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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
"Flemish genre tavern scene"
"Flemish genre tavern scene"

"Flemish genre tavern scene"

Located in Edinburgh, GB

Unidentified Artist 17th-Century Tavern Scene Oil on canvas Framed: 113 x 103 cm Canvas: 96 x 91 cm This 17th-century oil painting captures a lively tavern scene, a popular subject in Dutch and Flemish genre painting of the Golden Age. The composition is rich in character and storytelling, depicting a group of men engaged in a card game, with coins, letters, and drinks scattered across the table. A standing woman, possibly a barmaid or concerned onlooker, leans in, while a man enters from the left, holding his hat and appearing amused by the game. In the foreground, a small child tends to a jug and tankard, adding a touch of humor and domestic realism. Executed in oil on canvas, the painting showcases earthy, warm tones and rich chiaroscuro, emphasizing the candlelit glow of the scene. The artist masterfully captures the textures of fabrics, wood, and metal, giving depth and dimension to the environment. The expressive faces and animated gestures highlight the social interactions typical of Dutch and Flemish tavern paintings...

Category

17th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

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

"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

Popocatépetl, the Second Highest Peak in Mexico
Popocatépetl, the Second Highest Peak in Mexico

Popocatépetl, the Second Highest Peak in Mexico

Located in San Francisco, CA

The reason Mexican painter Rafael Huerta Carreón was referred to as "El paisajista del Estado de México" (The landscapist of the State of Mexico) was his output of works like this, t...

Category

1970s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

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

Desert House Party, Estate Edition From the Poolside Series, Palm Springs
Desert House Party, Estate Edition From the Poolside Series, Palm Springs

Desert House Party, Estate Edition From the Poolside Series, Palm Springs

By Slim Aarons

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Discover this stunning photograph from Slim Aarons sought-after Palm Springs 'Poolside' series. 'Desert House Party' encapsulates the essence of vintage 1970s glamour, captured with vibrant color palette of bold yellow, crisp white, and vibrant turquoise, synonymous with the classic Palm Beach aesthetic. This coveted photograph, taken in 1970, presents an intimate glimpse into a poolside party at a desert house, a Palm Springs masterpiece by famed architect Richard Neutra for Edgar J. Kaufmann. This is not just a photograph, but an entry into the world of luxury, architecture, and the golden era of Palm Springs. Highlighted in the image are industrial designer Raymond Loewy, known for his unparalleled design philosophy, central and standing, and Nelda Linsk, elegantly dressed in a radiant yellow, an iconic cultural patron and the wife of prominent art dealer Joseph Linsk. Also captured in the frame is Helen Dzo Dzo, the former fashion model, gracefully adorned in white lace, adding a touch of timeless elegance to the vibrant gathering. The photograph artistically integrates the natural beauty of the Palm Springs landscape...

Category

Mid-20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Lambda

Ship Leaving the Bay at Sunrise French Seascape 18th century Rococo Oil Painting
Ship Leaving the Bay at Sunrise French Seascape 18th century Rococo Oil Painting

Ship Leaving the Bay at Sunrise French Seascape 18th century Rococo Oil Painting

Located in Stockholm, SE

Attributed Charles François Grenier de Lacroix or Charles - François Lacroix de Marseille (1700 - 1782) as signed lower left on the stone “Lacroix”. The scene of the departure of nobles on a ship, somewhere among the Mediterranean landscapes at sunrise. Lacroix's sense of color and attention to detail are particularly impressive: the sea is calm, the sun is rising and as a soft pink hue begins to emerge in the clouds, the morning haze has not yet cleared and the air is clear and clean, large ship...

Category

Late 18th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Wood, Oil

Sunset in the Village by Swedish Artist Edward Rosenberg, 1915, Oil on Canvas
Sunset in the Village by Swedish Artist Edward Rosenberg, 1915, Oil on Canvas

Sunset in the Village by Swedish Artist Edward Rosenberg, 1915, Oil on Canvas

Located in Stockholm, SE

Edward Rosenberg is best known for his landscape paintings with winter motifs around Lake Mälaren. He studied at the Art Academy in Stockholm 1879–1882. And he had his first success in 1882 when he received the Royal Medal...

Category

1910s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Board

Christ Church Oxford College, William Nicholson lithograph 1905 Stafford Gallery

Christ Church Oxford College, William Nicholson lithograph 1905 Stafford Gallery

By William Nicholson

Located in London, GB

To see our other views of Oxford and Cambridge, scroll down to "More from this Seller" and below it click on "See all from this Seller" - or send us a message if you cannot find the view you want. William Nicholson Canterbury Gate, Christ Church, Oxford College Published by Stafford Gallery...

Category

Early 1900s Realist Art

Materials

Lithograph

Coffee Break

Coffee Break

Located in Fairfield, CT

Direct observation excites me. It allows for close, quiet, and constant discovery. The subtle shifts that occur in natural changing light create living color harmonies and moments of...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Panel, Oil

Italian Village Scene II
Italian Village Scene II

Italian Village Scene II

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork "Italian Village Scene II" c.1880 is a watercolor on paper by noted Italian artist Roberto Gigli, 1846-1922. It is signed at the lower rig...

Category

Late 19th Century Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

"Last Outpost" Oil Painting
"Last Outpost" Oil Painting

"Last Outpost" Oil Painting

Located in Denver, CO

Rob Alexander's "Last Outpost" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a green landscape of mountains with a mysterious structure encircled by whitewater waterfalls. (14...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

Landscape with House
Landscape with House

Landscape with House

By Luigi Kasimir

Located in San Francisco, CA

This artwork "Landscape with House" c.1950, is a color etching on paper by Austrian artist Luigi Kasimir, 1881-1962. It is hand signed in pencil by the arti...

Category

Early 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Etching

The Bahamas
The Bahamas

The Bahamas

By Slim Aarons

Located in Los Angeles, CA

A swimming pool, seen through the fronds of a palm tree, with two people swimming and a group of people sitting at tables at the poolside in the Bahamas, May 1967. Beyond the pool is...

Category

1960s Realist Art

Materials

Lambda

'Portrait of a Man in a Black Coat' - signed and dated 1903 'T Frans'
'Portrait of a Man in a Black Coat' - signed and dated 1903 'T Frans'

'Portrait of a Man in a Black Coat' - signed and dated 1903 'T Frans'

Located in Knokke, BE

Artist 19th - 20th century 'Portrait of a Man in a Black Coat' Signature: signed lower right and dated 1903 'TFrans 1903'; inscription lower left 'à mon bon ami J. Templinck, cordi...

Category

Early 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Snow-covered Branches
Snow-covered Branches

Snow-covered Branches

By Simon Kozhin

Located in Zofingen, AG

During heavy snowfall, snow-covered branches of bushes stick to the ground under the weight of snow. Sometimes small branches and trees are broken, although it would seem that the sn...

Category

Early 2000s Realist Art

Materials

Paper, Graphite

Romany Gypsy Caravan At The Round House Wilford Nottingham Watercolor Painting
Romany Gypsy Caravan At The Round House Wilford Nottingham Watercolor Painting

Romany Gypsy Caravan At The Round House Wilford Nottingham Watercolor Painting

Located in Sutton Poyntz, Dorset

Edgar Woollatt. English ( b.1871 - d.1931 ). Romany Gypsy Caravan At The Round House, Clifton Lane, Wilford, Nottingham. Watercolor. Signed Lower Left. Image size 10.8 inches x 20....

Category

Early 20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Lazarus, Oil Painting
Lazarus, Oil Painting

Lazarus, Oil Painting

By David Shepherd

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
Bright pink petals frame a close-up portrait. For artist David Shepherd, the eye—like a fingerprint—uniquely identifies a person, yet their identity, orig...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Morning in the Old town  oil/canvas, 70x90 cm, 2019
Morning in the Old town  oil/canvas, 70x90 cm, 2019

Morning in the Old town oil/canvas, 70x90 cm, 2019

By Igor Maikov

Located in Riga, LV

Igor Maikov (1966) Education: 1981 - 1984 The Art Academy of Latvia 1973 - 1983 Salaspils Primary and Secondary School Exhibitions: 1994 - Group Exhibition «Rol-Art», Latvia ...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Vortex, Oil Painting
Vortex, Oil Painting

Vortex, Oil Painting

By Beth Sistrunk

Located in Denver, CO

Beth Sistrunk's "Vortex" is an oil on two translucent acrylic panels featuring a model with red petals. About the artist: Beth's interests in painting the figure, women’s fashion, ...

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil

"Tierra" Acrylic and Oil Painting
"Tierra" Acrylic and Oil Painting

"Tierra" Acrylic and Oil Painting

By Kierstin Young

Located in Denver, CO

Kierstin Young's (US based) "Tierra" is an acrylic and oil painting depicting a Comet Moth and it's yellow and red designs Artist Statement/Bio: (b. The Year of the Rabbit) Kierstin's life began by almost never beginning at all. A car accident occurred while Kierstin’s mother was pregnant with her. The doctors advised against continuing the pregnancy for fear that Kierstin would be born without limbs or even blind. Her parents decided against it, and Kierstin was born a healthy child. This story was relayed to her as a child as a reminder of how serendipitous her life was. Kierstin was always filled with an overflowing energy and creativity. This led her on many diverse paths in life. Her many areas of focus included psychology, poetry, photography, mountaineering, religious studies, music, playing ice hockey, spelunking and pretending to be an astronaut. She grew up between two places; the first was a house built on Native American burial grounds in rural New Jersey. The second was a summer home in the beautiful Adirondack Mountains of New York. For the first sixteen years of her life, she was home taught by an assortment of sane and insane people. Her junior year she began the strange new adventure of going to school. She was most likely the only 16 year old in the world to be that ecstatic about riding a school bus, because it was for the first time in her life. It was there in public school, that her art teachers really encouraged her to pursue her love of art. Hopes were high for going to art school, but Kierstin found herself forbidden from even applying by her parents. She applied anyway. Upon getting rejected from prestigious art schools such as RISD and Parsons, Kierstin decided to attend duCret school of Art. Being rejected turned out to be a serendipitous turn of events for Kierstin once again. It was there at duCret that she met Timothy Jahn and began studying in his Academy duCret and subsequently Jahn Studios. This lead her to continue her education at the Ani Art Academy under the direction of Anthony Waichulis.

Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Masonite, Oil, Acrylic

18th Century Antique Oil Painting Coastal Harbor Scene with Towers Old Master
18th Century Antique Oil Painting Coastal Harbor Scene with Towers Old Master

18th Century Antique Oil Painting Coastal Harbor Scene with Towers Old Master

Located in Stockholm, SE

This captivating seascape presents a masterful coastal harbor scene from the 18th century, attributed to an unknown master of marine art. The composition is built around 2 watchtower...

Category

Late 18th Century Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Wood, Walnut, Oil

St Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Cathedral

Located in Santa Monica, CA

A new work by the artist

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Mixed Media, Archival Paper

Mary Pickford Douglas Fairbanks at Walpi First Mesa Hopi Village 1920 Photograph
Mary Pickford Douglas Fairbanks at Walpi First Mesa Hopi Village 1920 Photograph

Mary Pickford Douglas Fairbanks at Walpi First Mesa Hopi Village 1920 Photograph

Located in Soquel, CA

Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks at Walpi First Mesa Hopi Village 1920 Photograph Original Sepia toned Silver gelatin photographic print by Charles Roshe (British, 1885-1974). Provenance: Mary Pickford, Elizabeth (Bess) Huggins. Image 10.75"H x 13.75"W He was Mary Pickford's favorite cinematographer and a personal friend, shooting all of the films in which she starred from 1918 to 1927, before they had a falling out during production of Coquette (1929). He was the first cinematographer to receive an Academy Award, along with Karl Struss, for Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927), and won again for The Yearling (1946), with Leonard Smith and Arthur Arling. He was also nominated four times. Walpi, pueblo (village), Navajo county, northeastern Arizona, U.S., on the edge of a high mesa in the Hopi Indian Reservation. It comprises a group of angular stone houses of two to three stories crowded on a narrow tip of the steep-walled mesa at an elevation of 6,225 feet (1,897 metres). The original pueblo (founded c. 1700) was on a lower part of the mesa, but following the Pueblo Rebellion, the inhabitants moved to the top as a defensive measure against Spanish retaliation. Walpi is known for an antelope ceremony and for snake dances, held during odd years in August and generally closed to non-Hopi spectators. Shitchumovi (Sichomivi) pueblo is adjacent and Hano is nearby. Pickford was the first Canadian to win an Oscar. She was also the second to win best actress and the first for a role in a film with sound. She was one of the founding members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 1919 Pickford took the lead in organizing the United Artists Corporation with Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, and Douglas Fairbanks. In 1920, after the dissolution of her first marriage (1911–19) to actor Owen Moore, she married Fairbanks (divorced 1936). Pickford’s popularity continued unabated in Pollyanna (1920), Little Lord...

Category

1920s Realist Art

Materials

Photographic Paper, Silver Gelatin

Let Go 2 - Shirtless Male with Warm Orange Backdrop, Original oil painting
Let Go 2 - Shirtless Male with Warm Orange Backdrop, Original oil painting

Let Go 2 - Shirtless Male with Warm Orange Backdrop, Original oil painting

Located in Chicago, IL

Let Go 1, 2, 3 (Series) In these paintings, Zdrale depicts multiple figures—often iterations of the same man—locked in a cycle of struggle. The ropes that coil around or extend from ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Panel, Oil

Large Scale French Still Life of Tulips, Lilacs & Roses in Blue & White Pot
Large Scale French Still Life of Tulips, Lilacs & Roses in Blue & White Pot

Large Scale French Still Life of Tulips, Lilacs & Roses in Blue & White Pot

By Marie-Claire Delaunay

Located in Soquel, CA

Stunning large floral still life of tulips, roses and lilacs by Marie-Clair Delaunay (French, 20th Century), 1987. Signed lower right corner and on verso. Presented in gilt-toned wood frame. Image size: 32"H x 32"W, Marie Claire Delaunay, born in Paris, is of Flemish and Breton origin. She studied in Paris then at the Ecole du Louvre, Artist studio of la Grande Chaumière, she deepened her technique in water-colour, oil painting, lithography and fresques and took inspiration in various painters creative course and works : Atelier of Baignol with its rigorous technical teaching, working trips with Jean Rigaud focused on the subject, work with Louis Süe architect as an other dimension of art. In Olso, Norway, training in Hans Klemensrüd Artist's Studio, abstract painter. Later, work with Sofia Vari, a Greek artist who also made her discover her country. And in the Cyclades islands again, study of the abstract technique with Sergio de Castro, the Argentinian painter...

Category

1980s Realist Art

Materials

Linen, Oil

Woodpeckers on Tree, Original Painting
Woodpeckers on Tree, Original Painting

Woodpeckers on Tree, Original Painting

By Emil Morhardt

Located in San Francisco, CA

Artist Comments
A pair of little woodpeckers perch on opposite sides of a branch, busy probing the small holes they've made for fresh tree sap. The intricate features of their plumage and the textured bark create a striking contrast against the stark white background. Rendered in vibrant colors and fine detail, artist Emil Morhardt brings this charming scene to life.


About the Artist
Emil Morhardt is an acrylic painter from Santa Barbara, California who expresses his passion for birds through realistic acrylic paintings. He paints at home in a studio room that has large windows and a north-facing view of the mountains. He observes the animals from this window, watching roadrunners, foxes, bobcats, deer, and coyote run by. Surrounded by this wildlife, Emil paints bird portraits reminiscent of those by artist John James Audubon. He bases his paintings off hundreds of photographs he takes of birds in the wild and at wildlife recovery centers. Emil captures the freedom and inquisitiveness that birds display...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic

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.