Myrtle Cureton
1950s American Impressionist Portrait Paintings
Masonite, Oil
People Also Browsed
Early 1800s Old Masters Portrait Drawings and Watercolors
Pastel
19th Century Victorian Portrait Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1960s American Impressionist Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Cardboard
Late 19th Century Romantic Portrait Paintings
Oil, Canvas
Mid-20th Century Modern Figurative Photography
Photographic Paper
1960s Modern Portrait Photography
Silver Gelatin
1950s American Impressionist Portrait Paintings
Masonite, Oil
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Portrait Paintings
Oil
Early 2000s Modern Portrait Photography
Black and White, Archival Pigment
1990s Modern Portrait Photography
Color, Archival Pigment
Early 2000s Modern Portrait Photography
Black and White, Archival Pigment
Late 20th Century Impressionist Portrait Paintings
Oil
1940s Modern Landscape Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1940s Impressionist Portrait Paintings
Oil
1950s American Impressionist Figurative Paintings
Masonite, Oil
1990s Modern Portrait Photography
Color, Archival Pigment
Finding the Right figurative-paintings for You
Figurative art, as opposed to abstract art, retains features from the observable world in its representational depictions of subject matter. Most commonly, figurative paintings reference and explore the human body, but they can also include landscapes, architecture, plants and animals — all portrayed with realism.
While the oldest figurative art dates back tens of thousands of years to cave wall paintings, figurative works made from observation became especially prominent in the early Renaissance. Artists like Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and other Renaissance masters created naturalistic representations of their subjects.
Pablo Picasso is lauded for laying the foundation for modern figurative art in the 1920s. Although abstracted, this work held a strong connection to representing people and other subjects. Other famous figurative artists include Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud. Figurative art in the 20th century would span such diverse genres as Expressionism, Pop art and Surrealism.
Today, a number of figural artists — such as Sedrick Huckaby, Daisy Patton and Eileen Cooper — are making art that uses the human body as its subject.
Because figurative art represents subjects from the real world, natural colors are common in these paintings. A piece of figurative art can be an exciting starting point for setting a tone and creating a color palette in a room.
Browse an extensive collection of figurative paintings on 1stDibs.