During a trip to Europe following his graduation from high school, a young David Ligare boldly walked up to the home of artist Salvador Dalí in Port Lligat, Spain, and knocked on the front door. Fortunately for Ligare, the legendary Surrealist was home. Even more fortunate, Dalí agreed to speak with him, and the two spent the afternoon chatting in his studio. Although it’s not known what they discussed, Ligare later became a painter. While his landscapes, still lifes and narrative oil paintings expand upon the realist tradition, the figures in his works are stylized — they’re polished and wholly free of imperfection.
Ligare was born in 1945 in Oak Park, Illinois. At the age of five years old, he moved with his family to California and, in later years, studied at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena.
In 1978, Ligare’s artistic style took shape after joining a group of artists who were intent on reviving narrative painting during a time dominated by Conceptualism, minimalism and Pop art. An essay fueled Ligare’s decision to base his style on narration by critic and painter Sidney Tillim titled “Notes on Narrative and History Painting,” which appeared in Artforum a year prior. Tillim had explained why narrative art was necessary, stating that “a didactic morality or its equivalent must similarly support and validate what comes down to a new — or renewed — effort to illustrate belief.”
Not only was Ligare inspired by the works of 17th-century painter Nicolas Poussin — a major figure in classical French Baroque art — but he also drew upon Greco-Roman classicism. Greek sculptor Polykleitos, mathematician Pythagoras, and Plato's philosophy and mythology helped shape his ideas of light, balance, symmetry, and harmony. His surroundings also inspired Ligare in Monterey County, California, where he is based — many of his paintings depict the California coast in the background.
Ligare has shown his works extensively, including in exhibitions at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, the Fresno Art Museum, the Frye Art Museum in Seattle and the Prince of Wales Institute of Architecture in London. His paintings are part of the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the Santa Barbara Museum of Art and the Department of Drawings and Prints of the Uffizi in Florence, Italy.
Find authentic David Ligare paintings on 1stDibs.
Still Life with Polykleitian Head and Ancathus
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
SAPERE AUDE. Dare to be wise. Immanuel Kant’s directive is embodied in the work of David Ligare. For thirty-five years, Ligare has dedicated his work to ...
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Peach on Cloth
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2014
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Figs on Cloth
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
SAPERE AUDE. Dare to be wise. Immanuel Kant’s directive is embodied in the work of David Ligare. For thirty-five years, Ligare has dedicated his work to ...
Canvas, Oil
Offering: Grapes & Fig
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
David Ligare (b. 1945) Contemporary American Painter "Offering: Grapes & Fig," 2023 Oil on canvas, 20 x 24 in. Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso): Ligare / 2023
Canvas, Oil
Thrown Drapery (Redux) Study 1
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2004
Canvas, Oil
Landscape with an Owl (ATHENE NOCTUA) (Owl of Athena)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2024
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Apple on Cloth
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2014
Canvas, Oil
Candle and Flowers
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
SAPERE AUDE. Dare to be wise. Immanuel Kant’s directive is embodied in the work of David Ligare. For thirty-five years, Ligare has dedicated his work to ...
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Apples and Basket
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso)" D. Ligare / 2014
Canvas, Oil
SCIRE (To Know)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed with initial (at lower right): L
Canvas, Oil
SOLIS (Sunlight)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2024
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Box
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (at lower right): L; (on verso): David Ligare
Canvas, Oil
PERMETTO (To Allow)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2024
Canvas, Oil
DISCERE (To Learn)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2024
Canvas, Oil
VIRTUS (Virtue)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (at lower right): L; (on the back): D. Ligare / 2024
Canvas, Oil
ORDINE NATURAE (The Order of Nature)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2015
Canvas, Oil
Wine Bottles and Fruit on Table
By Zygmund Jankowski
Located in Gloucester, MA
Zygmund Jankowski (1925–2009) painted traditional subjects with exuberant irreverence for traditional rules of color, composition, and perspective. He disparaged imitation and deligh...
Canvas, Oil
$2,900
H 24 in W 30 in
Botanical Splendor -Floral Painting - Oil on Canvas By Marc Zimmerman
By Marc Zimmerman
Located in Carmel, CA
Tropical plants sculpturally composed in an iconic vertical composition. 'Botanical Splendor' - Landscape Painting - Oil on Canvas By Marc Zimmerman This masterpiece is exhibited i...
Canvas, Oil
$2,500
H 38 in W 48 in D 1.5 in
«Sh*t Happens» Figurative Oil Painting by Samantha Van Heest
By Samantha Van Heest
Located in Oslo, NO
Shit happens sometimes. In this piece, the artist wanted to create an unsettling and claustrophobic space where people feel most private and vulnerable. Inspired by artist Tala Madani, she created a cartoon figure to act as the voyeur, a bright and unwelcome disturbance that cannot be ignored. Samantha Van Heest...
Canvas, Oil
$4,521
H 51.19 in W 47.25 in D 1.19 in
Bright Blue & Green Tropical Botanical Study Oil Painting "Birds of Paradise"
By Karin Hopkinson
Located in Cape Town, ZA
A large, unique oil painting on stretched canvas, ready to hang. The artwork depicts close-up tropical plants in beautiful and rich colours. Framing options are available on request
Canvas, Oil
$2,231
H 39.38 in W 29.53 in D 1.97 in
Purple & Yellow Botanical Study Oil Painting "Light at the End"
By Karin Hopkinson
Located in Cape Town, ZA
A medium sized, unique oil painting on stretched canvas, ready to hang. Deep and rich purple and mustard yellow colours with white flowers. Framing options are available on request.
Canvas, Oil
$7,840
H 59.06 in W 78.75 in D 1.19 in
Agorafolia - Large Format Contemporary Nature Oil Painting, Landscape, Clouds
By Aleksandra Batura
Located in Hallein, AT
Aleksandra Batura (b. 1982 in Augustów) a Warsaw based artist. She earned a Doctor of Fine Arts degree from the Academy of Fine Arts in Cracow. She studied at the Faculty of Painting...
Cotton Canvas, Oil
$9,465
H 25.6 in W 31.5 in
Zomerlicht Summer Light Terrace Oil Painting on Canvas Impressionism In Stock
By Juane Xue
Located in Utrecht, NL
Zomerlicht Summer Light Terrace Oil Painting on Canvas Impressionism In Stock Juane Xue (1962, Kaifeng, China) Juane Xue was born in Kaifeng, China, in 1962 and showed artistic tal...
Canvas, Oil
$2,961
H 35.44 in W 51.19 in D 0.79 in
Campfire 23 September 21:12 - Forest Landscape Oil Painting, Nature, Night
By Robert Motelski
Located in Hallein, AT
Robert Motelski's paintings are exceptional visions of nature, visions of space which surrounds us. They tell about being, fate and passing. They depend on the season of year, the ti...
Canvas, Oil
$2,000
H 13 in W 24 in
Jessica Hess, "D.I.E.", Hyper-Realistic Oil Painting of Graffiti Landscape
By Jessica Hess
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Original oil painting on canvas by Jessica Hess measuring 13in x 24in. About Jessica Hess: Oakland, CA-based artist Jessica Hess is a hyperreal landscape painter. A graduate of the ...
Canvas, Oil
Jan Harr 'Cloud studies' oil on canvas painting
Located in San Rafael, CA
Jan Harr (Norwegian b. 1945) Cloud studies oil on canvas signed JAN HARR (lower right) Canvas 15 x 18 ¼in. In a silver and black frame 18 1/4in H x 21 1/2 in L x 1 3/4in D Provenan...
Canvas, Oil
$3,990
H 29.93 in W 24.02 in D 1.58 in
Earthy Pastel Pink Floral Study Oil Painting on Canvas "Anatomy of a Bloom"
Located in Cape Town, ZA
Reminiscent of 19th century Romantic painting in their depiction of sublime landscapes, the meticulously realized paintings of Jaco van Schalkwyk nevertheless retain their own identi...
Canvas, Oil
Dutch Tulips
By William Nelson
Located in Greenwich, CT
American, b. 1961 Artist Statement The intention of this work is to generate conversations about values and identity by assembling unlikely pairs, Hollywood film icons and nostalgic...
Canvas, Oil
NOVUM INCREMENTUM (New Growth)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (LR): L; on verso: D. Ligare/ 1988/2024
Canvas, Oil
Offering: Apples & Wheat
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
David Ligare (b. 1945) Contemporary American Painter 'Offering: Apples & Wheat,' 2023 Oil on canvas, 20 x 24 in. Signed (at lower right): L; (on back): D. Ligare/ 2023.
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Polykleitian Head and Candles (Idea)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2018
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Lilies
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on verso) D. Ligare / 2014.
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Figs and Rose
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
SAPERE AUDE. Dare to be wise. Immanuel Kant’s directive is embodied in the work of David Ligare. For thirty-five years, Ligare has dedicated his work to Classicist ideals: Truth, Bea...
Canvas, Oil
Bulk Order for Eugene Orloff
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
SAPERE AUDE. Dare to be wise. Immanuel Kant’s directive is embodied in the work of David Ligare. For thirty-five years, Ligare has dedicated his work to Classicist ideals: Truth, Bea...
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with White Roses in Pot
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
SAPERE AUDE. Dare to be wise. Immanuel Kant’s directive is embodied in the work of David Ligare. For thirty-five years, Ligare has dedicated his work to Classicist ideals: Truth, Bea...
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Figs and Egyptian Pot
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower right): L; (on the verso): D. Ligare / 2017 SAPERE AUDE. Dare to be wise. Immanuel Kant’s directive is embodied in the work of David Ligare. For thirty-fi...
Canvas, Oil
The Cane Gatherer (Qanu)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (at lower left): L
Canvas, Oil
Three Grecian Women
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (at lower left on stone): D. LIGARE. 1983
Canvas, Oil
Still Life with Plums and Goldfinch (Aparchai)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Oil on canvas
Integritas
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Oil on canvas, 2015