dimensions with frame : 63.5 x 49 x 3 cm This work of art features a bouquet of lilies elegantly arranged in a clear glass vase. The flowers, delicately painted in shade...

Category

1930s Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Antique English Realist Genre Scene Framed High Society Portrait Oil Painting
Antique English Realist Genre Scene Framed High Society Portrait Oil Painting

Antique English Realist Genre Scene Framed High Society Portrait Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

George Dunlop Leslie (1835 - 1921) Antique English realist oil painting. Oil on canvas. Signed. Framed. Measuring 17 by 20 overall and 12 by 15 paining alone. Artist Bio: George Dunlop Leslie RA (London 2 July 1835 – 21 February 1921 Lindfield, Sussex) was a British genre painter, author and illustrator. He was born into an artistic family; his father was the notable genre painter Charles Robert Leslie RA, and his uncle Robert Leslie was a marine artist. He studied art first at Cary's Art Academy, then from 1854 at the Royal Academy. His first exhibition at the Academy was in 1859, and he showed his work every year thereafter. He became an Associate (ARA) in 1868 and a full Royal Academician (RA) in 1876.George Dunlop Leslie lived early on in St John's Wood (London), and was part of the St John's Wood Clique, a group of artists who favoured light-hearted genre subjects. From 1884–1901 he was resident at "Riverside", St. Leonard's Lane, Wallingford, Oxfordshire. His sister Mary Leslie (1833–1907), also an artist, lived at "Cromwell Lodge" next door. Fellow artist, James Hayllar, was also a resident of the village and they painted a portrait of Queen Victoria together for her Golden Jubilee in 1887. From 1906 he lived at "Compton House" in Lindfield, SussexHis early works, such as Matilda (1860) showed the strong influence of the Pre-Raphaelites, but he settled into a more academic, aesthetic, style of painting with the aim of showing "pictures from the sunny side of English domestic life". He often used children as subjects and his work was praised by John Ruskin for its portrayal of the "sweet quality of English girlhood". One of his pictures, This is the Way we Wash our Clothes, was used as a poster in an advertising campaign for soap. Despite its apparently trivial subject matter, however, Leslie's work was highly regarded by critics of the time.In 1889 during his time at Riverside house in Wallingford Leslie is credited with painting four angel murals in St Leonards Church.Leslie was also an author and had several books published. Our river (1888), Letters to Marco (1893) and Riverside letters (1896) were all illustrated by him in black and white, and based on personal observations of life and nature in his local area. He also wrote a history of the early years of the Royal Academy - The inner life of the Royal Academy.Leslie was married to Lydia. They had a daughter Alice (depicted in his painting Alice in Wonderland) and a son Peter Leslie...

Category

1880s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Kerch. Kamysh-Burun Bay"
"Kerch. Kamysh-Burun Bay"

"Kerch. Kamysh-Burun Bay"

By Oleksandr Khrapachov

Located in Edinburgh, GB

Kerch. Kamysh-Burun Bay Alexander Khrapachov, 2012 Canvas, oil • 55×70 cm --- This work is the living breath of the Black Sea, captured on the shore of the legendary Kamysh-Burun ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Porcelain
Porcelain

Porcelain

By Irina Trushkova

Located in Zofingen, AG

"Porcelain” is a painting that pays homage to the natural beauty and timeless elegance of things around us in everyday life. All these porcelain things that appeared in my workshop b...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Brandenburger Tor, Berlin (Brandenburg Gate, Berlin)
Brandenburger Tor, Berlin (Brandenburg Gate, Berlin)

Brandenburger Tor, Berlin (Brandenburg Gate, Berlin)

By Luigi Kasimir

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork titled "Brandenburger Tor, Berlin (Brandenburg Gate, Berlin)". c1930 is a color etching on paper by Austrian artist Luigi Kasimir, 1881-1962. It is hand signed in pencil by the artist at the lower center. The plate mark (image) size is 13 x 16.5 inches, framed size is 23.75 x 27 inches. Custom framed in a wooden ornate gold frame, white beige matting and green color fillet. It is in excellent condition, the artwork is very slightly toned around the plate mark, barely visible. 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

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.