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 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
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
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
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
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
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
VIRTUS (Virtue)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (at lower right): L; (on the back): D. Ligare / 2024
Canvas, Oil
SCIRE (To Know)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed with initial (at lower right): L
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
DISCERE (To Learn)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Signed (at lower right): L; (on verso): D. Ligare / 2024
Canvas, Oil
$219
H 5.91 in W 5.91 in D 1.19 in
Goldfinch Pocket Painting 2c, original painting, still-life, contemporary
By Dani Humberstone
Located in Deddington, GB
Pocket Goldfinch (canvas size 5x5cm) is an original oil painting by Dani Humberstone as part of her Pocket Painting series featuring small scale realistic oil paintings, with a nod t...
Canvas, Oil
$4,391
H 38.19 in W 38.19 in
Cactus Madness, Musee de la Palmeraie, Morocco, Original painting, Desert art
By Elaine Kazimierczuk
Located in Deddington, GB
It’s very difficult to classify the style of this piece. I have categorised it as abstract because of the composition which is all about the effect of light creating strong shadows, ...
Canvas, Oil
$4,391
H 37.41 in W 37.41 in
Cacti with Shadows, Musee de la Palmeraie, Morocco, Desert art, Plants, Cactus
By Elaine Kazimierczuk
Located in Deddington, GB
Elaine Kazimierczuk Cacti with Shadows, Musee de la Palmeraie, Morocco (Please note that in situ images are purely an indication of how a piece may look). It’s very difficult to cla...
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
$7,270
H 59.06 in W 39.38 in D 1.58 in
Grandiose - Realist purple & lavender Olive Tree, golden background, nature
By Anastasia Gklava
Located in Dallas, TX
"Grandiose", Purple Olive Tree with Golden Background. Oil and gold leaf on canvas, black and gold silhouette frame 150h × 100w × 4d cm 59.06h × 39.37w × 1.57d inches Anastasia Gkl...
Gold Leaf
$4,000
H 42 in W 30 in
New Home (Contemporary Oil Painting of Living Room in Yellow with green plants)
Located in Hudson, NY
New Home (Brightly Colored Contemporary oil painting of an Interior with House Plants and red chairs) Painted by Fred Cohen in 2025 42 x 30 inches x 1.5 inches, custom light wood fr...
Canvas, Oil
$1,882
H 35.44 in W 35.44 in D 1.97 in
Green & Blue Landscape Forest Study Oil Painting "Into the Woods - Thabo M"
By Karin Hopkinson
Located in Cape Town, ZA
A medium sized unique oil painting on stretched canvas, ready to hang. As the artist move through a new passage of her life these “Into the Woods” paintings started to emerge. This...
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
$1,303
H 20.01 in W 28.59 in D 1.58 in
Hydrangeas in Sunlight, floral art, original art, affordable art
By Trevor Waugh
Located in Deddington, GB
Hydrangeas In Sunlight Trevor Waugh Oil on stretched canvas Unframed Flowers Please note that in situ images are purely an indication of how a piece may look. Trevor Waugh's paintin...
Oil, Canvas
$4,563
H 37.41 in W 37.41 in
Elaine Kazimierczuk, Cactus and Large Palm, Majorelle Gardens, Morocco
By Elaine Kazimierczuk
Located in Deddington, GB
Elaine Kazimierczuk Cactus and Large Palm, Majorelle Gardens, Morocco Original Landscape Painting Oil Paint on Canvas Canvas Size: H 95cm x W 95cm Sold Unframed (Please note that in ...
Canvas, Oil
$2,500
H 21 in W 21 in D 3 in
Evening Blue Clouds (Realist Landscape Oil Painting of Small Town Night Scene)
By Carl Grauer
Located in Hudson, NY
"Evening Blue Clouds" By Carl Grauer Oil on Canvas 20x20 inches 21 x 21 x 3 inches framed, custom painted white wood floater frame Signed en verso Artist Carl Grauer captures the qu...
Oil, Canvas
No Name 55, Mixed Media Painting on Linen
By Andrea Gallotti
Located in New York City, NY
Italian painter Andrea Gallotti’s practice is rooted in the quiet rigor of repetition, a deliberate return to a gesture so simple it borders on the childlike, yet so subtle that its ...
Canvas, Mixed Media, 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
Integritas
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Oil on canvas, 2015
Still Life with Plums and Goldfinch (Aparchai)
By David Ligare
Located in New York, NY
Oil on canvas