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Joseph McGurl Paintings

American, b. 1958

Joseph McGurl is one of today's most celebrated American realist painters. The Art Renewal Center has designated him as a living master, and it's not hard to see why. With their strikingly reflective water surfaces and blue skies streaked with warm oranges and yellow-reds, McGurl's figurative paintings and landscape paintings resemble photographs of serene places captured in the best possible natural light. 

McGurl's first and most influential teacher was his father, James McGurl, who worked as a muralist. As a young man, Joseph attended the Massachusetts College of Art and earned a dual degree in painting and education. He then spent time studying at Fenway Studios and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, in addition to studying in Italy and England. A stint on a yacht also inspired a love for painting the natural world.

For its interplay of light and color, McGurl's distinctive, hyperreal style is often likened to the American luminists, a 19th-century movement linked to the Hudson River School. McGurl is a plein air painter — he works exclusively in the great outdoors as opposed to working from photographs within the confines of a studio. His atmospheric landscapes are mainly of areas in New England and the eastern United States.

McGurl is a member of the Plein Air Painters of America and the Guild of Boston Artists. His work is held in the Forbes Collection, the Mellon Collection, the Cape Cod Museum of Art, the New Britain Museum of American Art and the Cahoon Museum of American Art. He has also earned numerous awards, including the Art Renewal Center’s International Salon First Place in Landscape and the Guild of Boston Artists Gold Medallion. In 2020, Cavalier Galleries in New York City was home to an exhibition called "Joseph McGurl — Contemporary American Luminism: Journey through Time and Space."

On 1stDibs, find original Joseph McGurl paintings.

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Artist: Joseph McGurl
“Sunset Sail, Nixes Mate, Boston Harbor”
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Southampton, NY
A fabulous evening maritime oil painting on board by the well known contemporary artist, Joseph McGurl. Nixes Mate in Boston harbor is the location. Signed by the artist lower right...
Category

2010s American Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Into the Light
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
Signed lower right American, b. 1958 Designated a living master by the Art Renewal Center and widely regarded as a leader of the American landscape school, Joseph McGurl is one of ...
Category

2010s American Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil, Panel

Swordfishing off Sankaty Light
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
A uniquely layered painting by Joseph McGurl, depicting a fishing boat off the coast of Nantucket. Seagulls cross over from the scene to a painted border, adding depth to the composi...
Category

2010s Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

The Florida Waterways, Fishing the Inlet
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
American, b. 1958 Designated a living master by the Art Renewal Center and widely regarded as a leader of the American landscape school, Joseph McGurl is one of the most important realist painters today. McGurl works almost exclusively with oil paint, capturing marine and landscape scenes in his native New England as well as other areas of the Eastern US. Along with his childhood as a muralist’s son, McGurl’s days as a sailor and his studies under Robert Cormier...
Category

2010s American Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

"Far Away, " Oil Painting
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Denver, CO
Joseph McGurl's "Far Away" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a vast landscape of valleys and mountains in the distance under the orange and yellow glow of sunrise or...
Category

2010s Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

The Landscape Painter
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
Original oil painting on linen by artist Joseph McGurl. Framed.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

Alongshore, Nantucket
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
Joseph McGurl is regarded as a leader of the current American landscape school. This has been confirmed by his inclusion in several important museum shows and his successful relation...
Category

2010s Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Light on the Sea
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
American, b. 1958 Designated a living master by the Art Renewal Center and widely regarded as a leader of the American landscape school, Joseph McGurl is one of the most important r...
Category

2010s Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

"Prism, River and Sky, " Oil Painting
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Denver, CO
Joseph McGurl's "Prism, River and Sky" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a bright yellow and orange sunrise or sunset over the waters reflective surface, casting the...
Category

2010s Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Oil

Hudson River Twilight
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
Joseph McGurl contemporary luminist Hudson River scene
Category

2010s Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

The Sailing Canoe, Tetons
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
Original oil painting on linen by artist Joseph McGurl. Framed.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

View from Coatue, Lifting Fog, Afternoon Sun
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
Signed lower right American, b. 1958 Designated a living master by the Art Renewal Center and widely regarded as a leader of the American landscape school, Joseph McGurl is one of ...
Category

2010s American Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

The Bass Rocks
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
Designated a living master by the Art Renewal Center and widely regarded as a leader of the American landscape school, Joseph McGurl is one of the most important realist painters today. McGurl works almost exclusively with oil paint, capturing marine and landscape scenes in his native New England as well as other areas of the Eastern US. Along with his childhood as a muralist’s son, McGurl’s days as a sailor and his studies under Robert Cormier...
Category

2010s Realist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

Ranchlands After the Rain
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
Original oil painting on linen by artist Joseph McGurl. Framed.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

The Cast Shadow
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
Original oil painting on linen by artist Joseph McGurl. Framed.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

Riders Through Time and Space
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Colorado Springs, CO
Original oil painting on linen by artist Joseph McGurl. Framed.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Joseph McGurl Paintings

Materials

Linen, Oil

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Previously Available Items
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Becalmed: The Sailing Canoe
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Luminaire
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
Joseph McGurl is regarded as a leader of the current American landscape school. This has been confirmed by his inclusion in several important museum shows and his successful relation...
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Linen, Oil, Panel

Pathways
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
Joseph McGurl is regarded as a leader of the current American landscape school. This has been confirmed by his inclusion in several important museum shows and his successful relationship with some of the country’s leading galleries. He has been the subject of numerous books and magazine articles and is also the author of several art related magazine articles published in print and online. McGurl has been designated a Living Master by the Art Renewal Center in New York. He has been elected to the Guild of Boston Artists, was a Copley Master with the Copley Society of Boston and is a signature member of the prestigious Plein Air Painters of America. His many awards include the Guild of Boston Artists Gold Medallion, The Art Renewal Center’s International Salon First Place in Landscape, American Fine Art Magazine Award of Excellence, The Rehs Award, a Purchase Award, and the John Singleton Copley...
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Pathways
Pathways
H 8.5 in W 12.5 in
Sankaty Light
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
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Twilight, Hudson River
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Light Speed
By Joseph McGurl
Located in Greenwich, CT
Landscape, water
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21st Century and Contemporary American Impressionist Joseph McGurl Paintings

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Joseph Mcgurl paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Joseph McGurl paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Joseph McGurl in oil paint, paint, panel and more. Not every interior allows for large Joseph McGurl paintings, so small editions measuring 12 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Jake Fischer, Jove Wang, and Eric Forstmann. Joseph McGurl paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $5,800 and tops out at $58,000, while the average work can sell for $8,800.