Photorealist Art
PHOTOREALISM
A direct challenge to Abstract Expressionism’s subjectivity and gestural vigor, Photorealism was informed by the Pop predilection for representational imagery, popular iconography and tools, like projectors and airbrushes, borrowed from the worlds of commercial art and design.
Whether gritty or gleaming, the subject matter favored by Photorealists is instantly, if vaguely, familiar. It’s the stuff of yellowing snapshots and fugitive memories. The bland and the garish alike flicker between crystal-clear reality and dreamy illusion, inviting the viewer to contemplate a single moment rather than igniting a story.
The virtues of the “photo” in Photorealist art — infused as they are with dazzling qualities that are easily blurred in reproduction — are as elusive as they are allusive. “Much Photorealist painting has the vacuity of proportion and intent of an idiot-savant, long on look and short on personal timbre,” John Arthur wrote (rather admiringly) in the catalogue essay for Realism/Photorealism, a 1980 exhibition at the Philbrook Museum of Art, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. At its best, Photorealism is a perpetually paused tug-of-war between the sacred and the profane, the general and the specific, the record and the object.
“Robert Bechtle invented Photorealism, in 1963,” says veteran art dealer Louis Meisel. “He took a picture of himself in the mirror with the car outside and then painted it. That was the first one.”
The meaning of the term, which began for Meisel as “a superficial way of defining and promoting a group of painters,” evolved with time, and the core group of Photorealists slowly expanded to include younger artists who traded Rolleiflexes for 60-megapixel cameras, using advanced digital technology to create paintings that transcend the detail of conventional photographs.
On 1stDibs, the collection of Photorealist art includes work by Richard Estes, Ralph Goings, Chuck Close, Audrey Flack, Charles Bell and others.
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Style: Photorealist
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1964, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1964
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1964, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1964
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1964, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1964
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Male Nude Figure Study), 1964, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Male Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1964
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provenanc...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Female Figure Study), 1964, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Figure Study)
Year: circa 1964
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provenance: ...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Charcoal, Archival Paper
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1964, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1964
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1964, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1964
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1963, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1963
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1963, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1963
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1963, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1963
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Charcoal, Archival Paper
Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study), 1963, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Female Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1963
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provena...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Paper, Charcoal
Untitled (Renaissance Male Nude Figure Study), 1963, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Male Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1963
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provenanc...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Charcoal, Archival Paper
Untitled (Renaissance Male Nude Figure Study), 1963, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Untitled (Renaissance Male Nude Figure Study)
Year: circa 1963
Medium: Charcoal on archival paper
Size: 18 x 23 inches
Condition: Good
Provenanc...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Charcoal, Archival Paper
Friedrich‘s Window: Variation # 4 (Water and Mist) 1981, Ian Hornak — Painting
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: Friedrich‘s Window: Variation # 4
Year: 1981
Medium: Acrylic on canvas
Size: 12.5 x 10 inches
Condition: Good
Provenance: Fischbach Gallery, New...
Category
1980s Photorealist Art
Materials
Acrylic, Canvas
"Ram" Original Painting by Tammy Liu-Haller
Located in Denver, CO
Tammy Liu-Haller's "Ram" is an original, handmade graphite on clayboard, gold leaf and acrylic that depicts a ram with majestic horns.
About the artist:
Tammy was born in 1975 in K...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Gold Leaf
"Bison" Original Buffalo Painting by Tammy Liu-Haller
Located in Denver, CO
Tammy Liu-Haller's "Bison" is an original, handmade graphite on clayboard, gold leaf and acrylic that depicts a buffalo in profile.
About the artist:
Tammy was born in 1975 in Kin...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Gold Leaf
Brightness of the Sky Above
Located in Colorado Springs, US
One of a kind, original Charcoal on Paper Drawing by Rachel Brownlee.
Signed lower right.
Framed Dimensions: 29" X 35"
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Art
Materials
Charcoal
Peace
Located in Colorado Springs, US
One of a kind, original Charcoal on Paper Drawing by Rachel Brownlee.
Signed lower right.
Framed Dimensions: 28" X 34"
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Art
Materials
Charcoal
Bright Eyes
Located in Colorado Springs, US
One of a kind, original Charcoal on Paper Drawing by Rachel Brownlee.
Signed lower right.
Framed Dimensions: 19.25" X 16.25"
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Photorealist Art
Materials
Charcoal
George Barris, "Warm Up", hand signed, photolithograph
Located in Chatsworth, CA
Taken just two and a half weeks before her untimely death "Warm Up" is considered to be the last photo taken of the last photo shoot of Marilyn Monroe by George Barris at Santa Monic...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Photographic Paper
San Gottardo
Located in Milano, MI
Photo taken inside the San Gottardo church - Milan (Italy).
Marcelo Soulé (Buenos Aires, 1958) trained at the Artistic Lyceum and the Brera Academy in Milan. He lives and works betw...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Black and White, Inkjet, Pigment
Silence. Limited edition no. I/V
Located in Kraków, Województwo małopolskie
"Silence" is a limited edition of a black and white photograph by the contemporary artist Tadeusz Zych from the Black and White States series. The photo was taken during a trip to Fr...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Digital Pigment
"Last of the Season", Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Heather Neill's (US based) "Last of the Season" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a suspended tomato with the hand of a gardener with glove. A yellow bird is hoverin...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Oil
"Calling All Muses", Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Heather Neill's (US based) "Calling All Muses" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a whimsical still life featuring a porcelain tea cup, b...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Oil
Portrait of Nikita Khrushchev in Profile, Mid Century Black & White Photograph
By Yousuf Karsh
Located in Soquel, CA
Exquisite black and white photograph of Nikita Khrushchev, a portrait in profile of the former Premier of the Soviet Union, by Yousuf Karsh from his ...
Category
1960s Photorealist Art
Materials
Silver Gelatin, Photographic Paper
Blood and Milk VII - underwater nude photograph, archival print on paper 16x23"
By Alex Sher
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
An underwater nude photograph of a young woman with white tulle scarf taking off her red skirt on bright red background.
Original gallery quality archival pigment print on archiva...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Digital, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment
David Bowie Smoking Clown contact sheet by Duffy, with silver frame
By Brian Duffy
Located in Austin, US
Museum quality contact sheet print of David Bowie smoking a cigarette in the Scary Monsters Clown costume from the official Duffy Archive.
Taken from the original negatives, these o...
Category
Late 20th Century Photorealist Art
Materials
C Print
Danae and Zeus - underwater nude photograph - print on paper 27x35"
By Alex Sher
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
An underwater photograph of a naked young woman wrapped in golden tulle. Her body position, her beautiful face, and golden reflection remind Ancient Greek myth of Zeus and Danae.
O...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Six Robes (75 x 117 inches), Lowell Nesbitt - Painting
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933-1993)
Title: Six Robes
Year: 1974
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 74 x 117 inches
Condition: Good
Inscription: Signed, dated, titled by the artist, verso
Pro...
Category
1970s Photorealist Art
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Lotus (Shar Pei) in the Studio (75 x 90 inches), Lowell Nesbitt - Painting
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933-1993)
Title: Lotus in the Studio
Year: 1978
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 75 x 90 inches
Condition: Good
Inscription: Signed, dated, titled by the artist,...
Category
1970s Photorealist Art
Materials
Canvas, Oil
(Hudson River Landscape) Untitled, 1985, Ian Hornak — Painting
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002)
Title: (Hudson River Landscape) Untitled
Year: 1985
Medium: Acrylic on illustration board
Size: 12.5 x 10 inches
Condition: Good
Provenance: Estate of ...
Category
1980s Photorealist Art
Materials
Acrylic, Illustration Board
Vegetable Triptych II (100 x 80 inches), Lowell Nesbitt - Painting
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933-1993)
Title: Vegetable Triptych II
Year: 1977-1978
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 100 x 80 inches
Condition: Good
Inscription: Signed, dated, titled by the ...
Category
1970s Photorealist Art
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Work Clothes On Studio Floor (70 x 90 inches), Lowell Nesbitt - Painting
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933-1993)
Title: Work Clothes On Studio Floor
Year: 1974
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 70 x 90 inches
Condition: Good
Inscription: Signed, dated, titled by the...
Category
1970s Photorealist Art
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Yellow and Blue Jumpsuits (57.5 x 100 inches), Lowell Nesbitt - Painting
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933-1993)
Title: Yellow and Blue Jumpsuits
Year: 1974
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 57.5 x 100 inches
Condition: Good
Inscription: Signed, dated, titled by th...
Category
1970s Photorealist Art
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Fruit on Romanian Rug IV (100 x 80 inches), Lowell Nesbitt - Painting
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933-1993)
Title: Fruit on Romanian Rug IV
Year: 1977-1980
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 100 x 80 inches
Condition: Good
Inscription: Signed, dated, titled by t...
Category
1970s Photorealist Art
Materials
Oil, Canvas
Vegetable Triptych I (100 x 80 inches), Lowell Nesbitt - Painting
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933-1993)
Title: Vegetable Triptych I
Year: 1977-1978
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 100 x 80 inches
Condition: Good
Inscription: Signed, dated, titled by the a...
Category
1970s Photorealist Art
Materials
Oil, Canvas
The Super Constellation Lockheed - Full Framed Fine Art Edition
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
This photo was made in 1953, the negative was digitized during the artist's lifetime and the technical parameters (fram...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
The Boeing 377 Stratocruiser (CIA-Roma) - Full Framed Fine Art Edition
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
This photo was made in 1953, the negative was digitized during the artist's lifetime and the technical parameters (fram...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Famiglia numerosa, Bangkok 1958 - Full Framed Black & White Fine Art Print
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
Famiglia numerosa, Bangkok
This photo was made in 1958, the negative was digitized during the artist's lifetime and th...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
San Giorgio
Located in Milano, MI
Photo taken inside the San Giorgio church - Milan (Italy).
Marcelo Soulé (Buenos Aires, 1958) trained at the Artistic Lyceum and the Brera Academy in Milan. He lives and works betwe...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Black and White, Inkjet, Pigment
Cities Services Building (Blue), Etching by Richard Haas
By Richard Haas
Located in Long Island City, NY
Richard Haas, American (1936 - ) - Cities Services Building (Blue). Year: 2005, Medium: Etching, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 30, Image Size: 20 x 16 inches, Size: 26 x ...
Category
Early 2000s Photorealist Art
Materials
Etching
American Radiator Building (Blue), Etching by Richard Haas
By Richard Haas
Located in Long Island City, NY
Richard Haas, American (1936 - ) - American Radiator Building (Blue). Year: 2005, Medium: Etching, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 30, Image Size: 20 x 16 inches, Size: 26 ...
Category
Early 2000s Photorealist Art
Materials
Etching
General Electric Building (Blue), Etching by Richard Haas
By Richard Haas
Located in Long Island City, NY
Richard Haas, American (1936 - ) - General Electric Building (Blue). Year: 2005, Medium: Etching, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 30, Image Size: 20 x 16 inches, Size: 26 x...
Category
Early 2000s Photorealist Art
Materials
Etching
La Rolls del Re - Bangkok - Thaïland - Full Framed Black & White Fine Art Print
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
This photo was made in 1961, printed later, the negative was digitized during the artist's lifetime and the technical p...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Eiffel Tower, Tokyo ( 1957 ) - Japan - Full Framed Black & White Fine Art Print
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
Eiffel Tower, Tokyo - Japan
This photo was made in 1957, the negative was digitized during the artist's lifetime and th...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
The Grand Place of Brussel - 2013 - Full Framed color panoramic photography
Located in Brussels, BE
Panoramic cityscape made from 15 pictures
Pigment photographic paper - photography & fine art print © Jean Pierre De Neef -
This is a Minimalist framing & presentation of the artwor...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Tradizioni scomparse, Hong Kong 1958 - Full Framed Black & White Fine Art Print
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
Tradizioni scomparse, Hong Kong
This photo was made in 1958, the negative was digitized during the artist's lifetime an...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Night Flight - underwater black & white nude photograph - print on paper 23x32"
By Alex Sher
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
An underwater black and white nude photograph of a young woman in the pool. The photograph was taken with black backdrop.
Original gallery quality print signed by the artist.
Digit...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
The Piazza Navona, Roma - Italy 2019 - Full Framed Panoramic Color Photography
Located in Brussels, BE
Pigment photographic paper - photography & fine art print © Jean Pierre De Neef
Artwork sold in perfect condition from a limited edition of 12 ex- Composition from an assembly of 12...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Purezza, Miyajima - Japan 1960 - Full Framed Black & White Fine Art Print
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
Purezza, Miyajima - Japan 1960
This photo was made in 1960, the negative was digitized during the artist's lifetime and...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Il cuoco felice - Thailand 1959 - Full Framed Black & White Fine Art Print
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
Il cuoco felice
This photo was made in 1959, printed later, the negative was digitized during the artist's lifetime and...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Trafic jam in Bangkok -Thailand 1957 - Full Framed Black & White Fine Art Print
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
Trafic Jam in Bangkok
This is a Minimalist framing & presentation of the artwork :
The Fine Art print on Baryta paper i...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
La sorella maggiore, Thailand (1959) - Full Framed Black & White Fine Art Print
Located in Brussels, BE
Artwork # 1 on 5 sold in limited edition in perfect condition
« La sorella maggiore », In a Méo village, Thaïland
This is a Minimalist framing & presentation of the artwork :
The F...
Category
1950s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
A wet November
Located in Zofingen, AG
In this oil painting, I sought to capture the reflective mood of an urban evening, emboldening the canvas with the vibrant contrast of city lights against the brooding blues of a rai...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Oil
San Babila
Located in Milano, MI
Photo taken inside the San Babila church - Milan (Italy).
Marcelo Soulé (Buenos Aires, 1958) trained at the Artistic Lyceum and the Brera Academy in Milan. He lives and works betwee...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Black and White, Inkjet, Pigment
Reflections on Forest Pond in the English Countryside with Warm Yellows & Browns
Located in Preston, GB
Reflections on Forest Pond in the English Countryside with Warm Yellows & Browns, by 20th Century British Artist, Christopher Osborne.
Art measures 12 x 10 inches
Frame measures 18 ...
Category
1970s Photorealist Art
Materials
Oil, Board
Coney Island, New York
Located in Atlanta, GA
This painting is in excellent condition and has only been shown in a gallery setting.
Jesús Navarro was born in Jerez, (Cadiz), located in southern Spain, in 1952. By the age of tw...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Hot Pretzel - underwater nude photograph - archival pigment print 16"x23"
By Alex Sher
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Underwater nude photograph of a girl diving in a swimming pool.
Original gallery quality print signed by the artist.
Digital archival pigment print on archival paper with metallic ...
Category
2010s Photorealist Art
Materials
Archival Pigment
Photorealist art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Photorealist 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, red, purple, orange and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Alex Sher, Gregory Block, Lowell Nesbitt, and Ian Hornak. 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 Photorealist art, so small editions measuring 0.79 inches across are also available. Prices for art made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $11 and tops out at $585,000, while the average work sells for $2,404.