Realist Paintings
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
«A Second Before the Touch» — Hyperrealistic Seascape Oil Painting of Ocean Wave
Located in Zofingen, AG
The wave rises and comes to stillness. Light passes through the water and remains within it. Movement slows, almost disappearing. This moment still holds its form. Nothing is broken ...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Crowded Street Scene From Luntmakargatan, Stockholm
Located in Stockholm, SE
Olof Arborelius (1842–1915)
From Luntmakargatan, Stockholm
oil on paper mounted on board
signed with monogram “OA”
unframed 24 × 30 cm (9.4 × 11.8 in)
frame 35 × 41 cm (13.8 × 16.1...
Category
Early 1900s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Board, Laid Paper
Lequillier Impressionistic Landscape Oil Painting, Signed, 21st C.
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Lequillier Landscape
oil on canvas board 15" x 21.5", frame - 21.5" x 28".
signed LR
This painting has a European Post Impressionistic style to it with impasto throughout the land ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
Ladybird Pocket Painting 7
Located in Deddington, GB
Pocket Ladybird 7 is an original oil painting by Dani Humberstone as part of her Pocket Painting series featuring small scale realistic oil paintings, with a nod to baroque still lif...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Dog Portrait of a Terrier on a Red Ground, circa 1910
Located in SANTA FE, NM
Red Terrier
Possibly Dutch School
Oil on wood panel, circa 1900-1910. Initialed lower left
7 1/2 x 7 (12 x 11 1/2 frame) inches
A charming and thoughtfully rendered depiction of a t...
Category
Early 1900s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
What?..
Located in Zofingen, AG
This painting invites the viewer into a quiet, surreal moment suspended between reality and dream. A young woman, draped in black, leans forward onto a round wooden table, her postur...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
New York City Evening Theater Painting by Michael Budden Phantom of the Opera
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Mystical Phantom
oil/canvas
14x20 unframed, 27.75 x 21.75 framed
signed LR
Mystical Phantom is an oil painting on canvas panel by award winning contemporary artist Michael Budden. I...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
"Cruising Altitude" (2025) Original Portrait of Young Girl, Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
"Cruising Altitude" (2025) by Denise Dambrackas is an original oil painting that depicts a young girl sending a plane into flight, amongst a vibrant and colorful sky, presented in a ...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Linen, Oil, Panel
Beach Ocean Impressionistic Seascape Oil Painting Oxford Md Boat Michael Budden
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Oxford Light
11 x 14 unframed and 17.25 x 20.25 framed
signed LR
Oxford Light is an oil painting on panel by award winning contemporary artist Michael Budden that showcases a beauti...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
Pair - Ornately framed Oval English River Flower Scenes with Swans, Cows, Sheep
Located in Preston, GB
Pair - Ornately framed Oval English River Flower Scenes with Swans, Cows, Sheep by British Contemporary Artist, David Morgan (Born 1964)
Signed Originals, Oil on canvas. Framed in t...
Category
Late 20th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
"Persian Cats with Flowers" Oil Painting Portrait of Two White Cats in a Garden
By Beno Boleradsky
Located in New York, NY
This piece depicts two white, long-haired Persian cats in a natural setting. The cats are positioned on a grassy patch adorned with small flowers, including clusters of pink blossoms...
Category
20th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
The New Scene of Van Eyden
Located in Zofingen, AG
In The New Scene of Van Eyden, I reimagine a classical genre scene as a contemporary reflection on self-perception. Three figures — myself, my avatar, and the avatar’s companion — sh...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
What the F@ck Am I Looking At?
Located in Zofingen, AG
This artwork blends calm seaside serenity with an unexpected, dreamlike encounter. A solitary girl stands on the shore, dressed in timeless black-and-white attire, her posture compos...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
“Total Freedom” — Hyperrealistic Oil Painting of a Woman Underwater
Located in Zofingen, AG
The ocean holds endless mysteries — vast, untamed, and profoundly unknown. From childhood, we are taught to fear it: the currents, the waves, the unseen depths, and the creatures tha...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
«Eternal Pulse» – Ocean Wave Oil Painting in Refined Vert Bosphore Palette
Located in Zofingen, AG
The sea knows no rest.
It breathes, it lives, it calls — in every movement, in every shimmer of light.
This wave is a moment between calm and storm,
a breath that holds eternity with...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
Chunya. Dog portraits
Located in Oslo, NO
This small but striking work is a portrait of Chunya, the dog of poet Dmitry Vodennikov. The realistic image is painted on a board and framed in a simple, unfinished wooden frame, gi...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
Fireflies II - contemporary, figurative, portrait, oil on canvas
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This realistic oil portrait of a young man is by Daniel Hughes.
In a field surrounded by the magical glow of dozens of fireflies, a young man stands alone, looking towards hills in ...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
River Landscape Scene with Horses in the English Countryside by British Artist
Located in Preston, GB
River Landscape Scene with Horses in the English Countryside by British Contemporary Artist, David Morgan (Born 1964).
Art measures 24 x 16 inches
Frame measures 30 x 20 inches
Sig...
Category
Late 20th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Tigers Acrylic and oil on canvas painting
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Author: Rodolfo Ramírez Cardo (Havana, Cuba)
Title: Version of “Tigress” by Karl Bang
Year: 2000
Technique: Acrylic and oil on canvas
Dimensions: 64 x 85 cm (25.2 x 33.5 in) (unframe...
Category
Early 2000s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
$1,016 Sale Price
29% Off
Blue in Sunlight - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Hyperrealism, Africa
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure
Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria
This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy.
Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity.
About Artist
Fal...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Winter Sunlight in the Forest 20th Century Realist Oil Painting by German Artist
Located in Preston, GB
Winter Sunlight in the Forest 20th Century Realist Oil Painting by German Landscape Artist, Wolfgang Heinz (1930–2014).
Art measures 32 x 28 inches
Frame measures 39 x 34.5 inches
...
Category
Late 20th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Wood, Cotton Canvas, Oil
British Chalk Pencil Sketch of a Horse Munching On Grass
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
John Rabone Harvey ( 1966 - 1922)
graphic and chalk deep green artist paper , unframed
artist paper : 5.5 x 7 inches
Provenance: private collection
Condition: very good condition
Ha...
Category
Mid-19th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Chalk, Graphite
Portrait of an Edwardian Dandy (Man)
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Portrait of an Edwardian Dandy Gentleman, 2003.
Acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20 inches.
Signed with monogram and dated lower right.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
British Chalk Pencil Sketch of Small White Sheep Lying Down
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
John Rabone Harvey ( 1966 - 1922)
graphic and chalk deep green artist paper , unframed
artist paper : 5.5 x 7 inches
Provenance: private collection
Condition: very good condition
Ha...
Category
Mid-19th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Chalk, Graphite
British Chalk Pencil Sketch of a Horse Patiently Waiting at The Wooden Fence
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
John Rabone Harvey ( 1966 - 1922)
graphic and chalk deep green artist paper , unframed
artist paper : 5.5 x 7 inches
Provenance: private collection
Condition: very good condition
Ha...
Category
Mid-19th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Chalk, Graphite
British Chalk Pencil Sketch of a Young Calf's Face with Detailed Pink Features
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
John Rabone Harvey ( 1966 - 1922)
graphic and chalk deep green artist paper , unframed
artist paper : 5.5 x 7 inches
Provenance: private collection
Condition: very good condition
Ha...
Category
Mid-19th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Chalk, Graphite
New York City Painting Michael Budden Evening On Broadway St James & Sardis
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Evening On Broadway, St. James & Sardi's
Image is 10 x 8 unframed, 15.5 x 13.5 framed.
An acrylic painting on canvas panel by award winning contemporary artist Michael Budden that...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
British Chalk Pencil Sketch of Cows Resting In the Meadow
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
John Rabone Harvey ( 1966 - 1922)
graphic and chalk deep green artist paper , unframed
artist paper : 5.5 x 7 inches
Provenance: private collection
Condition: very good condition
Ha...
Category
Mid-19th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Chalk, Graphite
Mountain Lake Forest Landscape Scene - Vintage 20th Century Oil Painting
Located in Preston, GB
Mountain Lake Forest Landscape Scene - Vintage 20th Century Oil Painting by J Bishop.
Art measures 17 x 14 inches
Frame measures 21 x 18 inches
Vintage painting, ornate gold frame
...
Category
20th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Cotton Canvas, Oil
$819 Sale Price
25% Off
Ballerinas at the dressing room
Located in Zofingen, AG
In this piece, I captured the quiet, tender moments before the performance, where anticipation and grace blend beautifully. Using oil, I brought warmth and life to the dancers’ delic...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
«Free, Weightless, Brave. No.1»— Hyperrealistic Oil Underwater Nude Woman
Located in Zofingen, AG
There is so much unknown, undiscovered, and mysterious about the ocean. Much of what we are taught encourages fear—we learn about rips and currents, big waves and sharks, hear of dro...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
Pocket Jammie Dodger 4c and Pocket Party Ring Diptych
Located in Deddington, GB
Pocket Jammie Dodger 4c and Pocket Party Ring (canvas size 5x5cm) are original oil paintings by Dani Humberstone as part of her Pocket Painting series featuring small scale realistic...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Fig Fruit. Horizontal oil painting, still-life.
Located in Oslo, NO
This small Still Life is horizontally composed with dark juicy fig fruits delicately contrasting to the white drapery they are resting on. Light shadow covers one half of fruit, lett...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Train to Sunset, Oil Painting
By Nick Savides
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Set on a winter evening at the 4th Avenue/9th Street station in Brooklyn, this painting captures a vivid sunset framed by the converging diagonals of the train ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
Fish. 2016. Oil cardboard. 40x35 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Born 1963
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Cardboard
"Future of Flight" (2025) Original Portrait of Young Girl, Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
"Future of Flight" (2025) by Denise Dambrackas is an original oil painting that depicts a young girl sending a plane into flight, amongst a vibrant and colorful sky, presented in a r...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Linen, Oil, Panel
Seashore
Located in Zofingen, AG
The ocean is a mystery, full of secrets and deep emotions. Its power can be frightening, yet it beckons and offers freedom. In every wave lies a story of fear and love, intertwined i...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Wikiva Basin, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
This oil painting captures the quiet beauty of a Florida marsh. Palm trees and billowing clouds add depth and balance to the composition. Artist Kent Sullivan u...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
A Summer Night. Ukraine
Located in Zofingen, AG
A contemplative scene of a woman and a black cat observing devastation beyond the window — burning homes against a twilight sky. The untouched dinner table becomes a silent witness t...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
"Mountain Ash" (2024) by Anna Wypych, Original Realist Floral Oil Painting
By Anna Wypych
Located in Denver, CO
"Currant" by Anna Wypych is an original handmade 8" x 10" realist oil painting. The piece depicts a black cat, tucked behind a branch of holly. This piece is framed in an intricate g...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel
Impressionistic Moonlight Seascape OilPainting Michael Budden Mystical Monlight
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Mystical Moonlight
oil/panel
8 x 10 unframed 13.25 x 15.25 framed.
An oil painting on canvas by award winning contemporary artist Michael Budden that showcases a beautiful moonlit ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
New York City Winter Snow Painting Michael Budden Along Fifth Avenue
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Along Fifth Avenue, NYC
oil/canvas
24 x 20 unframed, 30.5 x 26.5 x 1.5 framed.
Along Fifth Avenue is an oil painting on canvas by award winning contemporary artist Michael Budden. I...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
"Bolonia IV" – Oil Painting, Female Nude Beach Scene
Located in Denver, CO
"Bolonia IV" by Conrado López is a striking original 2024 painting depicting a female nude figure executed in acrylic, gold leaf, and oil on canvas. Measuring 39.37 x 25.59 x 1.18 in...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Gold Leaf
“Blue Horizons” — Hyperrealistic Seascape Acrylic Painting on Canvas
Located in Zofingen, AG
Where the sea meets the sky, infinity is born.
The horizon dissolves into shades of blue, promising freedom and new paths.
Unstretched
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
NYC Oil Painting Michael Budden Nocturne Street Scene "Night Life" Am. Flag
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Night Life, NYC
oil/panel
14 x 11 image size
19.5 x 16.5 framed
An oil painting on canvas panel by award winning contemporary artist Michael Budden that showcases the bustling "Night...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
Renewal
Located in Zofingen, AG
"Renewal" is the gentle touch of the ocean where water and soul meet, merging in a dance of light and motion. The waves envelop and carry away into a realm of quiet magic, where ever...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Small Oil of Cottages beside a Lake in Mountains on the Antrim Coast in Ireland
Located in Preston, GB
Small Oil of Cottages beside a Lake in Mountains on the Antrim Coast in Ireland, by Contemporary Artist, Derek Quann
Art measures 10 x 8 inches
Frame measures 17.5 x 15.5 inches
Th...
Category
Late 20th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
“Whisper of the Tides» — Hyperrealistic Oil Painting of Ocean Sunset and Waves
Located in Zofingen, AG
The gentle light of the sunset dissolves into the foamy surf, tinting the waves with shades of rose and gold. In this moment, the ocean seems to whisper its eternal secrets, flowing ...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
Outskirts of Venice
Located in Oslo, NO
The painting depicts the Venetian lagoon with a row of houses on the outskirts of the city. In the distance you can see the island of Murano, on the left a pier and piles. A lantern ...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Echo of the Black Cat
Located in Zofingen, AG
This striking, contemporary painting invites the viewer into a space of quiet mystery and irony. A young woman with auburn hair, dressed in a dark, structured dress, stands confide...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
"Reign" (2024) By Michele Kortbawi Wilk, Oil Painting with Silver Leaf
Located in Denver, CO
Michele Kortbawi Wilk's "Reign" is a 2024 oil on linen with silver leaf, measuring 12 x 12 inches, that depicts a white horse mid jump with a crown dangling from a string in its mout...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Silver
Large Scale Winter Twilight Landscape Painting by Artist Mauritz Lindström
Located in Stockholm, SE
This stunning winter landscape by Mauritz Lindström captures the serene yet striking beauty of a snow-laden scene illuminated by the warm glow of twilight. The interplay between the soft, colorful hues of the evening sky and the intricate, frost-covered branches creates an almost three-dimensional effect, drawing the viewer into the composition. The detailed rendering of the snow and the trees evokes a profound sense of coldness, making the atmosphere almost palpable. Measuring an impressive 101 x 152 cm (39 3/4 x 59 7/8 in) with the frame, this large-scale work is a testament to Lindström's mastery of light and texture.
Arvid Mauritz Lindström...
Category
Late 19th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
New York City Urban Painting Winter Brooklyn Bridge by Michael Budden
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Winter Brooklyn Bridge
oil/ 20 x 24 unframed, 28 x 31.75 framed
An oil painting on canvas by award winning contemporary artist Michael Budden that showcases the bustling life and th...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
BE WATER
Located in Zofingen, AG
She floats where silence begins — just beneath the skin of the water.
Her form is neither here nor gone, dissolving into rhythm and light.
There is no past, no edge, no name — only t...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
"Kaleidoscope #2" by Lindsey Kustusch, Contemporary Still-Life, Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Lindsey Kustusch's "Kaleidoscope #2" is a compelling handmade original oil on wood panel artwork, measuring 20 x 16 inches. This 2025 piece is a primary market item, arriving for Kus...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
“Pulse of the Ocean” — Hyperrealistic Oil Seascape Painting of Sunset Waves
Located in Zofingen, AG
The ocean pulses like a heart in love with the sunset. Its waves are gentle touches, holding the secrets of endless love.
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
Winter Snow Scene Landscape Oil Painting by Michael Budden Beautiful Light
Located in Chesterfield, NJ
Afternoon Transitions
oil/canvas
14 x 18 unframed, 19.5 x 23.5 framed
Afternoon Transitions is an oil painting on canvas by award winning contemporary artist Michael Budden that show...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil
«Evening Symphony of the Sea» — Hyperrealistic Painting of Ocean Sunset and Wave
Located in Zofingen, AG
This painting depicts a magical moment between day and night at the seaside. The sand still holds the warmth of the fading sun, while waves dance along the shore, composing a gentle ...
Category
2010s Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
"Glimmer" (2024) Oil Painting by Karen Offutt, Nude Female Portrait
By Karen Offutt
Located in Denver, CO
Karen Offutt's (US based) "Glimmer" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a nude female wearing a translucent robe, posing with her arms above her head. The painting is ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel
'Golden Tranquility' Forest Lake Scene by American Postwar 20th Century Artist
Located in Preston, GB
'Golden Tranquility' Forest Lake Scene by American Postwar 20th Century Artist, Phillip Cantrell, born in 1922. Original, Signed, Landscape, Vintage Oil Painting.
Art measures 16 x...
Category
20th Century Realist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Realist paintings for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Realist paintings 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 paintings 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 Michael Budden, Su Yu, Olga Antonova, and Mark Hunter. 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 paintings, so small editions measuring 0.5 inches across are also available.