Narcisse Vivien

During the Renaissance, the first European fine art academies were established in Italy and would guide the style and standards of visual culture in the following centuries. Academic art became dominant across the continent in the 17th century, with artists coming together to offer instruction in this style of painting and sculpture. 

The academic art period represented a significant change from the previous era when painters, sculptors and other artists were part of guilds and seen more as artisans than purveyors of culture. While patronage from the elite and the church remained pivotal, young artists were able to support themselves for the first time through academic exhibitions and an independent marketplace. The leading academies included the French Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture founded in Paris in 1648 (which became the Académie des Beaux-Arts after the French Revolution) and the London Royal Academy of Arts formed in 1768 under the inaugural leadership of painter Joshua Reynolds. 

Academy students sketched drawings based on prints, sculptures and, finally, live models. Movements including neoclassicism and romanticism were particularly popular in these art schools and institutions where the influence of Raphael and Nicolas Poussin was prominent. Beaux Arts architecture and furniture design drew on these movements, too, and, as they also originated at the Académie des Beaux-Arts, the disciplines share common ground with academic painting and sculpture.

Although academic art was a major shift for artistic status when it began, by the middle of the 19th century it was viewed as stodgy and resistant to new ideas, with the subject matter of artists such as William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Jean-Léon Gérôme generally limited to allegorical or mythological themes. Impressionism, realism and the other movements that engaged with contemporary issues that followed were direct reactions to the academic tradition, although it continued to inform the avant-garde as artists like Gustav Klimt and Pablo Picasso started their practices as academic realists.  

Find a collection of academic paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs. 

Animal paintings depict the beauty and power of nature in an elegant way that can complement any room. Interacting with animals has long captured the imagination and has been interpreted in diverse artistic media.

Some of the oldest works of art have included animals, such as a cave painting found in Indonesia dating back more than 45,500 years that shows a wild pig in red ocher pigment. Animals have continued to appear in every era and style of art, from realism to Pop art and everything in between.

Some paintings portray animals in their natural habitat, highlighting the majesty of wild creatures roaming the plains, forests and jungles. These paintings often feature deer, tigers, wild mustangs and other wildlife. Others focus on domestic animals such as dogs — pay a visit to the Museum of the Dog if you don’t believe us — as well as cats and how they interact with the world and their owners.

Picking the right animal painting for a room — as well as knowing how to arrange your new wall art — can take time. But, in the end, it will tastefully reflect your interests and passions. While an expansive landscape painting helps open up a small space, hanging a horse painting in a den shows a love for equine culture and can invite interesting conversation.

There is animal art to fit every collection on 1stDibs. Explore a wide selection of animal paintings and animal prints in a range of styles and designs to match any home or office.