Skip to main content

John Duffin Figurative Paintings

John Duffin is a painter and printmaker whose work is based on the modern environments of cities and towns, creating dynamic and cinematic images of contemporary urban life. His unique images of architecture, lighting and figures have been greatly praised and awarded, recently receiving the Most Outstanding Print Award from Sir Peter Blake. He has a distinctive artistic voice and has much to say in his work about contemporary life in all of its manifestations. His work is in the tradition of LS Lowry in Britain and Edward Hopper in America and like these artists, he creates unique views of contemporary urban life, a combination of his ability as a draughtsman, his imagination and his personal use of perspective and color. Duffin makes drawings and watercolors in front of his chosen subject and takes these sketches back to his London studio, where he creates from them his imaginative interpretation of the site, recreating the place anew via his imagination. Duffin's work is redolent with influences from cinema, graphic novels and the history of figurative painting, but from this comes a vision that is his alone.

to
3
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
3
3
3
3
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
3
3
3
3
26
510
284
282
230
3
Artist: John Duffin
John Duffin, Tube Light 1, Contemporary Art, London Cityscape Art
John Duffin, Tube Light 1, Contemporary Art, London Cityscape Art

John Duffin, Tube Light 1, Contemporary Art, London Cityscape Art

By John Duffin

Located in Deddington, GB

Tube Light 1 [2015] Original Figurative Oil paint on canvas Size: H:76 cm x W:51 cm x D:4cm Sold Unframed Please note that insitu images are purely an indication of how a piece may look London tube...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Tube Light 1 and Tube Light 2 diptych
Tube Light 1 and Tube Light 2 diptych

Tube Light 1 and Tube Light 2 diptych

By John Duffin

Located in Deddington, GB

Tube Light 2 by John Duffin [2015] original Oil Paint on Canvas Image size: H:76 cm x W:51 cm Complete Size of Unframed Work: H:76 cm x W:51 cm x D:4cm ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

John Duffin, Tube Rain 1, London Cityscape Art, Contemporary Art
John Duffin, Tube Rain 1, London Cityscape Art, Contemporary Art

John Duffin, Tube Rain 1, London Cityscape Art, Contemporary Art

By John Duffin

Located in Deddington, GB

Tube Rain 1 [2015] Original Architecture Oil paint on canvas Size: H:76 cm x W:51 cm x D:4cm Sold Unframed Please note that insitu images are purely an indicati...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Related Items
Summer - Contemporary Impressionistic Painting of a Landscape
Summer - Contemporary Impressionistic Painting of a Landscape

Summer - Contemporary Impressionistic Painting of a Landscape

By Frank Dekkers

Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant

Frank Dekkers Summer 140 x 200 cm (not framed) oil on canvas On the pictures we also show you the artist receiving the flowers on our opening of this exhibition september 3th 2023 i...

Category

2010s Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

Meditation
Meditation

Willard DixonMeditation, 2025

$7,500

H 30 in W 40 in

Meditation

By Willard Dixon

Located in Burlingame, CA

Willard Dixon is widely recognized for his calm, contemplative landscapes and skyscapes, paintings that hold stillness, clarity, and a quiet reverence for nature. In this exhibition,...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Contaminating the Innocent - Young Girl Swimming Surrounded by Plastic Waste
Contaminating the Innocent - Young Girl Swimming Surrounded by Plastic Waste

Contaminating the Innocent - Young Girl Swimming Surrounded by Plastic Waste

By Bruno Surdo

Located in Chicago, IL

This painting reflects Bruno Surdo’s continued engagement with classical realism as a vehicle for contemporary allegory. A young girl, centered and frontal, sits in an inflatable ring surrounded by floating plastic waste—bottles, containers, straws—both above and beneath the water’s surface. The composition is calm, almost symmetrical, yet emotionally unsettling. Surdo’s atelier-based training is evident in the careful modeling of the child’s anatomy, the naturalistic rendering of skin tones, and the controlled atmospheric perspective. The figure is painted with the same dignity and structural clarity found in Renaissance portraiture, elevating what could be a simple environmental image into a modern history painting. Art historically, the work draws from the tradition of allegorical portraiture, where innocence is personified to communicate moral themes. The child recalls Renaissance depictions of putti or symbolic youth figures, yet here innocence is placed in peril. The floating debris creates a contemporary vanitas motif: instead of skulls and extinguished candles, the symbols of decay are plastic and petroleum byproducts—markers of environmental neglect. The waterline dividing the composition subtly recalls the layered moral narratives of Baroque painting, where surface beauty often concealed deeper truths. The title, Contaminating the Innocent, underscores this allegorical intent, transforming the image into a meditation on generational responsibility. Within Surdo’s broader oeuvre—often concerned with spectacle, identity, and human consequence—this painting shifts toward ecological consciousness. Yet it remains consistent with his practice of grounding urgent modern themes in the visual authority of classical technique. By presenting environmental degradation through the lens of Renaissance-informed realism, Surdo avoids didactic illustration and instead creates a quiet, haunting indictment. The stillness of the child’s gaze contrasts with the chaos of the polluted water, reinforcing the central tension: the vulnerability of innocence in a world shaped by adult action. Bruno Surdo Contaminating the Innocent oil on canvas 48h x 48w in 121.92h x 121.92w cm BRS072 Bruno A. Surdo b. Chicago, 1963 EXHIBITIONS 2020 Realities, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2018 Liberation, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Blood Sport, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Art on Paper 2018, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Pier 36, New York, NY SOFA Chicago 2018, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL 2017 POP!ARAZZI, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Coming Attractions, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2015 SOFA Chicago 2015, Ann Nathan Gallery, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Allegories, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2014 Bruno Surdo: Respond, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Modern Metaphors, Rockford Art Museum, Rockford, IL 2013 Bruno Surdo: Revelations, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Vice + Virtue, Northern Illinois University Museum of Art 2012 Contemporary Realism Biennial, Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN 2011 Bruno Surdo, University of St. Francis School of Creative Arts, Fort Wayne, IN Uncensored, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2010 Art Chicago 2010, Ann Nathan Gallery, Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 2009 Art Chicago 2009, Ann Nathan Gallery, Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 2007 Bruno Surdo, Art Institute of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN 2006 Context/Content: Making Meaning with the Figure, University of Arkansas, Conway, AR Creative Imaginings, Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL Bruno Surdo: Cycles, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2005 Art Chicago 2005, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2004 Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Richard M. Daley Center, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2004, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Group Show, Arcadia Gallery, New York, NY Drawings VII, Koplin Del Rio Gallery, West Hollywood, CA Armory Show, New York Armory, New York, NY 2003 Paintings & Drawings, College of Lake County, Grayslake, IL The Art Show, New York, NY Bruno Surdo: New Work, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2003, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2003-10 International Show of Contemporary Artists, Chicago Art Open, Chicago, IL 2002 Bruno Surdo: Perception of Appearance, Frye Museum, Seattle, WA Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Richard M. Daley Center, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Transcendence, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2002, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2001 Magic Vision, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR 1998 Evanston and Vicinity Artists, Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL 1996 Bruno Surdo: A Personal View, University of Wisconsin, Kenosha, WI 1995 Bruno Surdo: Recent Works, College of Lake County, IL AIDS in Our Society, Loyola University, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Life, Struggle, and Hope, Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, IL 2001 Magic Vision, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR Bruno Surdo: Dualities of Life, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1999 Group Show, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1998 Group Exhibition, Fine Arts Building Gallery, Chicago, IL 1995 Spiritual Inquiries, Struve Gallery, Chicago, IL 1994 Recent Works, The 14th Annual Juried Exhibition for Lake County Artists, Grayslake, IL Go Figure, Figurative Works on Paper, Chicago Printmakers Collaborative, Chicago, IL SELECTED COLLECTIONS The Re-Birth of Venus, Temporary Loan, Fort Wayne Museum of Art Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR College of Lake County, Greyslake, IL Flashpoint Academy, Chicago IL John Robert Wiltgen Design Shoemaker Ruud Collection Julie & Thomas Danilek Michael Vozzella and Mike Silver Benjamin Fernandez Tom Braake Betsy Colburn Michael Diemand & Lor LaRose Michael Staab & Kathy Brock Bruce Leep Frank Tzurect Mary Foley Rosalyn Carlson Mimmy Turney Janet Long Halstead Billy Hunt Carol Galli Myles Kerrigan Honorable & Mrs. Edwin Berman Theodore Gage Northrop Art Museum Past Present & Future Company Dr. James & Peggy Kemmler Salvatore Monastero Nix & Virginia Lauridsen Joel Miller David & Marlene Zerkel Ann & Andy Abel Claudia Rush Marc Miller Leonard Goldberg Lawrence Pucci Howard Tullman Collection Susan & Manny Kramer James Rinnert Richar Interiors Michael & Nancy Colt Khalid Altijir Dr. Joe Grodman Beryl & Jack Gore Larry Wolf & Eric Naegle Chuck Wolandi Jack Schwab & David Sandelin Thomas Kaczmarek Marti Dinerstein Craig & Michael Golden...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Trees 21 October 09:49 - Modern Nature Painting, Landscape, Forest, Contemplativ
Trees 21 October 09:49 - Modern Nature Painting, Landscape, Forest, Contemplativ

Trees 21 October 09:49 - Modern Nature Painting, Landscape, Forest, Contemplativ

By Robert Motelski

Located in Salzburg, 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...

Category

2010s Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Feminine & Masculine XV - Modern Figurative Oil Painting, Beach View, Realism

Feminine & Masculine XV - Modern Figurative Oil Painting, Beach View, Realism

By Julita Malinowska

Located in Salzburg, AT

Artodyssey "Julita Malinowska's paintings belong to those, which once seen - are never forgotten. The open spaces, sometimes cool and bright, at other times heavily saturated with co...

Category

2010s Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Couple I - Contemporary Figurative Oil Painting, Beach View, Love, Realism, Joy
Couple I - Contemporary Figurative Oil Painting, Beach View, Love, Realism, Joy

Couple I - Contemporary Figurative Oil Painting, Beach View, Love, Realism, Joy

By Julita Malinowska

Located in Salzburg, AT

Artodyssey "Julita Malinowska's paintings belong to those, which once seen - are never forgotten. The open spaces, sometimes cool and bright, at other times heavily saturated with co...

Category

2010s Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"A Few Prosaic Days", Fall in New England Landscape Painting, Nature, Leaves
"A Few Prosaic Days", Fall in New England Landscape Painting, Nature, Leaves

"A Few Prosaic Days", Fall in New England Landscape Painting, Nature, Leaves

By Katherine Fraser

Located in Philadelphia, PA

This figurative painting titled "A Few Prosaic Days" is an original artwork by Katherine Fraser made of oil paint on canvas. This landscape painting depicts a nature scene of trees with a variety of colorful foliage including reds, yellows, and greens. This piece measures 34.5"h x 34.5"w framed and is shipped in the pictured framed. Katherine Fraser has been exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the United States. She is a graduate of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and of the University of Pennsylvania. As a student she received the Thomas Eakins Painting prize, the Cecelia Beaux Portrait prize, and the William Emlen Cresson Memorial Travel Award, among others. Since graduating in 2002, she has received awards including the Lucy Glick...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Passing By - Contemporary Figurative Oil Painting, Sea View, Realism, Beach
Passing By - Contemporary Figurative Oil Painting, Sea View, Realism, Beach

Passing By - Contemporary Figurative Oil Painting, Sea View, Realism, Beach

By Julita Malinowska

Located in Salzburg, AT

Artodyssey "Julita Malinowska's paintings belong to those, which once seen - are never forgotten. The open spaces, sometimes cool and bright, at other times heavily saturated with co...

Category

2010s Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Low Water - Contemporary Impressionistic Painting of a Landscape
Low Water - Contemporary Impressionistic Painting of a Landscape

Low Water - Contemporary Impressionistic Painting of a Landscape

By Frank Dekkers

Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant

Frank Dekkers Low Water 140 x 200 cm (not framed) oil on canvas On the pictures we also show you the artist receiving the flowers on our opening of this exhibition september 3th 202...

Category

2010s Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Oil

"Time Machine", Hyperrealistic, Motorcycle and Graffiti Figurative Oil Painting
"Time Machine", Hyperrealistic, Motorcycle and Graffiti Figurative Oil Painting

"Time Machine", Hyperrealistic, Motorcycle and Graffiti Figurative Oil Painting

By Katherine Fraser

Located in Philadelphia, PA

This figurative painting titled "Time Machine" is an original artwork by Katherine Fraser made of oil paint on canvas. This piece measures 29.5"h x 36.5"w framed and is shipped in the pictured frame. Katherine Fraser has been exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the United States. She is a graduate of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and of the University of Pennsylvania. As a student she received the Thomas Eakins Painting prize, the Cecelia Beaux Portrait prize, and the William Emlen Cresson Memorial Travel Award, among others. Since graduating in 2002, she has received awards including the Lucy...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Imperceptible change #4 - Hélène Duclos, Contemporary figurative painting
Imperceptible change #4 - Hélène Duclos, Contemporary figurative painting

Imperceptible change #4 - Hélène Duclos, Contemporary figurative painting

By Hélène Duclos

Located in Paris, FR

Oil on canvas Signed lower right Unique work 1 / Hélène DUCLOS, 2016 – Artist Statement “Questioning the human condition and the position of being alive...

Category

2010s Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Arbitrary landscape cut-out #2 - Hélène Duclos, Contemporary figurative painting
Arbitrary landscape cut-out #2 - Hélène Duclos, Contemporary figurative painting

Arbitrary landscape cut-out #2 - Hélène Duclos, Contemporary figurative painting

By Hélène Duclos

Located in Paris, FR

Oil on canvas Signed Unique work 1 / Hélène DUCLOS, 2016 – Artist Statement “Questioning the human condition and the position of being alive – What is i...

Category

2010s Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Previously Available Items
Ronnie Scott's, limited edition art, still-life, cityscape, London
Ronnie Scott's, limited edition art, still-life, cityscape, London

Ronnie Scott's, limited edition art, still-life, cityscape, London

By John Duffin

Located in Deddington, GB

Ronnie Scott’s by John Duffin [2021] original Acrylic on Paper signed Image size: H:76 cm x W:56 cm Complete Size of Unframed Work: H:76 cm x W:56 cm x...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary John Duffin Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

John Duffin figurative paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic John Duffin figurative paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by John Duffin in paint, canvas, fabric and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 21st century and contemporary and is mostly associated with the contemporary style. Not every interior allows for large John Duffin figurative paintings, so small editions measuring 21 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Ronald Soeliman, Birgitte Likke Madsen, and Heather Allen Hietala. John Duffin figurative paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $2,542 and tops out at $6,182, while the average work can sell for $3,091.