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Realist Art

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
Color:  Black
Octoplate
Located in London, GB
The Octopussy with signature on the suckers, and the artist's thumbprint (on the reverse) screenprint on earthenware, with underglaze paint 37 cm. (14 ½ ) diam. 6.1 cm. (2 ⅜ in....
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Ceramic, Paint

Fading Light, Painting, Watercolor on Watercolor Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
Just before dark on a warm summer night best describes this painting. Featuring a dark almost silhouette of trees and a cross in the foreground with some dark foreboding clouds in th...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

Hyperrealist Charcoal on Archival Paper Botanic Artwork "Britton Rosea"
Located in Cape Town, ZA
In Henk Serfontein's recent series of charcoal drawings, Fragile Flora, he continues his investigation into the fragile, the intimate and the ethereal. In his plant portraits he capt...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Charcoal, Mixed Media, Archival Paper

On the Road to Nattyville 3, Original Pencil and Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
"On the Road to 'Nattyville' 3" by Lisa Lebofsky (United States) is a handmade landscape, pencil and oil, painting that is framed and ready hang.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Mixed Media

On the Road to Nattyville 2, Original Pencil and Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
"On the Road to 'Nattyville' 2" by Lisa Lebofsky (United States) is a handmade landscape, pencil and oil, painting that is framed and ready hang.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Mixed Media

On the Road to Nattyville 1, Original Pencil and Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
"On the Road to 'Nattyville' 1" by Lisa Lebofsky (United States) is a handmade landscape, pencil and oil, painting that is framed and ready hang.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Mixed Media

I Feel So Small in the Mountains, Original Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
"I Feel So Small in the Mountains" by Emma Kalff (United States) is a handmade landscape oil painting that is framed and ready to hang.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Hyperrealist Charcoal on Archival Paper Artwork "Still Life with Muybridge"
Located in Cape Town, ZA
This recent series of charcoal drawings by Henk Serfontein, MOMENTUM, is inspired by the work of Eadweard Muybridge. There is a play between realism and surrealism, with the almost p...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Charcoal, Mixed Media, Archival Paper

John Salt-The Pioneer Pontiac-HAND SIGNED
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Sku: YY0468-B Artist: John Salt Title: Pioneer Pontiac Year: 1977 Signed: Yes Medium: Offset Lithograph Paper Size: 19.5 x 28.5 inches ( 49.53 x 72.39 cm ) Image Size: 17.5 x 26.5 in...
Category

20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Offset

Black Furs, Dramatic Photography, Vibrant Floral Artwork, Chromagenic Prints
Located in Deddington, GB
Black Furs is a limited edition print by Allan Forsyth. The black background heightens the tones of the flowers creating a dramatic scene. Discover new photography by Allan Forsyth ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

"Olivia II" - Christiane Klisch - Nude - Acryl on Canvas
Located in Winterswijk, NL
Olivia II by Artist Christiane Klisch. Part of a female torso. The female body is only shown in part. Gestures and posture create their own visual language. The choice of color ali...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

"Anoop's Place" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Raymond Bonilla's "Anoop's Place" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts the façade of a brick building with balconies as the morning light hits its surface. About the Artist: Raymond Bonilla is a nationally recognized illustrator and fine artist in Buffalo, NY. Raymond graduated from the State University in New York at Fredonia in 2005 with a degree in New Media and Illustration. He continued his studies at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco where he completed his Masters of Fine Art in 2009. He was awarded Best in Show in the Great Lakes Emerging Artist Competition, was a finalist in the Artists Magazine Annual Art Competition, has been awarded Gold Medals in advertising from both Society of Illustrators of New York and Los Angeles, and juried into the Communication Arts Illustration Annual. He currently lives in Buffalo, New York where he spends his time painting and teaching part-time at SmART School and Visual Arts Passage. He is represented by Principle Gallery in Alexandria...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

Descend, Original Signed Contemporary Landscape Painting
Located in Boston, MA
Descend, Original Signed Contemporary Landscape Painting 30" x 20" x 2" (HxWxD) Acrylic on Canvas Hand-signed by the artist. Artist Robert Crooker captures the sublime in this almost otherworldly painting of a cavernous sinkhole. A small figure can be seen descending through the expansive depth of the natural formation, their silhouette juxtaposed against a misty white backdrop. The composition features a vignette of darkness, broken up by the beam of sunlight able to pour down through the open hole, illuminating mossy green rocks. Artist Commentary: This is a pretty massive sink hole which is massively impressive so I tried to recreate the photograph of it onto canvas. I'm pretty happy! Artist Biography: Robert Crooker was born in Massachusetts in 1951. A life long Red Sox fan, he saw the likes of Frank Malzone, Yaz, George Scott, Rico, Jim Lonborg all play in years gone by. He has been married for over 27 years with 4 children, and 2 grandchildren. In the Mid-1970’s, Robert started collecting Vintage Disney Collectibles dated from the 1930’s and 40’s. His passion for collecting grew so rapidly that in the 1980’s it became a business. He bought and sold “DISNEYANA” worldwide, realizing thousands of dollars for single pieces of rare highly sought after Disney merchandise. Robert is the leading world expert on the values of these collectibles. As an adventure in American art, these rarities were created during a time when toy manufacturers had art departments employed with many artists that created some of the most beautiful children’s toys ever created. While running Disneyana – Mouse Man...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

"Into the Blue"
Located in Denver, CO
"Into the Blue" is a digital print on 5 acrylic panels by Michelle Jader.
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Panel, Digital

"Ready, Steady, Go"
Located in Denver, CO
"Ready, Steady, Go" is a digital print on 5 acrylic panels by Michelle Jader.
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Panel, Digital

"Just Out of Reach"
Located in Denver, CO
"Just Out of Reach" is a digital print on 5 acrylic panels by Michelle Jader.
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Panel, Digital

"New York City, Jazz" Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Christopher Clark's "New York City, Jazz" is an original, hand made oil painting that depicts a night scene of a bustling cityscape.
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Sunset At Douglas, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
Living in Victoria, BC. and walking Douglas street at 6 pm on a Summer day, This is what you spect. A ray of strong sunshine reflected on this building. It is striking. I have to mak...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Chinese Contemporary Art by Su Yu - War in Ukraine
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas - diptych Su Yu is a Chinese artist born in 1987 who lives & works in Beijing in China. He was an old student of prestigious art teachers as Shi Liang & Chen Danqing ...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Maya - Lilja Bloom Contemporary Realism Pop Art
Located in Palma, ES
Maya Print painted with acryic 140 x 120 cm 2021
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Color

Maya - Lilja Bloom Contemporary Realism Pop Art
Located in Palma, ES
Maya Print painted with acrylic 70 x 70 cm 2021
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Color

Maya - Lilja Bloom Contemporary Realism Pop Art
Located in Palma, ES
Maya Print painted with acrylic 70 x 70 cm 2021
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Color

Maya - Lilja Bloom Contemporary Realism Pop Art
Located in Palma, ES
Maya Print painted with acrylic 70 x 70 cm 2021
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Color

Maya - Lilja Bloom Contemporary Realism Pop Art
Located in Palma, ES
Maya Print painted with acrylic 70 x 70 cm 2021
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Color

Maya - Lilja Bloom Contemporary Realism Pop Art
Located in Palma, ES
Maya Print painted with acrylic 70 x 70 cm 2021
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Color

Realistic Figurative Painting, "Embracing Your Dark Side"
Located in San Diego, CA
This is a one of a kind original realistic oil painting by San Diego artist Anna Cardoso titled, "Embracing Your Dark Side". It comes in a thin silver fra...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Behind The Door, Painting, Watercolor on Watercolor Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
Close up of a mysterious front door, with broken windows on an abandoned old house surrounded by bushes and overgrowth. :: Painting :: Realism :: This piece comes with an official c...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

Double Dutch #11: Black girls playing jump rope games in Philadelphia urban city
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
This black and white photograph depicts a Black girls' team in the urban city of Philadelphia practicing the art of Double-Dutch jump rope. This series of images provide a snapshot o...
Category

1980s Realist Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Day into Night, Forsythe Wildlife Refuge: large black & white landscape photo
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
This large-scale black and white landscape is part of artist Ron Tarver's long-term, ongoing project, " Land, Sea, Air," that explores the wide-ranging system of wetlands in the US ...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

''Red Cap” Contemporary Fine Realist Still-Life Painting of a Red Cap
Located in Utrecht, NL
During his successful career as a goldsmith the desire to paint grew on Dutch artist René Smoorenburg (1954). The attention to detail, which was of great importance in his work as a ...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

Hidden Passage, Painting, Watercolor on Watercolor Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
This piece focuses in on a winding gravel country road leading to an unknown rural destination amongst the trees and brush. :: Painting :: Realism :: This piece comes with an offic...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

November Chill, Painting, Watercolor on Watercolor Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
A chilly country morning after the first snow of the season, which is creating interesting shapes and patterns in the fields and gully’s. :: Paintin...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

Summer Retreat, Painting, Acrylic on MDF Panel
Located in Yardley, PA
What better way to cool off than to soak your feet in an ice cold stream. The inspiration for this painting was taken from a photo of my nephew sitting on a rock in a stream in Orego...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic

Chinese Quince, Painting, Watercolor on Watercolor Paper
Located in Yardley, PA
This is one of my studio paintings. Trying to capture nature of beauty. I love watercolor because it’s a very challenging medium. I used Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors with wo...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

City Creek Park, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
A beautiful little park in the heart of Salt Lake City. Developed to honor the 150th anniversary of the pioneer's arrival in the Salt Lake Valley. :: Painting :: Realism :: This pie...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic

Vikki
Located in Pasadena, CA
Provenance Acquired by the gallery directly from the artist Note: Bronze available
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Resin

James Sargant Storer, Trinity College Gateway From the Backs, Cambridge (c.1820)
Located in London, GB
To see our other views of Oxford and Cambridge , particularly suitable for wedding and graduation presents, scroll down to "More from this Seller" and below it click on "See all from...
Category

1820s Realist Art

Materials

Watercolor

Refrigerio d’ Estate, 2013
Located in ATLANTA, GA
Gastone Costantini , in collaboration with the “Cericola” Academy of Arts in Pescara, offers professional courses in “hyper-realistic painting”. Gastone Costantini, an artist from L...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

What do you think? Right side or Left side?, 2018
Located in ATLANTA, GA
I was born in 1972 in Chartres. I live and work near Orleans. After having taken courses at the Beaux Arts in Orléans in drawing of live models, sculpture and painting, I decided to devote myself entirely to painting. Education ARTISTIC APPROACH: When the day fades, the truth appears in the light of the twilight. The whole being, invaded by the padded silence of the advancing night, sees his humanity bend under the awakening of his senses. He becomes again more instinctive, more animal, more true in the beauty of his solitude ... and the return to nature that the twilight imposes, then sends him back an exact image of himself...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

When the Night is Revealed, 2018
Located in ATLANTA, GA
I was born in 1972 in Chartres. I live and work near Orleans. After having taken courses at the Beaux Arts in Orléans in drawing of live models, sculpture and painting, I decided to devote myself entirely to painting. Education ARTISTIC APPROACH: When the day fades, the truth appears in the light of the twilight. The whole being, invaded by the padded silence of the advancing night, sees his humanity bend under the awakening of his senses. He becomes again more instinctive, more animal, more true in the beauty of his solitude ... and the return to nature that the twilight imposes, then sends him back an exact image of himself...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

What's the Matter Tonight? Diptych, 2018
Located in ATLANTA, GA
I was born in 1972 in Chartres. I live and work near Orleans. After having taken courses at the Beaux Arts in Orléans in drawing of live models, sculpture and painting, I decided to devote myself entirely to painting. Education ARTISTIC APPROACH: When the day fades, the truth appears in the light of the twilight. The whole being, invaded by the padded silence of the advancing night, sees his humanity bend under the awakening of his senses. He becomes again more instinctive, more animal, more true in the beauty of his solitude ... and the return to nature that the twilight imposes, then sends him back an exact image of himself. It is this transformation that Ben Pastre...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Soon At Night, 2018
Located in ATLANTA, GA
I was born in 1972 in Chartres. I live and work near Orleans. After having taken courses at the Beaux Arts in Orléans in drawing of live models, sculpture and painting, I decided to devote myself entirely to painting. Education ARTISTIC APPROACH: When the day fades, the truth appears in the light of the twilight. The whole being, invaded by the padded silence of the advancing night, sees his humanity bend under the awakening of his senses. He becomes again more instinctive, more animal, more true in the beauty of his solitude ... and the return to nature that the twilight imposes, then sends him back an exact image of himself...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Chroessi Schnell - "Deer in the Seat of Fire" - realistic neo-expressionist
Located in Winterswijk, NL
Chroessi Schnell - "Deer in the Seat of Fire". Eealistic Neoexpressionism. Abstract forrest in fire with deer, from the series "Animal Souls", in which the artist deals with wild a...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Canvas

Her Majesty's Thunder, original oil on canvas, American realist artist
Located in Nutfield, Surrey
Leigh Murphy This original work of art by the award-winning watercolour and oil painter Leigh Murphy wonderfully illustrates her super realist technique of using thin layers to...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Vintage P40E Kittyhawk
Located in Nutfield, Surrey
Leigh Murphy This original work of art by the award-winning watercolour and oil painter Leigh Murphy wonderfully illustrates her super realist technique...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

1935 Mercedes
Located in Nutfield, Surrey
Leigh Murphy This original work of art by the award-winning watercolour and oil painter Leigh Murphy wonderfully illustrates her super realist technique...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Yin and Yang - Oil Acrylic Figurative Painting Ivory Blue White Brown Green
Located in Sofia, BG
" Yin and Yang" Diptych is a modern art line painting by Maestro Dimitar Voynov -Junior, About the artwork: TECHNIQUE: Acrylic, oil on canvas painti...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"The Last Remaining Light, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Daire Lynch's "The Last Remaining Light" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a blonde haired feminine figure clasping her hand while cast in...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Hand 1" Acrylic Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Matthew Alfonso Durante's "Hand 1" is an original, handmade acrylic painting that depicts a pink hued hand in an unusual gesture with a dark background.
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Acrylic, Panel

It's For You, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
A real fun one in the making. I enjoyed all the nuances of the subjects materials. The phone has a gold and white porcelain that picks up ambient light. I also enjoy narrative artwor...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Art

Materials

Oil

Sit In
Located in Florham Park, NJ
Gina Bellando Gina Bellando is an award-winning artist and photographer with over 35 years or experience. She graduated with honors from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts i...
Category

20th Century Realist Art

Materials

Charcoal, Crayon, Wax Crayon

German Contemporary Art by Frank Suplie - Leba/Polen
Located in Paris, IDF
Frank Suplie is a German artist born in 1950 lives and works in Berlin, Germany. He is a member of the Painters Association of the North German Realists s...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Canvas, Egg Tempera

"Beached, " Framed Limited Edition Giclee Print, 30" x 45"
Located in Westport, CT
This coastal Limited Edition print by Daniel Pollera depicts a brightly-lit row boat, with two ores resting on either edge of the boat, sitting on a small island of sand in the water...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Digital, Giclée

"Beached, " Framed Limited Edition Giclee Print, 24" x 36"
Located in Westport, CT
This coastal Limited Edition print by Daniel Pollera depicts a brightly-lit row boat, with two ores resting on either edge of the boat, sitting on a small island of sand in the water...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Giclée, Digital

"Post Time, " Framed Limited Edition Giclee Print, 9" x 12"
Located in Westport, CT
This coastal Limited Edition print by Daniel Pollera features a white row boat with two ores resting on either side of the boat's edge. It is tied to a wooden post in the water with ...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Digital, Giclée

"Post Time, " Framed Limited Edition Giclee Print, 18" x 24"
Located in Westport, CT
This coastal Limited Edition print by Daniel Pollera features a white row boat with two ores resting on either side of the boat's edge. It is tied to a wooden post in the water with ...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Digital, Giclée

"Post Time, " Framed Limited Edition Giclee Print, 24" x 32"
Located in Westport, CT
This coastal Limited Edition print by Daniel Pollera features a white row boat with two ores resting on either side of the boat's edge. It is tied to a wooden post in the water with ...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Digital, Giclée

"Beached, " Framed Limited Edition Giclee Print, 36" x 54"
Located in Westport, CT
This coastal Limited Edition print by Daniel Pollera depicts a brightly-lit row boat, with two ores resting on either edge of the boat, sitting on a small island of sand in the water...
Category

2010s Realist Art

Materials

Digital, Giclée

Realist art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Realist art 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 art 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 Slim Aarons, Michael Budden, Daniel Pollera, and Su Yu. 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 art, so small editions measuring 0.1 inches across are also available.

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